Resources

ComReg is the designated Market Surveillance Authority in respect of the Radio Equipment Directive 2014/53/EU (“RED”).

The RED is transposed into Irish law by way of the European Union (Radio Equipment) Regulations 2017 (S.I. No. 248/2017)  (“RE Regulations”), which establishes a regulatory framework for placing radio equipment on the market.

The Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive 2014/30/EU (“EMCD”) aims to ensure that electrical and electronic equipment does not generate, and is not affected by, electromagnetic disturbance. The EMCD limits unintentional electromagnetic emissions from equipment to ensure that, when used as intended, the equipment does not disturb radio and telecommunication, or other equipment. The Directive also governs the immunity of such equipment to interference and seeks to ensure that this equipment is not disturbed by radio emissions, when used as intended.

The EMCD is transposed into Irish law by way of the European Union (Electromagnetic Compatibility) Regulations 2017 (S.I. No. 69/2017) (“EMC Regulations”) and establishes a regulatory framework for placing equipment on the market by setting essential requirements for all equipment.

ComReg is the designated Market Surveillance Authority in respect of the EMCD.

The new Market Surveillance Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 (“MSR”) on market surveillance and compliance of products and amending Directive 2004/42/EC and Regulations (EC) No 765/2008 and (EU) No 305/2011 was published in 2019 to improve and modernise market surveillance.

The RE Regulations and EMC Regulations are amended to give effect to the Market Surveillance Regulations.

The AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689) is the first-ever comprehensive legal framework on AI worldwide. The aim of the rules is to foster trustworthy AI in Europe.

The AI Act sets out a clear set of risk-based rules for AI developers and deployers regarding specific uses of AI. The AI Act is part of a wider package of policy measures to support the development of trustworthy AI, which also includes the AI Innovation Package, the launch of AI Factories and the Coordinated Plan on AI.

The new Market Surveillance Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 (“MSR”) on market surveillance and compliance of products and amending Directive 2004/42/EC and Regulations (EC) No 765/2008 and (EU) No 305/2011 was published in 2019 to improve and modernise market surveillance.

The RE Regulations and EMC Regulations are amended to give effect to the Market Surveillance Regulations.

The Irish Market Surveillance Authorities along with their responsibilities under various pieces of EU product safety legislation can be found here.

The European Single Market, Internal Market or Common Market is a single market comprising the 27 member states of the European Union as well as – with certain exceptions – Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway through the Agreement on the European Economic Area, and Switzerland through bilateral treaties.

The EU provides notification tools such as ICSMS and Safety Gate to ensure that information on non-compliant products is shared in a timely fashion thereby enabling the relevant market surveillance authorities to take appropriate action.