The EU Machinery Directive, 2006/42/EC, sets the safety rules for machinery sold in the EU, and it still applies today. It is repealed from 20 January 2027, when Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 takes over, as of October 2026. Check EUR-Lex for the text and the transitional rules.
If you import a machine from India into the EU, you must be able to show that it meets the directive's essential health and safety requirements. Who carries that duty depends on who places the machine on the EU market.
What the directive demands
The directive requires that machinery is designed and built to be safe, with essential health and safety requirements set out in Annex I. The manufacturer must carry out a risk assessment and keep a technical file. For most machines, the manufacturer then affixes CE marking and signs an EU declaration of conformity.
Machines listed in Annex IV, which are higher-risk types such as certain presses and saws, follow a stricter procedure that can involve a notified body. Most machines are not on that list, and the manufacturer can assess conformity itself.
Who carries the duty when the maker is in India?
The manufacturer is responsible for conformity. If the manufacturer is outside the EU and has no authorised representative, the person who first places the machine on the EU market takes the manufacturer's duties. That is often the importer.
In practice you need the Indian maker to supply the technical file, the declaration and the instructions, or you need to produce them yourself. Without them you cannot lawfully sell the machine. Read CE marking for machinery and who is responsible, the declaration of conformity and the technical file.
What changes with the Machinery Regulation
Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 applies directly in all member states, without national transposition. It keeps the structure of the directive but adds provisions on digital instructions, software and safety components with self-evolving behaviour, and it puts clearer duties on importers and distributors. Some obligations will differ from today.
Read what the EU Machinery Regulation is and when it applies for the detail. Source: the Regulation's consolidated text and EU-OSHA summary, which state the 20 January 2027 date; confirm on EUR-Lex.
What to do if you buy now
A machine placed on the market before the application date can follow the directive, but a machine placed after it must follow the regulation. If delivery will straddle January 2027, ask your supplier and adviser which applies and when the machine is deemed placed on the market, usually when it is first made available in the EU.
Ask the maker to build the technical documentation to the standard of the new rules where possible. It is much cheaper than redoing the file later. Also check manuals are in the language of the country of use, and that the electrical parts meet the Low Voltage and EMC Directives.
Next step
We cannot give legal advice, so confirm your duties with your notified body, regulator or compliance adviser. We can find manufacturers who understand CE documentation, check their files on site and supervise testing. Book a free sourcing review.