Can a manufacturer continue to sell products without a support period?
Manufacturers need to set the support period for all products with digital elements that have been placed on the market after 11 December 2027. Those products can continue to be made available on the market after their support period expires. However, for units of that product that are newly placed on the market, manufacturers are required to set the support period.
For example, a manufacturer produces 10 000 identical units of the same hardware product model or series and places them on the market in January 2028, with a support period of five years (i.e. until January 2033). A distributor manages to sell only a part of those units before the end of the support period. The distributor can continue to make those units available even after January 2033.
On 1 January 2030, the same manufacturer produces an additional 5 000 identical units of that same hardware product model or series and places them on the market. The manufacturer is required to set a support period for those units, in accordance with Article 13(8) of the CRA.
Disclaimer
Disclaimer: This document is prepared by the Commission services and should not be considered as representative of the European Commission’s official position. The replies to the FAQs do not extend in any way the rights and obligations deriving from applicable legislation nor introduce any additional requirement. The expressed views are not authoritative and cannot prejudge any future actions the European Commission may take, including potential positions before the Court of Justice of the European Union, which is competent to authoritatively interpret Union law.