Simplifying and digitalising EU product compliance

IMCO

a folder with documents inside being digitalised — Simpler, smarter and more digital EU product compliance © Image used under license from Adobe Stock

On 9 June 2026, negotiators from Parliament and Council reached an agreement on promoting the use of digital formats to simplify reporting requirements. This agreement paves the way for fully digital product compliance across the single market, enhancing efficiency, transparency and regulatory consistency across sectors.

The simplification package on digitalisation and common specifications (directive and regulation) promotes the use of digital formats for product information, such as declarations of conformity, instructions, and contact details. It also streamlines communication between economic operators and authorities, while reinforcing the EU's ability to adopt common specifications in exceptional circumstances, when harmonised standards are unavailable or insufficient.

The agreement introduces "common specifications" that the Commission can adopt exceptionally as a legally recognised fallback option to demonstrate the compliance with EU rules of a product, device, service, process or system, when no harmonised standards exist.

The "digital by default" principle encourages public authorities to modernise administrative requirements in EU product legislation and supports a paper-free single market based on interoperable data and the "once-only" principle.