The CE marking is a declaration by the manufacturer that a product is in conformity with all applicable essential requirements set out in EU legislation - mandatory for many products (such as toys, electrical products, machinery, personal protective equipment and lifts.) sold within the European Economic Area (EEA). It essentially indicates that the product complies with all EU requirements on health, safety and environmental issues.

"The RoHS directive is not a CE mark directive and so this new regulatory framework (NRF) would not apply but the European Commission’s (EC) proposals to amend RoHS include changes that make RoHS a "new approach" directive requiring CE marking of products. RoHS could therefore be the first directive to adopt the NRF approach", Gary Nevison, Head of Legislation at Premier Farnell, UK states on the element-14 website.