South Africa

Regulatory agency

National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS)

Regulations

• A Letter of Authority (LoA) is required by manufacturers of regulated products upon conformity assessment.
• Test reports must be from a test laboratory by a national accreditation body affiliated to the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) and/or be an IECEE CB Scheme member.
• On top of LoA, manufacturers of regulated products may choose to obtain the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) Mark.
• Compliance with SANS and/or IEC standards.

Guidelines

• A local representative is required.
• Manufacturers are first required to register with the NRCS Electrotechnical Department before a LOA will be issued.

LoA procedure:

• Application

• Submission of test report and essential documents

• Review

• Issuance of LoA

Applicable product categories

To determine if a particular product is subject to the above regulations, please contact us.

Regulatory agency

South African Bureau of Standards (SABS)

Regulations

• EMC compliance is required for the above, where applicable.
• CoC for EMC is required for some equipment.
• The test report should follow the new scheme option is ILAC-accredited and the related SANS standard is in scope. Customer can test with SABS A-Lab scheme Laboratories.*

Guidelines

Type approval procedure:

• Submission of application, test reports and essential documents.
• Review.
• Issuance of CoC.

Applicable product categories

To determine if a particular product is subject to the above regulations, please contact us.

* TÜV SÜD PSB Pte Ltd and TÜV SÜD America Inc. were assessed and recommended for inclusion into the SABS A-Lab Program.

Regulatory agency

Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA)

Regulations

• Type approval is required for regulated equipment.
• ICASA accept test reports against the relevant EN standards, provided that the testing has been performed at an accredited test facility.
• Products must be marked with ICASA label.

 

Guidelines

Type approval procedure:

• Submission of application, test reports and essential documents.
• Review.
• Issuance of type approval.
• Labelling as appropriate.

Applicable product categories

To determine if a particular product is subject to the above regulations, please contact us.

Regulatory agency

National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS)

Regulations

Energy Efficiency Label:

• A number of appliances sold in South Africa must be labelled with a South African Energy Efficiency Label. The label indicates how much electricity the appliance is expected to use and how the efficiency of the appliance is rated in relation to other appliances in the same category.

MEPS:

• South Africa has put in place regulations that require appliances sold in South Africa to meet Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS). These regulations have been put in place to protect consumers from purchasing appliances that use a wasteful amount of electricity.

Guidelines

Test reports in IEC/EN format or any equivalent format acceptable to the NRCS and issued by an appropriately accredited and internationally recognised body which is a member of an IAF/ILAC/IECEE mutual recognition scheme in accordance with the NRCS’s conformity assessment policy.

Applicable product categories

Product categories that require mandatory energy efficiency labelling include:

• Air conditioners
• Dishwashers
• Electric ovens
• General Service Lamps (GSLs)
• Light bulbs (electric lamps)
• Refrigerators and freezers
• Storage water heater
• Tumble dryers
• Washer-dryer combinations
• Washing machines

To determine if a particular product is subject to the above regulations, please contact us.

The following MEPS have been specified: 

Minimum Energy Efficiency Rating of Class A:	Minimum Energy Efficiency Rating of Class B:	Minimum Energy Efficiency Rating of Class C:	Minimum Energy Efficiency Rating of Class D:	Others:
Dishwashers Electric ovens (small & medium) Washer-dryers Washing machines	Air conditioners Electric overs (large) Fridges Fridge-freezers Storage water heater	Freezers	Tumble dryers	Audio-visual equipment - In passive standby mode power consumption should not exceed 1W, except for set-top boxes which must not exceed 3W.