The Saudi Arabian Standards and Organization (SASO) has introduced a new technical regulation on the restriction of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment, RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances), and announced that it will be gradually implemented on January 5, 2022.

The purpose of this regulation is to determine the percentage of hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment and its accessories within the scope of the regulation, and to ensure that suppliers shall comply with conformity assessment procedures to ensure the protection of the environment and the health and safety of consumers.

The specific control requirements of the Saudi RoHS regulations on hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment are as follows:

About conformity assessment procedures

1. The supplier shall be responsible for ensuring that the listed electrical and electronic devices and equipment have obtained a certificate of conformity from an accredited institution in accordance with the ISO/IEC17067 standard specification, namely the "Conformity Assessment Product Certification Basis and Product Certification Scheme Guide" "Certificate of Conformity" (Type 1a), which is issued by an organization approved by SASO.

2. The product should be accompanied by technical documents, which should include:

A) Supplier (manufacturer/importer) self-declaration of conformity;

B) Risk assessment documents;

C) Necessary warnings, warnings, and guidelines for the safe use and operation of the product.

This regulation applies to the following categories of electrical and electronic equipment and spare parts entering the Saudi Arabian market:

1. Large and small household appliances

Small household appliances, implementation date January 5, 2022

Large household appliances, implementation date April 3, 2022

2. Information and communication technology equipment

Implementation date: July 1, 2022;

3. Lighting equipment

Implementation date: September 27, 2022;

4. Electrical and electronic tools and equipment

Implementation date: December 25, 2022;

5. Games, entertainment equipment and sports equipment

Implementation date: March 23, 2023;

6. Monitoring and control tools

The implementation date is June 19, 2023.

Regarding test requirements:

1. The test content is roughly the same as that of the EU Rohs 6 items;

2. The test standard refers to IEC 62321, and the CNAS mark is added to the test report;

3. The buyer information, trademark, product name, and model number on the test report must be consistent with the GCC/IECEE/PC/SC of the corresponding application.

The commonly used test standards are as follows:

◆ IEC 62321-1: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 1: Introduction and overview;

◆ IEC 62321-2: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 2: Disassembly, separation and mechanical sample preparation;

◆ IEC 62321-3-1: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 3-1: Screening-Determination of lead, mercury, cadmium, total chromium and total bromine by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry;

◆ IEC 62321-3-2: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 3-2: Screening-Combustion ion chromatography (C-IC) to screen fluorine, bromine and chlorine in polymers and electronic products;

◆ IEC 62321-4: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 4: Mercury in polymers, metals and electronic products, through CV-AAS CVAFSCPOES and CP-MS;

◆ IEC 62321-5: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 5: Cadmium, lead and chromium in polymers and electronic products, and cadmium and lead in metals, through AAS, AFS, ICP-OES and ICP- MS;

◆ IEC 62321-6: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 6: Determination of polybrominated biphenyls and polybrominated diphenyl ethers in polymers by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS);

◆ IEC 62321-7-1: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 7-1: Determination of hexavalent chromium in colorless and colored metal anticorrosive coatings by colorimetry;

◆ IEC 62321-7-2: Determination of certain substances in electrical products-Part 7-2: Determination of hexavalent chromium in polymers and electronic materials by colorimetry.