Recently, the Philippines issued a draft executive order on the “New Technical Regulations on Compulsory Product Certification for Automotive Products”, which aims to strictly ensure that the relevant automotive products produced, imported, distributed or sold in the Philippines meet the specific quality requirements stipulated in the technical regulations. The scope of control covers 15 products including lithium-ion batteries, lead-acid batteries for starting, lighting, road vehicle seat belts and pneumatic tires. This article mainly introduces battery product certification in detail.

Certification Mode

For automotive products that require compulsory certification, a PS (Philippine standard) license or an ICC (Import Commodity Clearance) certificate is required to enter the Philippine market.

• PS licenses are granted to local or foreign manufacturers. The license application requires factory and product audits, that is, the factory and products meet the requirements of PNS (the Philippine National Standards) ISO 9001 and related product standards, and are subject to regular supervision and audits. Products that meet the requirements can use the BPS (the Bureau of Philippine Standards) certification mark. Products with PS licenses must apply for a statement of confirmation (SOC) when imported.
• ICC certificate is granted to importers whose imported products are proved to comply with relevant PNS through inspection and product testing by BPS test laboratories or BPS approved test laboratories. Products that meet the requirements can use ICC label. For products without valid PS license or holding valid type approval certificate, ICC is required when importing.

Product Division

The lead-acid batteries and lithium-ion batteries to which this technical regulation applies are mainly divided into the following categories:

Gentle Reminder

The draft technical regulation is currently under consultation. Once it takes effect, relevant automotive products imported into the Philippines must obtain a PS license or ICC certificate within 24 months from the effective date. After 30 months from the effective date, products that have not been certified will not be available for sale in the local market. Philippine Battery companies with import demand need to be prepared in advance to ensure the products meet the relevant standards and certification requirements.