EU RED scope and classification

Directive 2014/53/EU applies to radio equipment made available on the market or put into service in the Union. The legal definition covers electrical or electronic products that intentionally emit or receive radio waves for radio communication or radiodetermination, including products that need an accessory such as an antenna to perform that radio function.

Write the first scope answer as a fact chain. Identify the product configuration, each transmitter or receiver path, each antenna dependency, each radio technology, the software or firmware version affecting the radio function, the intended use, and whether the item is being first placed on the Union market, further made available, or put into service.

Before opening a RED test plan, rule out the explicit exclusions. Directive 2014/53/EU excludes equipment listed in Annex I and radio equipment exclusively used for public security, defence, State security, certain State economic-security matters, and State criminal-law activities. The Commission RED Guide warns that dual-use equipment remains in scope when it is not exclusively used for excluded activities.

The main Annex I exclusions to document are radio-amateur equipment unless it is made available on the market, marine equipment within the marine-equipment regime, specified aviation equipment within Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 and intended exclusively for airborne use, with additional design-certification and protected-frequency conditions for unmanned aircraft, and custom-built evaluation kits destined for professionals to be used solely at research and development facilities for research and development purposes.

Once RED applies, classification should move from scope to requirement buckets. Article 3(1)(a) covers health and safety objectives, Article 3(1)(b) covers electromagnetic compatibility, and Article 3(2) covers effective and efficient use of radio spectrum to avoid harmful interference. Article 3(3) adds category-specific requirements only where the relevant delegated or implementing act makes them applicable.

The classification record should therefore produce a requirement matrix for each product configuration and radio interface. It should show which Article 3 requirements apply, which harmonised standards or other technical specifications are planned, whether a standard is applied fully or partly, and whether the selected route needs notified-body involvement. For Article 3(2) and Article 3(3), internal production control is available only when the applicable harmonised standards cited in the Official Journal are applied; otherwise the manufacturer must use EU-type examination followed by conformity to type, or full quality assurance, for those requirements.

Some RED classifications need additional gates after the baseline scope decision. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/30 applies Article 3(3)(d), (e), and (f) to defined categories of radio equipment, including internet-connected radio equipment and specified equipment that processes personal, traffic, or location data or enables transfer of money, monetary value, or virtual currency. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2444 moved the application date for those cybersecurity requirements to 1 August 2025. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/339 repeals the category act from 11 December 2027, while preserving RED market surveillance for covered equipment placed on the Union market through 10 December 2027. EN 18031-1:2024, EN 18031-2:2024, and EN 18031-3:2024 are cited for these requirements with restrictions, so classification must include the applicable standard part and every notice attached to its Official Journal citation.

Common charging is a separate classification gate for listed rechargeable portable radio-equipment categories. If the product falls within the common-charger scope, the record should route it to USB-C charging interface, fast-charging interoperability, charger-unbundling, pictogram, and charging-information evidence rather than treating those duties as generic RED labelling.

The finished scope and classification record should let a reviewer understand the decision without replaying the project history. It should name the product, model, radio functions, intended use, Union-market fact pattern, exclusions considered, Article 3 requirement buckets, cybersecurity and common-charger gates, standards route, conformity-assessment route, evidence owners, and open assumptions.

Annex V technical documentation expects a general description, software or firmware versions affecting compliance, user information, design and manufacturing material, standards or other solutions, EU declaration copy, notified-body certificate where relevant, examinations, test reports, and Article 10 information. The scope record should point to those artifacts instead of standing alone as a loose compliance label.