EBA discussed technical regulation and “industrial visa-free regime” with the Ministry of Economy

17/ 05/ 2024

On May 16, the EBA held a meeting with Vitaliy Kindrativ, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine, and his colleagues to discuss various technical regulation issues. Thus, Mr. Kindrativ informed that Ukraine is approaching the start of negotiations on signing the Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products (ACAA Agreement) on the so-called “industrial visa-free regime” with the European Union. Ukraine has already fulfilled 6 of the 7 criteria set by the European side, which are necessary for the official assessment of the implementation of recommendations and the start of negotiations. The last remaining criterion is the adoption of amendments to the Law of Ukraine on Market Surveillance of Non-Food Products No. 2735-VI to bring it in line with EU Regulation No. 2019/1020 on market surveillance and product conformity, which, according to the Deputy Minister, should be supported by the Government and submitted to the Parliament in the near future. At the same time, the Ukrainian side continues to communicate with the European Commission, which, in turn, is consulting with member states on Ukraines progress in this area. The process of transition to the official assessment and negotiations on the signing of the ACAA Agreement may begin in the third quarter of 2024. Further, all procedures for its conclusion should be completed. At the same time, the Ministry of Economy will be working to expand the list of industries that will be able to benefit from the “industrial visa-free regime”. The Deputy Minister also reported on the readiness of the infrastructure, including conformity assessment bodies and their technical base, to conduct conformity assessment work in accordance with European requirements. The technical assessments of the monitoring mission have been completed and confirmed as capable and sufficient to start work. The EBA experts mentioned the draft Government Resolution “On Amendments to Certain Resolutions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on Technical Regulation” in the context of changes to the technical regulations for low-voltage equipment and electromagnetic compatibility, to which the Association submitted its proposals and reservations regarding the possibility of applying European declarations of conformity. According to the Ministry of Economy, the recognition of EU declarations requires legislative regulation, and the relevant changes have already been initiated. Thus, for the technical regulations covered by the ACAA Agreement, the EU technical dossier will be recognized to assess the conformity of products with the requirements of Ukrainian legislation, and the European declaration of conformity itself will need to be translated into Ukrainian. In addition, the EBA representatives drew attention to the draft Government Resolution “On the Functioning of the State Register of Confirmed Conformity Documents”, as the Association does not support this initiative, which provides for the creation of a corresponding Register. This would create an additional burden on business, and this initiative contradicts the norms of EU legislation. We hope that the Ministry of Economy will take into account the position of business. We are grateful to Vitaliy Kindrativ and his team for the meeting and substantive discussion of technical regulation issues of concern to business. The event was organized with the support of the International Renaissance Foundation and the European Union within the framework of the joint initiative “European Renaissance of Ukraine.” The material represents the authors’ position and does not necessarily reflect the position of the International Renaissance Foundation and the European Union

On May 16, the EBA held a meeting with Vitaliy Kindrativ, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine, and his colleagues to discuss various technical regulation issues.

Thus, Mr. Kindrativ informed that Ukraine is approaching the start of negotiations on signing the Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products (ACAA Agreement) on the so-called “industrial visa-free regime” with the European Union. Ukraine has already fulfilled 6 of the 7 criteria set by the European side, which are necessary for the official assessment of the implementation of recommendations and the start of negotiations. The last remaining criterion is the adoption of amendments to the Law of Ukraine on Market Surveillance of Non-Food Products No. 2735-VI to bring it in line with EU Regulation No. 2019/1020 on market surveillance and product conformity, which, according to the Deputy Minister, should be supported by the Government and submitted to the Parliament in the near future.

At the same time, the Ukrainian side continues to communicate with the European Commission, which, in turn, is consulting with member states on Ukraine’s progress in this area. The process of transition to the official assessment and negotiations on the signing of the ACAA Agreement may begin in the third quarter of 2024. Further, all procedures for its conclusion should be completed. At the same time, the Ministry of Economy will be working to expand the list of industries that will be able to benefit from the “industrial visa-free regime”.

The Deputy Minister also reported on the readiness of the infrastructure, including conformity assessment bodies and their technical base, to conduct conformity assessment work in accordance with European requirements.

The technical assessments of the monitoring mission have been completed and confirmed as capable and sufficient to start work.

The EBA experts mentioned the draft Government Resolution “On Amendments to Certain Resolutions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on Technical Regulation” in the context of changes to the technical regulations for low-voltage equipment and electromagnetic compatibility, to which the Association submitted its proposals and reservations regarding the possibility of applying European declarations of conformity. According to the Ministry of Economy, the recognition of EU declarations requires legislative regulation, and the relevant changes have already been initiated. Thus, for the technical regulations covered by the ACAA Agreement, the EU technical dossier will be recognized to assess the conformity of products with the requirements of Ukrainian legislation, and the European declaration of conformity itself will need to be translated into Ukrainian.

In addition, the EBA representatives drew attention to the draft Government Resolution “On the Functioning of the State Register of Confirmed Conformity Documents”, as the Association does not support this initiative, which provides for the creation of a corresponding Register. This would create an additional burden on business, and this initiative contradicts the norms of EU legislation. We hope that the Ministry of Economy will take into account the position of business.

We are grateful to Vitaliy Kindrativ and his team for the meeting and substantive discussion of technical regulation issues of concern to business.

The event was organized with the support of the International Renaissance Foundation and the European Union within the framework of the joint initiative “European Renaissance of Ukraine.” The material represents the authors’ position and does not necessarily reflect the position of the International Renaissance Foundation and the European Union