All electrical equipment imported, and sold in, Australia must be proven to be electrically safe. All electrical products, regardless of use, must comply with AS/NZS 3820 which is the general electrical safety standard.
If the item is for use in a house, or is to be sold over the internet to individuals without a registered ABN, then the product must comply with the requirements of the RCM, as detailed in AS/NZS 4417.2 and on www.eess.gov.au. High risk electrical articles must be certified by a State regulator, or a JAS-ANZ accredited certifier like SAA.
It is the law in every State in Australia and in New Zealand that any high risk electrical product is certified. You can find the list of high risk products in AS/NZS 4417.2.
Yes, the JAS-ANZ accreditation applies for certificates issued for Australia and New Zealand. Certificates for household products are further covered by SAA’s membership of the Recognised External Certification Scheme, as administered by the Queensland Government.
Before you make your application, you will need to obtain an endorsed test report from an accredited laboratory covering these Australian standards.
For electrical safety, once you have the reports, you can download the application form, the Guide and the Terms, Conditions and Obligations from application forms and documents. Read them all, follow the instructions and you can return the completed application form, the test report, the installation instructions and your means of payment to . The cost is AUD 650 (plus GST if applicable) per product family where a family is defined as a set of up to 20 technically similar products tested together on the same report and the lead time is 5 working days from receipt of correct documents.
If you wish to also have us prepare your EMC documentation as required by the www.acma.gov.au Radiocommunications Notice, there is an extra AUD 350 (plus GST if applicable) charge per approval if you complete it at the same time as the electrical safety. We will require a copy of the EMC report for this option.
These are available from our Application Forms and Documents page.
See our schedule of fees.
SAA Approvals undertakes to provide a turnaround of 5 business days for approval applications (provided all the requisite information is supplied). This time frame is from official receipting of the application to the issuing of the certificate by the accredited officer. An email copy of the certificates will be sent on completion.
Note: An express service is also available with a 1 business day turn-around and a special fee applies. Contact us for more information.
A certificate is issued for a maximum period of five years. A shorter period may apply if: requested by the applicant; or, limited because of impending changes to the relevant product Standard upon which the certification is based; or, if product type is subject to a higher risk category such as a hair straightening iron.
Certificates may be cancelled by the approval holder, or by SAA Approvals, should a breach of the Terms, Conditions and Obligations specified in the application process, be substantiated.
Please note that the certificate does not have to be updated if the standard version changes during the validity period of the certificate. The test report must be updated to the latest standard only when modifying the product and certificate, or at renewal time.
You must ensure that all products which are imported, and sold, are the same as the approved item. Each shipment should be checked to verify that they are the same as the originally approved product. You must also ensure that all changes to the product are assessed and added to the Approval certification.
If you wish to continue importing and / or selling the product you must apply for renewal of the approval certificate. If you are not manufacturing or importing the product, but a small amount of stock remains to be sold, an extension of the approval may be applied for.
Government regulators meet regularly during the year and decide based on a number of factors which product classifications should be medium (level 2) or high (level 3) risk. They publish this information in AS/NZS 4417.2.
All variations of a model type must be listed on the approval certificate. All Brand or Trade Names must also be listed. If you are using a certificate belonging to a different party, you must ensure your brand names and model numbers are added to the certificate.
Australia has an independent requirement for approval certification. CE documentation is not recognised at all by Australian law, so cannot be used as a basis for compliance.
SAA Approvals will issue Certificates of Suitability for non-regulated electrical products. The same requirements apply to gain the certification for a non-regulated product as for a regulated product.
If you have bought the product from a manufacturer, and they hold the Approval certificate for that product, then you may sell that product legally under that approval certification provided that your model number and brand name has been registered on the Approval.
You must have the permission of the Certificate Holder to use their certificate.
