Artifact GuideEU

EU Low Voltage Directive Standard Selection

Choose LVD standards by product scope, OJEU citation status, stated limitations, and the Annex I safety objectives each standard actually covers.

Use this page to build a technical-file record that explains the selected harmonised standards, any partial application, and the alternative specifications used for uncovered risks.

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Author
Sorena AI
Published
May 9, 2026
Updated
May 9, 2026
Sections
4

Structured answer sets in this page tree.

Primary sources
5

Cited legal and guidance references.

Publication metadata
Sorena AI
Published May 9, 2026
Updated May 9, 2026
Overview

LVD standard selection is not a search for any familiar EN number. The defensible record shows that the product is electrical equipment within the LVD voltage range, that each selected harmonised standard is cited for Directive 2014/35/EU in the Official Journal of the European Union, and that the standard's scope covers the product configuration and the Annex I hazards being claimed.

Section 1

Select only standards that support the LVD claim

Start from the product, not from a legacy certificate. Identify the rated input and output voltages, intended use, foreseeable installation conditions, accessories, software-controlled safety functions, supplied power cords, batteries, chargers, enclosures, and any other Union product rules that may apply alongside the LVD.

A harmonised standard gives presumption of conformity only for the safety objectives or parts of safety objectives covered by that standard after its reference is published in the OJEU. Treat the Commission LVD harmonised-standards page and the current implementing decisions as the source for publication, withdrawal, and replacement status.

  • Record the exact standard reference, edition, amendment, corrigendum, and product-family scope relied on for the LVD claim.
  • Check whether the OJEU entry is current, withdrawn, awaiting withdrawal, or subject to a limitation before relying on it for presumption of conformity.
  • Do not treat guidance documents, internal test procedures, CB reports, or supplier certificates as substitutes for an OJEU-cited harmonised standard.
  • Where a product standard is revised, document whether the old reference still applies during a deferred withdrawal period or whether the new reference must be used.
Sources for this answer
Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/2723 on LVD harmonised standards
Supports using OJEU-published LVD harmonised-standard references, including publication, replacement, and withdrawal tables.
European Commission - Low voltage (LVD) harmonised standards
Commission LVD standards page used to verify that LVD standard references are published and withdrawn through Commission implementing decisions.
European Commission - harmonised standards overview
Explains the voluntary nature of harmonised standards and the role of OJEU publication in presumption of conformity.
Recommended next step

Check your LVD standards file before release

Review the product scope, OJEU-cited standards, Annex I hazard mapping, uncovered risks, and technical-file evidence before signing the EU declaration of conformity.

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Open Research Copilot

Check LVD scope, cited standards, and evidence questions with sourced outputs.

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Talk through implementation

Review your standards matrix, risk gaps, declarations, and release evidence.

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Section 2

Map each standard to Annex I hazards

The standards table should say what each selected standard proves. Map clauses and test reports to the LVD Annex I safety objectives: safe marking and instructions, safe assembly and connection, protection against direct and indirect contact, dangerous temperatures, arcs, radiation, non-electrical dangers revealed by experience, suitable insulation, mechanical requirements, environmental influences, and foreseeable overload.

A single product may need more than one standard family. For example, a household appliance, its charger, its cord set, surge protection, enclosure ingress protection, and control equipment may draw on different cited standards. The technical file should make those boundaries explicit instead of presenting one standard as total coverage.

  • For each hazard, identify the selected standard clause, test report, design calculation, inspection record, or engineering rationale.
  • Mark partial application clearly when only some clauses or parts of a standard apply to the product.
  • Separate LVD safety evidence from EMC, RED, RoHS, machinery, construction-products, or other adjacent regimes so the EU declaration can name the correct Union acts.
  • Keep a gap row for every Annex I hazard that is not fully covered by the selected harmonised standards.
Sources for this answer
Directive 2014/35/EU on electrical equipment within certain voltage limits
Primary LVD source for Article 3 safety objectives, Article 12 presumption of conformity, and Annex I hazard categories.
Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/2723 on LVD harmonised standards
Confirms that presumption of conformity is limited to the safety objectives covered by the cited harmonised standards or parts of standards.
Section 3

Document alternatives where no harmonised standard fully covers the product

Harmonised standards are voluntary. If no cited standard fully covers a novel design, mixed technology, non-standard installation, or product-specific hazard, the manufacturer can still demonstrate conformity, but the technical file must explain the technical solution used to meet the LVD safety objectives.

Use the LVD order of evidence carefully. Where no relevant harmonised standard has been drawn up and published, the Directive recognises IEC safety provisions through the Article 13 publication process. Where neither harmonised nor Article 13 international standards have been published, Article 14 addresses national standards in the Member State of manufacture, subject to an equivalent safety level. These routes do not remove the need to check every Annex I hazard.

  • Describe the uncovered risk, why the harmonised standard does not fully address it, and the design measure, test method, calculation, or other technical specification used instead.
  • Keep the risk analysis separate from the standards list; choosing a standard does not supersede assessing product-specific risks.
  • For new techniques or software-controlled safety behavior, record the validation method and why it addresses the LVD hazard in foreseeable use and maintenance conditions.
  • If relying on IEC or national standards outside Article 12 harmonised standards, state why the Article 13 or Article 14 conditions are relevant and what safety objectives remain checked directly.
Sources for this answer
Directive 2014/35/EU on electrical equipment within certain voltage limits
Primary source for Articles 13 and 14 alternatives when harmonised standards have not been drawn up and published.
European Commission - harmonised standards overview
Supports that manufacturers may choose another technical solution to demonstrate compliance with mandatory legal requirements.
Section 4

Keep the standards evidence in the technical file

The LVD technical documentation must make it possible to assess conformity. For standard selection, that means the file should show the product version assessed, applicable requirements, standards applied in full or in part, other technical specifications used where standards were not applied, design calculations, examinations, and test reports.

Keep a dated standards-status check with the technical file and refresh it when the design changes, the product is modified for a new market or installation environment, a supplier changes a safety-critical component, a complaint or incident reveals a hazard, or a cited standard is amended, replaced, limited, or withdrawn from the OJEU.

  • Include a standards matrix with columns for OJEU reference, edition, amendments, withdrawal or cessation date if stated, product scope, hazards covered, clauses applied, and evidence location.
  • Attach test reports and design records to the product model, type, batch, firmware or hardware revision, and configuration tested.
  • List assumptions and exclusions, including accessories, installation conditions, environmental limits, maintenance conditions, and foreseeable overload scenarios.
  • Keep the EU declaration of conformity aligned with the standards and other technical specifications actually used for the product model.
Sources for this answer
Directive 2014/35/EU on electrical equipment within certain voltage limits
Primary source for manufacturer technical documentation, production conformity, EU declaration, and 10-year retention duties.
European Commission - Low Voltage Directive policy page
Commission LVD page used for policy context, LVD guidance access, and links to harmonised standards resources.
Primary sources

References and citations

European Commission - harmonised standards overview
single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu
Referenced sections
  • Supports that manufacturers may choose another technical solution to demonstrate compliance with mandatory legal requirements.
"free to choose another technical solution"
European Commission - Low voltage (LVD) harmonised standards
single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu
Referenced sections
  • Commission LVD standards page used to verify that LVD standard references are published and withdrawn through Commission implementing decisions.
"published in, and withdrawn from the Official Journal"
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