IECEE CB Scheme: One Test, Many National Certificates

What is the CB Scheme, in one sentence?

It is an international agreement to stop testing the same product twice. Created by the IEC System of Conformity Assessment Schemes for Electrotechnical Equipment and Components (IECEE), it rests on participating laboratories and certification bodies accepting each other’s product safety test results.

The scale is the point. The scheme runs in more than 130 countries, with 54 Member Body countries, 90 National Certification Bodies and 556 testing laboratories behind it. In 2020 alone, 124,130 CB Test Certificates were issued, about 10 percent more than the year before.

Which products does it cover?

The scheme is built around electrical safety, and the categories most exporters ask about are:

• IT and office equipment
• Lighting systems
• Domestic consumer electronics and appliances, sockets, plugs, coffee machines, chargers and similar

Not every product group is covered, because coverage follows the available standards rather than the product catalogue. Confirm whether a specific group falls inside the scheme before any testing is booked.

Why not just use EN test results?

Because they stop at the EU border. European manufacturers usually hold tests to EN standards, which apply within the EU and may simply not be recognised elsewhere. Some countries accept tests from an accredited EU laboratory, but many do not.

The IEC route avoids the problem from the other direction. Roughly 80 percent of European electrical and electronic standards are in fact international IEC standards, so testing to IEC generally satisfies CE as well.

The scheme also handles the awkward part of selling into many markets: national deviations. Voltage, socket geometry and similar local conditions differ from country to country, and testing can cover the base standard plus the specific deviations for the markets you are targeting.

How long does it take, and how long does it last?

Certification remains valid for roughly three years, or until the next published amendment to the standard or a change to the product, whichever comes first.

Where does the testing happen?

CB tests must be run by an accredited laboratory, and the honest constraint is that a suitable one may not exist in the manufacturer’s own country. The accreditation list, equipment and experience are checked before a laboratory is selected.

WWBridge runs CB tests in the UK, Italy, Germany, China, the UAE, India, Korea and Poland, including a laboratory accredited by Amazon for certain telecom and electrical equipment.

What do you need to provide for a quotation?

Two things are mandatory: the HS code and a technical description. Additional information may be requested once the product parameters have been reviewed.

A user manual is not enough. An engineer needs the real detail, drawings, the number of modules, the differences between items in a family group, to understand what is being tested. To begin testing, samples and the technical description are sufficient; certificates for any components that require them are requested alongside.

Two cases where the scheme changed the plan

A socket manufacturer approached us intending to run CB tests in order to enter Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. On reviewing the product, a different regulation turned out to apply. The client was reoriented to the correct standard, CB tests were run against it, a G-mark was requested, and only then was the Saudi certification submitted.

A motor manufacturer had enquiries from South Korea, Australia, Singapore, India and the Middle East, but could not import anywhere for lack of local tests, and held no international IEC certification. Testing separately in each country was possible. Instead, base tests to the international standard were run once and the national approvals submitted against them without further testing, which reduced the cost by an order of magnitude.