European Commission proposes a new standardisation regulation to replace 1025/2012: clearer deadlines for standards requested by the Commission, free access to standards developed under EU law and — by the Commission’s estimate — four years instead of six to develop a standard
On 6 October 2026 the European Commission adopted a proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on European standardisation, repealing Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012 (COM(2026)780, with impact assessment SWD(2026)786). The proposal aims to speed up the development of standards, increase the representation of small and medium-sized enterprises and better support the EU’s strategic interests; it will now be examined by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.
- Faster: the proposal introduces clearer deadlines for developing standards requested by the Commission and clarifies the use of common specifications as a targeted fallback measure. Under defined conditions and safeguards, it allows greater use of external technical specifications, allows interim deliverables supporting the demonstration of conformity before a full standard exists, and lets other standardisation organisations contribute to technical work where urgent or highly specialised needs arise. By the Commission’s estimate, the average time needed to develop a standard would fall from six years to four.
- Access to standards: following recent rulings of the Court of Justice of the EU, the Commission proposes to codify the rules ensuring free access to standards developed under EU law — through dedicated repositories — so that standards become easier to access for businesses, public authorities, civil society and citizens. Harmonised European standards help businesses demonstrate compliance with EU legislation.
- Participation and transparency: the proposal strengthens the obligations of European and national standardisation organisations to ensure effective participation and representation of SMEs, civil society, academia and public authorities, and introduces transparency and accountability requirements. It is also meant to strengthen EU coordination in international standardisation, in line with WTO principles, and to create an Expert Centre on European Standardisation for strategic steering and cross-policy coordination.
- Background: the system is currently based on cooperation between the recognised European standardisation organisations CEN, CENELEC and ETSI and national standardisation bodies, industry, public authorities, consumer representatives, trade unions and environmental organisations. The proposal builds on the 2021 Standardisation Strategy and the 2025 evaluation of Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012; before the measures are adopted and enter into force, they will be examined by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.