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Artifact GuideEU

LVD Technical Documentation

For electrical equipment in the Low Voltage Directive scope, the must let a reviewer assess conformity with the applicable LVD requirements.

Build the file around product identification, design and manufacturing records, operating explanations, risk evidence, standards or alternative safety solutions, test reports, declaration, CE marking, instructions, and authority access.

Back to main artifactReview sources
Author
Sorena AI
Published
May 9, 2026
Updated
Jul 24, 2026
4 sections4 primary sources
Overview

Directive 2014/35/EU has applied since 20 April 2016. LVD is the manufacturer's controlled evidence file for electrical equipment designed for use between 50 and 1,000 V AC or between 75 and 1,500 V DC and not excluded by Annex II. Under internal production control, Annex III requires enough information to assess conformity, including an adequate analysis and assessment of risks, the applicable requirements, and the design, manufacture, and operation of the electrical equipment where relevant. The file supports the manufacturer's own conformity decision; it is not an approval dossier issued by an EU authority or notified body.

Section 1

Core file contents

Start the file with a precise product identity: model name, type, batch or serial-number logic, rated voltage, intended use, variants, accessories, firmware or control-board version where relevant, and the manufacturer identity used on the equipment, packaging, or accompanying document.

Annex III then expects the file to explain what the equipment is, how it is designed and manufactured, and how it operates. Keep the general description next to conceptual design drawings, manufacturing drawings, component and sub-assembly schemes, circuit information, and explanations needed to understand those drawings and the product's operation. Index each record to the controlled product revision so a reviewer can reconstruct the configuration assessed and distinguish later production changes.

  • Include a general description that lets the reviewer distinguish this product model from similar models or variants.
  • Keep drawings and schemes for components, sub-assemblies, circuits, protective parts, insulation design, enclosures, connections, and other safety-relevant features.
  • Add explanations for drawings, schemes, operating modes, installation conditions, user-accessible parts, safety interlocks, controls, warnings, and protective measures.
  • Connect the manufacturing record to the technical file so production monitoring can show that manufactured units remain aligned with the documented design.
Section 2

Risk, standards, and test evidence

Annex III requires an adequate analysis and assessment of risks. A folder of certificates does not meet that requirement, and the LVD guide explains that applying harmonised standards does not remove the need to assess the product's specific risks. The risk record should connect each material Annex I objective to the hazard and foreseeable condition, protective design measure, evidence, result, and any residual warning or instruction.

List the harmonised standards applied in full or in part and verify their references, restrictions, and withdrawal dates in the Official Journal of the European Union. Standards are voluntary. If the manufacturer does not rely on an applicable harmonised standard, the file must describe the technical solutions used to meet the LVD safety objectives and provide enough calculations, examinations, and test evidence to assess those solutions; a standard catalogue entry alone has no presumption-of-conformity effect.

  • Keep a risk assessment tied to the specific model, intended use, reasonably foreseeable use, installation environment, accessible surfaces, electrical insulation, mechanical stability, heat, fire, and other safety-relevant hazards.
  • For each standard, record the title, edition, OJEU reference status, clauses applied, clauses not applied, and the product variants or functions covered.
  • When standards are only partly applied, identify the applied parts and explain the safety solution for uncovered risks or requirements.
  • Keep design calculations, examinations, verification records, and test reports with traceability to the tested sample, configuration, laboratory or internal test setup, acceptance criteria, and result.
Recommended next step

Review your LVD technical file before release

Check whether the product identity, design records, risk assessment, standards evidence, tests, declaration, CE marking, instructions, labels, retention owner, and authority-response path are complete for the product model.

Research workflow
Open Research Copilot

Check LVD technical-documentation questions against cited EU sources.

Explore next step
Talk to Sorena
Talk through implementation

Review your LVD technical file structure, evidence gaps, and authority-response process.

Explore next step
Section 3

Declaration, marking, instructions, and labelling evidence

Keep the EU declaration of conformity with the . The declaration should identify the electrical equipment covered by it and state that fulfilment of the LVD safety objectives has been demonstrated.

The record should also preserve the CE marking evidence and user-facing compliance material: label artwork, rating-plate content, packaging proofs where used, manufacturer contact details, product identification, and the instructions and safety information supplied with the equipment. These records show what accompanied the equipment in each market; they do not turn a test certificate or CE logo into third-party approval.

  • Confirm that the EU declaration of conformity follows the LVD model structure, identifies the product model, and is kept current when the product or applicable Union acts change.
  • Keep CE marking artwork or label proofs showing that the marking is visible, legible, indelible, and affixed before the equipment is placed on the market.
  • Retain the instructions and safety information supplied with the equipment in the language required for the Member State where the product is made available.
  • Keep copies of labels and accompanying documents showing product identification, manufacturer name or trade mark, and the postal address for the single contact point.
Section 4

Retention and authority access

Manufacturers must keep the and EU declaration of conformity for 10 years after the electrical equipment has been placed on the market. Annex III also requires the written declaration to be kept with the technical documentation at the disposal of national market surveillance authorities for that period.

Importers must keep a copy of the EU declaration of conformity for 10 years after placing the equipment on the market and ensure that the can be made available to authorities on request. Distributors do not have the manufacturer's or importer's express document-retention duty, but the Commission guidance explains that they must be able to identify the relevant supply-chain actors and assist authorities in obtaining the declaration and necessary parts of the technical documentation.

  • Set retention from the placement-on-the-market date of the equipment covered by the file. For a model placed on the market over time, record the placement span and do not calculate disposal only from the model's first launch date; the file must remain available for equipment placed on the market within the preceding 10 years.
  • Keep the declaration, technical file index, test reports, risk assessment, standards evidence, label proofs, instructions, and change history together or cross-referenced.
  • For imported equipment, obtain written assurance that the manufacturer can provide the when a market surveillance authority requests it.
  • Record authority requests, documents supplied, language or translation handling, corrective actions, withdrawals, recalls, and closure evidence.
Primary sources

References and citations

Directive 2014/35/EU on electrical equipment within certain voltage limits
eur-lex.europa.eu5 citations
Referenced sections
  • Primary legal source for LVD technical documentation, risk assessment, standards evidence, test reports, EU declaration, CE marking, instructions, labelling, retention, and authority access.
  • Annex III requires the technical documentation to cover the product description, design, manufacture, operation, drawings, schemes, and explanatory material where relevant.
  • Annex III requires risk analysis, standards lists, alternative technical solutions, design calculations, examinations, and test reports.
Show 2 more
  • Articles 6, 15, and 17 and Annex III support the EU declaration, CE marking, product identification, contact details, instructions, and labelling evidence.
  • Articles 6 and 8 and Annex III support the 10-year retention rule and authority-access obligations for technical documentation and the EU declaration.
"technical documentation"
More quoted passages
"design, manufacture and operation"
"test reports"
"visibly, legibly and indelibly"
"for 10 years"
European Commission - LVD guidelines
ec.europa.eu5 citations
Referenced sections
  • Commission guidance used for practical interpretation of Annex III, risk assessment, importer access, distributor support, declaration, CE marking, and instructions.
  • Commission LVD guidance repeats the Annex III file elements and explains the manufacturer's internal-production-control evidence model.
  • The LVD guide explains that product-specific risk analysis remains necessary even when harmonised standards are used.
Show 2 more
  • The LVD guide explains declaration, CE marking, instructions, safety information, and labelling expectations for manufacturers, importers, and distributors.
  • The LVD guide explains importer access to technical documentation and distributor support for authority requests.
"Low Voltage Directive Guidelines"
More quoted passages
"three main elements"
"risk analysis"
"instructions and safety information"
"available upon request"
European Commission - harmonised standards overview
single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu2 citations
Referenced sections
  • Commission overview used for OJEU publication and voluntary-use context for harmonised standards referenced in the technical documentation.
  • Commission overview explains that harmonised-standard references are published in the OJEU and that manufacturers may use them to show compliance with relevant EU legislation.
"harmonised standard"
More quoted passages
"published in the Official Journal"
European Commission - New legislative framework
single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu2 citations
Referenced sections
  • Commission context for the LVD's alignment with horizontal product-law concepts such as conformity assessment, market surveillance, and CE marking.
  • Commission NLF page gives horizontal context for market surveillance, conformity assessment, accreditation, CE marking, and aligned product legislation including the LVD.
"CE marking"
More quoted passages
"market surveillance"

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