RCE Mark Compliance for Electrical Equipment Exported to Australia

The Regulatory Compliance Mark (RCE, previously known as the C-Tick and A-Tick) is Australia's mandatory mark for electrical and electronic products. It signals that a product meets the applicable electrical safety standard and, where required, energy efficiency regulations.

The mark is administered jointly by state and territory electrical safety regulators through the Electrical Regulatory Authorities Council (ERAC) and enforced at the border by the Australian Border Force.

The In-scope electrical equipment list covers roughly 60 product categories including power supplies, information technology equipment, household appliances, lighting, audio-visual devices, power tools and chargers. Check the current ERAC in-scope list before assuming your product is exempt.

Energy-rated products such as refrigerators, air conditioners, TVs and washing machines additionally require an Energy Rating Label and must be registered with the Equipment Energy Efficiency (E3) program before import.

Test reports must come from a laboratory accredited by the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) or by a mutual recognition partner such as ILAC. Many Taiwanese products are already tested at SGS Taiwan, Bureau Veritas or DEKRA — confirm that the scope of accreditation covers the exact Australian standard (e.g. AS/NZS 4268, AS/NZS CISPR 32).

Standards are maintained by Standards Australia and are often identical or equivalent to IEC or EN standards. A declaration of equivalence is sometimes accepted; check the current version of the applicable standard rather than assuming alignment.

Unlike European CE marking, there is no third-party approval body that issues the RCE mark. The responsible supplier (the importer or brand owner in Australia) self-declares conformity by affixing the mark and maintaining a technical file. The declaration must be available on request for five years.

The technical file must include: product description and photos, list of applicable standards, test reports, risk assessment, circuit diagrams, user manual and labelling examples.

The RCE mark must appear on the product itself or on the packaging if the product is too small. It must be permanently affixed, clearly legible and not misleading. Do not use the mark on products that are out of scope or before all applicable standards have been met.

If your product also requires ACMA registration (for radio or telecommunications devices), both the RCE mark and the ACMA compliance label must appear. Combine them cleanly — a split mark format is available from ACMA's website.

Australian Border Force may inspect shipments and request the technical file or test reports at the border. Products that cannot demonstrate compliance may be detained, re-exported or destroyed at the importer's cost. Keep digital copies of all documentation in a cloud location accessible to your Australian customs broker.

State regulators conduct periodic market surveillance. Products found non-compliant after sale face mandatory recall, financial penalties and negative publicity. ERAC publishes recall notices publicly, which affects consumer trust.