Difference EAC and GOST Certificate

EAC Certificate for Russia and EAEU States

What is the difference between EAC Certificate, TR Certificate, and GOST Certificate?!

An EAC certificate is a confirmation of EAC conformity. Through EAC certification, the manufacturer is demonstrated that the EAC certified goods comply with the safety requirements of the EAEU member states. 

The abbreviation E-A-C Certificate or E-A-C Declaration stands for: Eur-Asian-Conformity Certificate or Declaration - a certificate or declaration of Eurasian EAC conformity. 

The Eurasian Economic Union is a trade union and economic union between Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Armenia. Within the territory of the EAEU member states, common customs tariff regulations, uniform trade regulations, and harmonized technical regulations apply.

Thus, EAC certification marks products that meet the safety requirements of the EAEU member states. 

The products whose conformity with the safety requirements of the technical regulations (TR CU/EAEU) has been confirmed through EAC certification or EAC declaration can be sold throughout the customs territory of all member states of the Eurasian Economic Union. 

Generally, no further approvals, such as GOST Certificate or TR Certificate, are required.

GOST Certificate for Russia and CIS States

A GOST certificate means a conformity certificate and confirms that the goods comply with the standards of the GOST certification system. A GOST certificate is proof that the GOST certified goods meet the safety requirements of the GOST system. 

The GOST standards were adopted by Russia from the Soviet Union. Thus, GOST certification or GOST declaration is still considered proof of conformity and is a mandatory conformity measure for many products.

After the adoption of the decision to establish the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU states - Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan) and the introduction of technical regulations as a common EAEU conformity confirmation method, the national safety standards in the individual member states were harmonized. 

The technical regulations of the EAEU states introduced a new method of conformity assessment. Current methods of EAC conformity assessment in the Eurasian Economic Union are EAC certification, EAC declaration, and other EAC approvals.

TR CU Certification in Russia and CIS States 

A TR certificate or TR declaration confirms to the manufacturer that the goods comply with the requirements of the Russian technical regulations (TR). 

This concerns the Russian national technical regulations, which are structured similarly to the technical regulations of the EAEU member states. The main objective of the technical regulations is the protection of the citizens of Russia.

Through the reform of the outdated GOST approval system, the technical regulations of the Russian Federation were introduced. Several product groups in the Russian Federation are subject to TR certification.

The technical regulations of Russia were intended to replace the old GOST certification system, which no longer met modern safety requirements, and to significantly simplify GOST certification. 

The introduction of the technical regulations of Russia has significantly modernized and simplified GOST certification. Several products are certified according to the safety requirements of the national Russian technical regulations TR before export to Russia and are marked with the TR sign. 

The TR conformity certificate is issued by an accredited certification service provider.

Difference between EAC, GOST, and TR Certifications 

Compliance with EAC standards, GOST standards, and TR guidelines of the technical regulations of the EAEU member states is mandatory for the export of goods to Russia and EAEU member states. German and European manufacturers are often confused by the legal provisions in the area of EAC certification:

The question arises: What is correct, EAC Certificate, GOST Certificate, or TR Certificate?!

These are three designations of conformity assessment. To understand the background of the terminology in detail, one must look deeper into the history of conformity assessment in Russia, CIS states, and EAEU states.

In the Soviet Union, there was GOST certification. GOST standardization covered a large part of the Eurasian continent with a population of over 200 million people. In the Soviet Union, there were several hundred mandatory GOST standards.

• GOST - Государственный Стандарт
• GOST - State Standard

In 1991, the Soviet Union was dissolved into several states. The independent CIS states attempted to develop their own standardization systems. In the Russian Federation (Russia), the GOST standards were reformed and technical regulations were created. 

Thus, there is the abbreviation TR - Technical Regulation. The technical regulations of the Russian Federation present the safety requirements for products that require certification or declaration.

In 2010, a free trade zone was established between Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus. The free trade zone between Russia, Kazakhstan, and Belarus later became known as the Customs Union. 

In 2011, a unified EAC certification system was introduced in the Customs Union. Thus, the abbreviation TR CU - Technical Regulations of the Customs Union, later TR EAEU - Technical Regulations of the Eurasian Economic Union, was created. 

The technical regulations of the Customs Union were introduced in accordance with applicable international standards and have many similarities with European directives and CE conformity. 

Many technical regulations of the EAEU countries have been harmonized with European directives. As a result, the technical regulations of the EAEU states share many similarities with European conformity directives.

 With the establishment of the Eurasian Economic Union in 2015, the Customs Union was transformed into the Eurasian Economic Union. Similar to the CE conformity mark, a unified EAC conformity mark of the Eurasian Economic Union was introduced. The EAC marking consists of three letters E-A-C. EAC stands for Eurasian Conformity.

Answer to the question: What is correct, EAC Certificate, GOST Certificate, or TR Certificate?!

In summary, the terms EAC Certification / EAC Certificate, GOST Certification / GOST Certificate, and TR Certification / TR Certificate are synonyms and refer to the EAC conformity assessment procedure with the technical regulations of the EAEU countries.