EU Authorised Representative for Machinery: When You Need One and What They Do
“Do we need an EU representative?” is the first question most non-EU machinery manufacturers ask, and the honest answer is: it depends on how you sell. This guide separates the two legal questions behind it, lists what an authorised representative must do and cannot do, compares the role with an importer, and ends with a checklist for choosing one.
Two questions, not one
Exporters tend to merge two separate legal questions. The first is whether you need an economic operator established in the Union at all. Since 16 July 2021, Article 4 of the Market Surveillance Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 answers that with a clear yes for machinery: without such an operator, the product may not be placed on the market. Four setups qualify: an EU-established manufacturer, an importer, an authorised representative with a written mandate covering the Article 4(3) tasks, or, where none of those exists, an EU fulfilment service provider handling the product.
The second question is whether you need an authorised representative specifically. The answer is no in law and often yes in practice. The Machinery Directive lets the manufacturer choose whether to appoint one, and the Machinery Regulation says the same in Article 12: a manufacturer “may” appoint an authorised representative. Nobody forces you. But if you sell directly to EU customers, including online, there is no importer in the chain, and then the authorised representative is the practical way to have an EU operator without founding a subsidiary. An online offer targeted at end users in the Union counts as making the product available on the EU market (Regulation 2019/1020, Article 6), so drop-shipping does not avoid the question.
You sell through an EU importer
The importer is the Article 4 operator by law. No authorised representative is required for that purpose. Until 19 January 2027 you still need to name a person established in the Community who is authorised to compile the technical file in every EC Declaration of Conformity; that can be the importer, your representative or any other EU-established person you entrust with it.
You sell directly, or via distributors only
Distributors are not Article 4 operators. You need an authorised representative whose written mandate covers the Article 4(3) tasks, or an EU fulfilment service provider. In practice the representative also takes the technical-file role under the Directive, so one mandate covers both EU touchpoints.
What the authorised representative does
The tasks are fixed by law and are the minimum content of the mandate. Regulation 2019/1020 lists them in Article 4(3); the Machinery Regulation repeats the core in Article 12(3) for the time from 20 January 2027.
Verify that the declaration and technical documentation exist: The Article 4 operator must check that the EU declaration of conformity and the technical documentation have been drawn up (Regulation 2019/1020, Article 4(3)(a)). A representative that signs a mandate without ever seeing your file is not doing its job.
Keep the declaration and documentation at the disposal of the authorities: The declaration must be kept available for the period required by the applicable legislation, and the technical documentation must be capable of being made available on request. The Machinery Regulation fixes 10 years after placing on the market for both (Article 12(3) and Article 10(3)).
Provide information and documentation on a reasoned request: On a reasoned request from a market surveillance authority, the representative must provide all information and documentation necessary to demonstrate conformity, in a language easily understood by that authority (Regulation 2019/1020, Article 4(3)(b)).
Inform the authorities about products presenting a risk: Where the representative has reason to believe that a product presents a risk, it must inform the market surveillance authorities (Article 4(3)(c)). Your mandate should define how you and the representative exchange field information.
Cooperate on corrective action: The representative must cooperate with the authorities and, on a reasoned request, make sure that corrective action is taken to remedy any non-compliance (Article 4(3)(d); Machinery Regulation Article 12(3)). It cannot redesign your machine; it can make sure you act.
Under the Machinery Directive the mandate may go further: Article 2(j) allows the representative to perform “all or part of the obligations and formalities” on the manufacturer’s behalf, and Regulation (EC) 765/2008 provides that the CE marking is affixed only by the manufacturer or its authorised representative. Whether your representative signs declarations or affixes markings for you is a question of what the mandate says, not of the law.
What the authorised representative cannot do
The representative is not the manufacturer and does not become one by accepting a mandate. That has three concrete consequences.
It does not draw up the technical documentation
The Machinery Regulation states it expressly: the obligations to design and manufacture in conformity with the essential requirements and the drawing up of the technical documentation cannot form part of the mandate (Article 12). Under the Directive the “person authorised to compile the technical file” assembles and provides the file on a reasoned request; the drawings, calculations, test reports and the risk assessment are yours to produce.
It does not take over your responsibility
The declaration of conformity is your statement, made on your sole responsibility. A representative that answers an authority badly, or cannot produce the file, creates a problem for you as manufacturer: the machine is treated as non-compliant, not the representative.
It does not replace the notified body
Where a third-party assessment is required (Annex IV machinery without full harmonised-standards coverage under the Directive; the six Annex I Part A categories under the Regulation), the assessment is performed by a notified body. The representative may handle the paperwork with that body on your behalf, but cannot perform the assessment.
The written mandate
Both laws require the mandate to be in writing, and both tie the legal effect to its content. Regulation 2019/1020 only recognises the representative as the Article 4 operator if the mandate designates it to perform the Article 4(3) tasks. The Machinery Regulation requires the mandate to allow the representative to do at least the following: keep the EU Declaration of Conformity and the technical documentation at the disposal of the national market surveillance authorities for at least 10 years after the machinery has been placed on the market, provide all information and documentation necessary to demonstrate conformity on a reasoned request, and cooperate with the authorities on any action taken to eliminate the risks posed by the machinery covered by the mandate (Article 12(3)).
Beyond the legal minimum, a workable mandate defines the products and markets covered, how the representative obtains the current documentation and within what time, who signs what, how field information about incidents flows in both directions, what happens at termination, and how liability and fees are handled. Keep a copy of the mandate with the technical file: authorities may ask for it.
Names and addresses: where the representative appears
Under the Machinery Directive the marking on the machine must include the business name and full address of the manufacturer and, where applicable, of the authorised representative (Annex I section 1.7.3). Every EC Declaration of Conformity names the person authorised to compile the technical file, established in the Community (Annex II 1.A). If the representative is your Article 4 operator, its name and contact details including a postal address must appear on the product, its packaging, the parcel or an accompanying document (Regulation 2019/1020, Article 4(4)).
From 20 January 2027 the EU Declaration of Conformity per Annex V of the Machinery Regulation names the manufacturer and, where appointed, the authorised representative; the separate technical-file person no longer exists. The manufacturer must also indicate its own name, postal address and a website, email address or other digital contact on the machinery as a single point of contact (Article 10). The Article 4(4) marking of the responsible operator continues to apply in parallel.
Authorised representative or importer: the difference
| Aspect | Authorised representative | Importer |
|---|---|---|
| Legal basis of the role | Written mandate from the manufacturer (Directive Art. 2(j); Regulation Art. 12) | Places a third-country product on the EU market in its own name (Regulation Art. 13) |
| Ownership of the goods | Usually none; you invoice EU customers directly | Buys and resells; sits between you and the market |
| Article 4 operator (2019/1020) | Yes, if the mandate covers the Article 4(3) tasks | Yes, automatically |
| Own verification duties from 2027 | Tasks per the mandate: keep, provide, cooperate | Must verify conformity assessment, technical documentation, CE marking and documents before placing on the market; own name and contact on the machine; keeps the declaration 10 years |
| Risk of becoming the manufacturer | No, as long as it acts within the mandate | Yes, if it sells under its own name or trademark or modifies the machine in a compliance-relevant way (Regulation Art. 17) |
| Product liability (Directive 2024/2853) | Can be held liable where the manufacturer is outside the EU | Can be held liable where the manufacturer is outside the EU |
Choosing an authorised representative: checklist
Establishment in the EU, with a real postal address: A mailbox does not answer a reasoned request. The representative's name and postal address go on your product or its papers, and the authorities will write to it.
Machinery competence, not just a generic compliance service: The representative must be able to read a risk assessment per EN ISO 12100, a control-circuit drawing and a test report, and to explain them to an authority in the local language.
A written mandate that covers the Article 4(3) tasks explicitly: Regulation 2019/1020 only recognises an authorised representative as Article 4 operator if the written mandate designates it to perform the paragraph 3 tasks. Generic wording is not enough.
Both roles under the Directive covered until 19 January 2027: Article 4 operator and person authorised to compile the technical file. One mandate can cover both; check that it does.
Document access agreed in practice: How does the representative get the current technical file within the required time: a shared repository, a defined contact, an escalation path? Test it once before the first shipment.
Scope: which products, which markets, which EU acts: List the machine types or series, the applicable acts (Machinery Directive or Regulation, EMC, Low Voltage, ATEX, Radio Equipment as relevant) and the member states covered.
Term, termination and hand-over: What happens to the 10-year retention obligation when the mandate ends? Agree who keeps what and who informs the authorities of the change.
Liability, insurance and fees: The Product Liability Directive (EU) 2024/2853 reaches the representative of a non-EU manufacturer. Expect insurance requirements and a fee structure that reflects the number of products and the documentation quality.
How CE-Copilot supports the setup
The representative can only keep and hand over what you have produced. CE-Copilot is the manufacturer’s tool for producing it, in English:
- Technical documentation module: a 41-point checklist in eight sections per Annex VII of the Directive (Annex IV of the Regulation), file storage per item, and a complete export of the project as one PDF or Word file that the representative can keep at the disposal of the authorities.
- Declaration of conformity with fields for the authorised representative and, under the Directive, for the person authorised to compile the technical file; export in English, German, French and Italian from the Professional plan.
- Business plan: five user profiles with roles in one account, including a read-only role, so your representative or importer can view and export the current documentation without editing it, and an audit trail records who changed what.
- What it does not do: CE-Copilot is not an authorised representative service, does not issue certificates and is not legal advice. The AI drafts, the manufacturer reviews and signs.
For the full picture of market access without an EU entity, see the exporter overview.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is an authorised representative mandatory for machinery manufacturers outside the EU?
Can my EU importer act as my authorised representative at the same time?
Does the authorised representative draw up my technical file?
Whose name goes on the machine and on the declaration?
Is the authorised representative liable for my machine?
What changes for the authorised representative on 20 January 2027?
Run EU machinery compliance in-house, in English
This guide is written by the team behind CE-Copilot, a software platform covering the whole EU CE process for machinery: directive classification, a standards finder across 3,600+ standards with harmonisation status, risk assessment per EN ISO 12100, functional safety documentation, test reports, the technical file, operating instructions and the EU Declaration of Conformity with exports in English, German, French and Italian. The platform is available in English; the AI drafts, you review and sign off.
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This guide is general information for machinery manufacturers, verified against the official EU legal texts as of 12 September 2026. It is not legal advice. For decisions about your specific product, consult the legal texts (EUR-Lex) or a qualified advisor.