Part 1 Preliminary
1 Name
of Notice [see Note
1]
This Notice is the Radiocommunications (Compliance
Labelling — Electromagnetic Radiation) Notice 2003.
2 Commencement
This Notice commences on 1 March 2003.
3 Revocation
The Radiocommunications (Compliance
Labelling — Electromagnetic Radiation) Notice 2001 is revoked.
4 Definitions
(1) In this Notice:
accredited testing body means a laboratory
that is described in subsection (2) or (3).
Act means the Radiocommunications Act 1992.
agent, of a manufacturer or importer, means a
person who is authorised in writing by the manufacturer or importer to act in
Australia as an agent of the manufacturer or importer for Division 7 of Part
4.1 of the Act.
applicable standard means the Radiocommunications
(Electromagnetic Radiation — Human Exposure) Standard 2003, as in
force from time to time.
ARPANSA standard means the Radiation
Protection Standard for Maximum Exposure Levels to Radiofrequency Fields –
3 kHz to 300 GHz published by the Australian Radiation
Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency and assigned the number
ISBN 0-0642-79400-6.
Note The ARPANSA standard may be obtained
from the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency website
http://www.arpansa.gov.au .
AS 2772.2 means the Australian
Standard Radiofrequency radiation Part 2: Principles and methods
of measurement – 300 kHz to 100 GHz (AS 2772.2)
published by Standards Australia.
AS/NZS 4417.1 means the Australian/New
Zealand Standard Marking of electrical and electronic products to indicate
compliance with regulations — Part 1: General rules for use of the mark
published by Standards Australia.
authorised officer
means:
(a) an inspector under subsection 267 (1)
of the Act; or
(b) a person authorised in writing by the ACMA
for sections 24 and 25.
aware user device means a hand‑held or
body‑worn radiocommunications transmitter that operates on a push‑to‑talk
basis and is intended for use as:
(a) an ambulatory station; or
(b) a land mobile system station; or
(c) a maritime ship station; or
(d) a citizens band radio station; or
(e) an amateur station.
built-in display, for a device, means an
electronic display or screen integral to the device, and does not include a
display or screen that can be used independently of the device.
category A device has the meaning given by
section 5.
category B device means a device that is not
a category A device.
compliance label has the meaning given by
subsection 19 (1).
Note Section 8 extends some references to
‘compliance label’ in this Notice to include a compliance label under the Telecommunications
Labelling (Customer Equipment and Customer Cabling) Notice 2001.
compliance mark means any of the marks in
Part 2 of Schedule 1.
compliance record has the meaning given by
section 20.
C-Tick mark means the mark set out in
Part 2 of Schedule 1.
declaration of conformity means a declaration
that:
(a) is in a form approved by the ACMA; or
(b) contains the information required in that
approved form, whether or not the declaration is accompanied by other material.
Note The ACMA makes approved forms
available on its website at www.acma.gov.au/complianceforms.
description of the device means sufficient
information for a person to determine whether the device is the same as a
device for which a declaration of conformity, test report or assessment against
the applicable standard was prepared.
Note The description of a device may
include a photograph or sketch or other pictorial representation of the device
illustrating its internal and external aspects (including printed circuit
boards).
device means a mobile station to which the
applicable standard applies.
human body means the head, neck and trunk but
not the limbs.
mobile station means a transmitter that is
established for use:
(a) in motion, on land, water or in the air; or
(b) in a stationary position at unspecified
points on land, water or in the air.
Examples of a mobile station
1 A wireless modem operating in a laptop
computer.
2 A hand-held cellular or PCS telephone
with a radiating antenna in the handpiece.
NATA means the National Association of
Testing Authorities, Australia (ACN 004 379 748).
non-aware user device means a device other
than an aware user device.
normal position of use, of a device, means:
(a) the position specified in the measurement
method applicable to the device in section 10, 11 or 12 of the applicable
standard; or
(b) if paragraph (a) does not apply, the common
use spatial orientation of the device with respect to the user; or
(c) if paragraphs (a) and (b) do not apply, the
spatial orientation of the device with respect to the user defined by the
manufacturer.
product identification code, for a device,
means the written information used by the supplier of the device to identify
the device.
RCM means the Regulatory Compliance Mark set
out in Part 2 of Schedule 1.
Note The RCM is reproduced from the
Appendix to AS/NZS 4417.
Specific Absorption Rate, or SAR,
means the rate at which RF energy is absorbed in body tissues, expressed as
watts per kilogram (‘W/kg’).
supplier
means:
(a) in relation to an imported device — the
importer or agent of the importer; and
(b) in relation to a device manufactured in
Australia — the manufacturer or the agent of the manufacturer.
supplier code number means a code number
issued to a person:
(a) in accordance with a notice made by the ACMA
under section 407 of the Telecommunications Act 1997; or
(b) in accordance with a notice made by the ACMA
under section 182 of the Act; or
(c) by Standards Australia International Limited
under AS/NZS 4417.
variant means a version of a device that is
not identical to the device but is not sufficiently different from the device
to affect the application to that version of a standard that applies to the
device.
working day, in relation to a request, means
a day other than:
(a) a Saturday or a Sunday; or
(b) a day that is a public holiday or an Australian
Public Service holiday in the place where the request is made.
(2) Before 1 March 2005, an accredited testing
body is a laboratory that is:
(a) accredited by:
(i) NATA; or
(ii) an accreditation body of a foreign
country, being a body with whom NATA has a mutual recognition arrangement or
agreement;
to conduct tests for specific absorption
rate; or
(b) certified in accordance with International
Standards Organisation ISO 9001:2000, as in force from time to time; or
(c) accredited, in accordance with International
Standards Organisation ISO 17025, as in force from time to time, to test
the specific absorption rate.
(3) On and after 1 March 2005, an accredited
testing body is a laboratory that is accredited by:
(a) NATA; or
(b) an accreditation body of a foreign country,
being a body with whom NATA has a mutual recognition arrangement or agreement;
to conduct tests for specific absorption rate.
Note On and from 1 March 2005, category B
devices whose normal position of use is not more than 20cm from the human body
must have tests for specific absorption rate conducted only by the bodies
mentioned in subsection (3).
(4) A reference in this Notice to a document with the
prefix ‘AS/NZS’ is a reference to a document that is a joint Australian and New
Zealand Standard approved for publication on behalf of the Standards
organisations of those countries, as in force from time to time.
(5) Reference may be made in this Notice to an
Australian and New Zealand Standard by number alone without inclusion of the
edition or year of publication of the standard.
Example
AS/NZS 4417.1:1996 may be referred to as AS/NZS 4417.1.
(6) A term that is:
(a) used (but not defined) in this Notice; and
(b) defined in the
Glossary of the ARPANSA standard;
has the meaning given by the Glossary.
5 Category
A devices
(1) A category A device is a device that
meets the criteria in subsection (2) or (3).
(2) The criteria in this subsection are that the device:
(a) is an aware user device; and
(b) is not required to be evaluated under section
5.2 of Schedule 5 to the ARPANSA Standard.
(3) The criteria in this subsection are that the device:
(a) is a non-aware user device; and
(b) is not required to be evaluated under section
5.3 of Schedule 5 to the ARPANSA standard.
6 Transitional
(1) The Radiocommunications (Compliance
Labelling — Electromagnetic Radiation) Notice 2001, as in force
immediately before 1 March 2003, continues to apply to a
radiocommunications device to which the old standard applies under section 7 of
the Radiocommunications (Electromagnetic Radiation — Human Exposure)
Standard 2003.
(2) Subsection (1) ceases to apply at the end of 29
February 2004.
7 Application
of this Notice to devices
(1) This Notice applies
to a device if:
(a) the device is manufactured in Australia, or
imported, for supply; and
(b) the applicable standard applies to it.
(2) This Notice does not apply to a device that is
imported or manufactured otherwise than for supply in Australia.
(3) This Notice does not apply to a category B device
for which there is no applicable measurement method under the applicable
standard.
8 Relationship
between this Notice and the Telecommunications Labelling (Customer Equipment
and Customer Cabling) Notice 2001
If a device to which this Notice applies is also
customer equipment or customer cabling to which the Telecommunications
Labelling (Customer Equipment and Customer Cabling) Notice 2001, as in
force from time to time, applies:
(a) the requirements in this Notice are
additional to the requirements under that Notice; and
(b) Part 3 of this Notice does not apply in
relation to the device; and
(c) a reference in this Notice (except
subsection 4 (1)) to a compliance label includes a reference to a
compliance label under that Notice.
Note An effect of paragraph (b) is that
the supplier of a device that is to be labelled with an A-Tick under the Telecommunications
Labelling (Customer Equipment and Customer Cabling) Notice 2001 is not
required to label the device with a C-Tick as well.
Part 2 Requirements
to be met before a label may be applied
Division 2.1 Application of Part 2
9 No
application to variants of a device
This Part does not apply in relation to a variant
of a device if:
(a) the relevant requirements of this Part have
been met in relation to the device; and
(b) the electromagnetic radiation exposure in
relation to the variant is not likely to exceed that of the device.
Division 2.2 Permission to use regulatory marks and issue supplier code
numbers
10 Notification
(1) Before a supplier applies a label with a C-Tick mark
to a device as a compliance label for the first time, the supplier must have
obtained from the ACMA:
(a) permission to use the C-Tick mark as part of
the label; and
(b) a supplier code number.
(2) An application to the ACMA for permission to use the
C‑tick mark and the issue of a supplier code number must be:
(a) in a form approved by the ACMA; or
(b) in writing setting out the information
required in that approved form, whether or not the application is accompanied
by other material.
Note The ACMA makes approved forms
available on its website at www.acma.gov.au/complianceforms.
(3) Before a supplier applies a label with the RCM to a
device as a compliance label for the first time, the supplier must register the
supplier’s use of the RCM with the ACMA in accordance with AS/NZS 4417.1.
(4) This section does not apply if the ACMA has
previously issued the supplier with a supplier code number and:
(a) an approval to use a mark under the Telecommunications
Labelling (Customer Equipment and Customer Cabling) Notice 2001, as in
force from time to time; or
(b) an approval to use a mark under the Radiocommunications
Devices (Compliance Labelling) Notice 1996, as in force from time to time.
11 Declaration
of conformity
(1) Before a supplier of a device applies a label to the
device as a compliance label, the supplier must make a declaration of
conformity for the device.
(2) Subsection (1) is taken to be satisfied by an
importer of a device, or an agent of the importer, who applies a label to the
device as a compliance label without making a declaration of conformity for the
device if:
(a) the device complies with the applicable
standard; and
(b) the device was manufactured outside Australia; and
(c) the
manufacturer of the device made a declaration of conformity for the device
before the label was applied to the device.
(3) A reference to
manufacturer in a declaration of conformity made in accordance with paragraph (2) (c)
is taken to include a reference to a person who manufactures a device outside
Australia.
(4) A manufacturer that
manufactures a device outside Australia and made a declaration of conformity in
accordance with paragraph (2) (c) need not provide:
(a) a supplier code number; or
(b) an Australian Business Number (ABN); or
(c) an Australian Company Number (ACN); or
(d) an Australian Registered Body Number (ARBN).
Division 2.3 Compliance levels
12 Compliance
levels
(1) Before a supplier applies a compliance label to a
device, the supplier must comply with the compliance level for the device.
(2) The compliance level for a device is:
(a) for a category A device — compliance
level 1; and
(b) for a category B device for which the normal
position of use is more than 20cm from the human body — compliance level
2; and
(c) for a category B device for which the normal
position of use is not more than 20cm from the human body — compliance
level 3.
13 Compliance
level 1
To comply with compliance level 1, the supplier of
a device must:
(a) prepare a description of the device; and
(b) make a declaration of conformity for the
device in accordance with section 11.
Note Subsection 11 (2) sets out the
circumstances in which the requirement for a supplier of a device to make a
declaration of conformity is taken to be satisfied by the overseas manufacturer
of the device making the declaration.
14 Compliance
level 2
To comply with compliance level 2, the supplier of
a device must:
(a) comply with compliance level 1; and
(b) show conformity with the applicable standard
by a report of the results of assessment under section 16.
15 Compliance
level 3
To comply with compliance level 3, the supplier of
a device must:
(a) comply with compliance level 1; and
(b) show conformity with the applicable standard
by a report of the results of assessments under section 16 by an accredited
testing body.
Division 2.4 Assessment of devices
16 Assessment
If a device is assessed for conformity with the
applicable standard, the supplier of the device must obtain from the person
that assessed the device a report addressing:
(a) the measurements or evaluation methods that
were used; and
(b) the results of the measurements or
evaluations, including any measurement or evaluation data; and
(c) whether the results of the measurements or
evaluations show that the device meets the applicable standard.
Part 3 Form
and placement of a compliance label
17 Application
of Part 3
(1) This Part applies to a device if the supplier for
the device has complied with the compliance level for the device under Part 2.
(2) This Part also applies to a variant of the device.
18 Who
must apply a compliance label to a device
(1) If a device is manufactured in Australia, a label
must be applied to the device as a compliance label by 1 of the following
persons:
(a) the manufacturer;
(b) an agent of the
manufacturer;
(c) a person who is
authorised by the manufacturer, or an agent of the manufacturer, to apply
labels on behalf of the manufacturer or agent.
Note A compliance label is described in
subsection 19 (1).
(2) If a device is manufactured outside Australia, a
label must be applied to the device as a compliance label by 1 of the following
persons:
(a) the importer;
(b) an agent of the
importer;
(c) a person outside
Australia who is authorised by the importer or agent to apply labels on behalf
of the importer or agent.
19 What
is a compliance label
(1) A compliance label for a device is a
label that meets the requirements of this section and sections 19A to 19D.
(2) The label must be in the form set out in Part 1
of Schedule 1.
(3) The label must include the information specified in
at least 1 of the paragraphs in subsection (4) about:
(a) in relation to an imported device — the
importer; and
(b) in relation to a device manufactured in
Australia — the manufacturer.
(4) The information is the following:
(a) business name and business address in
Australia;
(b) business name registered on the national
business names register within the meaning of section 147 of the Corporations
Act 2001;
(c) personal name and address of place of
business in Australia;
(d) Australian
Company Number or ACN under section 118 of the Corporations Act 2001;
(e) Australian Registered Body Number or ARBN
under Part 5B.2 of the Corporations Act 2001;
(f) Australian Business Number under the A
New Tax System (Australian Business Number) Act 1999;
(g) registered trade mark under the Trade
Marks Act 1995;
(h) supplier code number issued by the ACMA, or
in respect of the RCM, by Standards Australia International Limited.
Location of compliance label
(5) Subject to sections 19C and 19D, the label must be
placed on the device on a place that is accessible by the user.
Note Section 19C deals with situations
where applying a label to the surface of a device is not possible or practical.
Section 19D gives a supplier the option of labelling some types of device
electronically.
(6) A label is not accessible if it is necessary to use
a specialised tool to gain access to it.
(7) The information required by subsection (3) and
the compliance mark:
(a) must be as close as practicable to each
other; and
(b) must not be placed so that one wholly or
partially obscures the other.
19A Durability
of compliance label
(1) A compliance label must be durable.
(2) A compliance label must be applied to a device:
(a) permanently; or
(b) in a way that makes removal or obliteration
difficult.
19B Symbols
and characters on compliance label
(1) The information on a compliance label must be
legible, with alphanumeric characters (if any) at least 1 mm high.
(2) A compliance mark must be at least 3 mm high.
19C Placement
of compliance label
(1) If it is not possible to apply a compliance label to
the surface of a device because of the size or physical nature of the device,
or it is not practical to apply a compliance label to the surface of a device,
the compliance label must be applied to:
(a) the external surface of the packaging used
for the device; and
(b) the documentation (including any warranty or
guarantee certificates) that accompanies the device when it is supplied to the
user.
(2) The compliance label applied to the external surface
of the packaging used for the device must:
(a) occupy an area that is greater than 1% of
that external surface; and
(b) be clearly visible.
(3) The supplier must make and keep a record of:
(a) the reasons why subsection (1) applies
to the device; and
(b) where each compliance label is applied.
19D Electronic
labelling
(1) A supplier may apply a compliance label to a device
using the built‑in display of the device.
(2) The supplier must ensure that the documentation that
accompanies the device when it is supplied to the user sets out a method for
displaying the compliance label.
(3) The compliance label must be applied to the device
in a way that would make it difficult to prevent the display of the label when
the method set out in the documentation is used.
(4) Subsection 19 (5) and sections 19A and 19C do not
apply to a label applied under this section.
Part 4 Requirements
to be met after labels applied
Division 4.1 Keeping of records
20 Compliance records
A compliance record is a record that
must be kept under section 21.
21 Keeping
of records — general requirements
(1) If a supplier of a device applies a label to the
device as a compliance label, the supplier must keep, for 5 years after
the device has ceased to be supplied in Australia:
(a) the declaration of conformity relating to
the device; and
(b) the description of the device; and
(c) for a category B device — the records mentioned
in section 22; and
(d) for a device to which a compliance label is
not applied because of section 19C — the records mentioned in
subsection 19C (3).
(2) If an agent of a
manufacturer or importer keeps records for the manufacturer or importer that
must be kept under subsection (1), the agent must also keep a copy of its
agency agreement with the manufacturer or importer for the same period as those
records are kept.
(3) A compliance record:
(a) must be in
English; and
(b) may be a copy of an
original record; and
(c) may be kept in
electronic form.
22 Records
of testing for category B devices
For paragraph 21 (1) (c), the records
are:
(a) the report issued under section 16 showing
that the device meets the applicable standard; and
(b) for a variant — a statement by the
supplier that:
(i) identifies the device and its
variant; and
(ii) describes the differences between
the device and its variant; and
(iii) provides a technical rationale
for the conformity of the variant; and
(iv) includes evidence that the
electromagnetic radiation exposure in relation to the variant is not likely to
exceed that of the device.
Division 4.2 Availability
of compliance records for inspection
23 Where
compliance records are to be available
If a supplier of a device applies a label to the
device as a compliance label, the supplier must ensure that the compliance
records for the device are available at the principal business address in
Australia of the supplier.
24 Provision
of information to authorised officer
(1) If a supplier of a device applies a label to the
device as a compliance label, an authorised officer, may in writing, require
the supplier to give to the officer specified compliance records.
(2) If the request is for a specified record, the
supplier must produce the record within 10 working days after the day specified
in the request.
(3) If the request is for a specified circuit diagram or
manual for the device, the supplier must produce the document within 30 working
days after the day specified in the request.
(4) After receiving the information from the supplier,
the authorised officer must give the supplier a receipt for the information
supplied.
(5) The authorised officer:
(a) may make copies of the records; and
(b) must return the records given by the supplier
as soon as practicable and, in any case, not more than 60 days after receiving
the records.
(6) If an authorised officer believes that the records
kept by the supplier do not provide sufficient evidence that the device
complies with the applicable standard, the officer may, in writing, require the
supplier to give to the officer a test report from an accredited testing body
showing that the device either complies or does not comply with the applicable
standard.
25 Testing
of items by testing body
(1) If a supplier of a device applies a label to the
device as a compliance label, an authorised officer may, in writing, require
the supplier of a device to give up to 3 samples of the device to a laboratory
accredited by NATA and specified by the officer, for testing whether the device
complies with an applicable standard.
(2) The supplier must comply with the request within 10
working days after the day specified in the request.
(3) The supplier must attempt to obtain from the
laboratory a receipt that specifies the samples have been received and the date
when they were received.
(4) On receiving a
request from the ACMA, the supplier must:
(a) give the
receipt to the ACMA; or
(b) if the supplier is unable to obtain a
receipt — satisfy the ACMA that the supplier made reasonable attempts to
obtain a receipt.
(5) The ACMA must make arrangements to ensure that the
samples are returned to the supplier within a reasonable period after they have
been tested.
(6) If testing required under section 25 shows that the
device does not comply with the standard, the supplier must meet the financial
costs of the testing.
(7) If testing required under section 25 shows that the
device complies with the standard, the ACMA must meet the financial costs of
the testing.
(8) In this section:
device includes a variant of the device.