CE marking
The CE marking confirms that a construction product meets the essential requirements of the European Construction Products Regulation (Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011). It is affixed to all construction products for which the manufacturer has drawn up a declaration of performance in accordance with Articles 4 and 6 of the Regulation. This declaration of performance is always required if a construction product is covered by a harmonised European standard (hEN) or complies with a European Technical Assessment (ETA).
With the CE marking, the manufacturer assumes responsibility for the conformity of the construction product with the performance declared in the declaration of performance for the “essential characteristics” (the product characteristics listed in the relevant harmonised technical specification) as well as for compliance with all requirements of the Construction Products Regulation and other EU harmonisation legislation applicable to the product.
Member States may neither prohibit nor impede the placing on the market and use of construction products bearing the CE marking, provided that the declared performance meet the requirements applicable in the respective Member State. In Austria, the Baustoffliste ÖE published by OIB plays a key role in this context. It regulates the conditions of use of CE-marked products, while taking into account specific national requirements.
Since 1 July 2013, the legal basis for CE marking has been the Construction Products Regulation (Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011). Here you can find the consolidated version as of November 17, 2024.
From January 8, 2026, the new Construction Products Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2024/3110) will also apply.
Parts of the old regulation relevant to CE marking do not differ significantly from the new provisions and will not be repealed until January 8, 2040. CE marking based on the old Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011 is therefore still possible as long as no functions of the new Regulation, such as the declaration of sustainability, are required.
Creation of the CE marking
The manufacturer shall affix the CE marking to all construction products for which he has drawn up a declaration of performance in accordance with Articles 4 and 6 of Regulation (EU) No 305/2011. A declaration of performance is required if the construction product is covered by a harmonised European standard (hEN) or if a European Technical Assessment (ETA) has been issued for this product.
Download links:
Publication of harmonised standards (hEN) in the Official Journal of the EU
Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/451 – consolidated version
Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/451 – consolidated version
The preparation of the declaration of performance and CE marking becomes mandatory from the “end of the coexistence period” in column 5 of the list of harmonised standards published in the Official Journal of the EU.
Apart from the CE marking, no other markings referring to the “essential characteristics” may be affixed.
Further information on CE marking can be found in these instructions from the European Commission.
Existing Construction Products Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011
Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011 came into force on July 1, 2013 and replaced the previous Construction Products Directive 89/106/EEC from 1989.
According to Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011, manufacturers of construction products must draw up a declaration of performance for each product covered by a harmonized standard (hEN) that has been published in the Official Journal of the EU and for which the coexistence period specified in the Publication has expired. The same applies to construction products for which a European Technical Assessment has been issued. Construction products for which a declaration of performance has been drawn up must subsequently bear the CE marking.
New Construction Products Regulation (EU) 2024/3110
On December 18, 2024, the new Construction Products Regulation (EU) 2024/3110 was published in the Official Journal of the EU. It entered into force on January 7, 2025 and will become practically applicable for economic operators from January 8, 2026.
The revision of the previous Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011 was primarily driven by the European Green Deal. Within the framework of the so-called trilogue between the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the EU, a comprehensive compromise was reached.
Key objectives of the new regulation:
Construction Products Regulation
What´s new?
What’s new?
In order to improve worker protection and general product safety, as well as to ensure better functioning of the internal market, the new Construction Products Regulation extends the previous Declaration of Performance (DoP) to the Declaration of Performance and Conformity (DoPC).
While the previous Construction Products Regulation was limited to providing harmonised procedures across Europe for for assessing and declaring product performance, the new regulation introduces mandatory performance and product requirements at the European level – for example, regarding functionality, safety, and environmental compatibility. These requirements may be set out in harmonised standards, delegated acts of the Commission, or voluntarily applicable standards. In addition, binding guidelines for product information, user instructions, and safety information will be introduced.
NOTE: These requirements apply only to products for which harmonised technical specifications or European Assessment Documents under the new regulation are already available or mandatory. For all other products, the previous rules will remain valid in a transitional period until 2040.
In recent years, the development of harmonised standards has largely stagnated, resulting in many standards — used as a basis for CE marking — being outdated.
The new Construction Products Regulation advances the revision and updating of these standards through the so-called Acquis process. Member States actively participate by providing the European Commission and an expert group with all essential characteristics — including assessment methods, threshold values, performance classes, and product requirements — necessary to meet their national construction requirements for a product family.
The Commission is required to take these national requirements into account — or provide justification if they are not. Work is carried out according to a prioritised work plan, organised by product groups. The aim is to design harmonised standards in a way that meets both the requirements of the European internal market and the national building regulations of the Member States, thus ensuring that CE marking is legally reliable and practically applicable.
For construction products without a harmonised standard, the ETA procedure provides a proven route to CE marking – particularly for innovative, sustainable, or recycled products.
Under the new Construction Products Regulation, however, an ETA may only be issued once the underlying European Assessment Document (EAD) has been published in the Official Journal of the EU. While this ensures legal certainty, it can also cause delays — a potential risk for novel products entering the European internal market.
The EOTA (European Organisation for Technical Assessment) and the European Commission are therefore currently working to publish existing EADs under the old regulation and, in parallel, to develop adapted procedural rules — also with a view to the future mandatory sustainability assessment.
The assessment of environmental sustainability is a central topic of the new regulation in terms of its basic requirements 7 and 8. In accordance with the European Green Deal, sustainability characteristics will gradually become part of the Declaration of Performance and Conformity (DoPC) from 2026 based on the with the new harmonised standards and ETAs.
This new challenge offers European manufacturers the opportunity to reposition themselves on international markets by integrating sustainability into the CE marking – and at the same time contributing to environmental protection.
The new Construction Products Regulation adopts the concept of the digital product passport from the Ecodesign Regulation (EU) 2024/1781. The aim is to make the environmental and sustainability assessment of products available digitally – supplemented by the full Declaration of Performance and Conformity (DoPC) and additional technical documentation.
The measure is intended to advance digitalization in the construction sector – particularly with regard to BIM (Building Information Modeling) – and could also include machine-readable standards and assessment documents. The technical implementation is currently still under development.
Brief information for economic operators:
Products covered by a harmonised European product standard (hEN) are only affected once that standard has been published under the new regulation. After the end of the coexistence period, the application of the new standard and thus the new Construction Products Regulation becomes mandatory for CE marking.
Publications of the hEN follow the schedule of the Acquis process, starting with precast concrete elements probably as early as the end of 2025.5.
In principle, the old Construction Products Regulation (EU) No. 305/2011 will continue to apply in parallel with the new regulation until 2040 (!) and the basic principles of the old regulation are also largely to be found in the new one. If a declaration of sustainability parameters is neither mandatory nor voluntary and there are no other requirements that necessitate the application of the new regulation, the product can continue to be made available on the market and used with the CE marking in accordance with the old Construction Products Regulation.
Manufacturers whose products are still placed on the market with an ETA based on an ETAG face urgent action. These ETAs will lose their validity on 8 January 2026 if they are not converted in time to an ETA based on EAD.
Contact your Technical Assessment Bodies (TAB) immediately!
The basis of your ETA (EAD or ETAG) can be found on the cover page of the ETA.
EADs and ETAs under the old regulation are still possible, but the EAD must be published by January 8, 2026. If the EAD was published during this period, this ETA can be used as the basis for further ETAs until January 9, 2036 and the EAD until January 9, 2031. Numerous EADs are expected to be published in the Official Journal in the course of 2025.
The status of the publication can be found on the EOTA website.
For EADs and ETAs under the old regulation, there is still no obligation to declare sustainability characteristics (see also: here). Voluntary inclusion of such sustainability information is possible in accordance with the provisions of the new regulation.
If an EAD cannot be published by 8 January 2026, it must be revised and published under the new regulation and will then be valid for ten years (extendable) from its publication. An ETA based on this EAD remains valid for five years longer than the EAD itself.
Graphic: Transition periods for the new ETA route according to Regulation (EU) 2024/3110
The diagram shows the relevant deadlines related to the transition from ETAG-based ETAs to EAD-based ETAs, as well as the validity of existing and future assessment documents.
