The Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 applies from 20 January 2027, and the Dutch rules that enforce it are now set out in the Warenwetbesluit machines 2026. If you manufacture, import or distribute machinery for the Dutch market, this article explains what changes on that date, how AI safety functions are now regulated and when to have your conformity documentation checked.
When does the Machinery Regulation apply?
The Machinery Regulation applies from 20 January 2027. On that date it repeals the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC. References to the Directive then count as references to the Regulation (Articles 51(2) and 54 of the Regulation).
Some parts already apply. The rules on notified bodies (Articles 26 to 42) have applied since 20 January 2024. Member States had to notify their penalty rules to the Commission by 20 October 2026 (Article 50(2)). Two acts have amended the Regulation since its adoption on 14 June 2023. The first is Regulation (EU) 2024/2748 on internal market emergencies. The second is Regulation (EU) 2026/1744, the Digital Omnibus on AI.
The system of essential health and safety requirements in Annex III stays. What is new is the structure of the New Legislative Framework, with separate obligations for manufacturers, authorised representatives, importers and distributors. The Regulation also adds requirements on protection against corruption of control systems and on machine-learning safety functions. Our overview of the new Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 covers those substantive changes in more detail.
Can you still sell machinery placed on the market under the Directive?
Yes, for units placed on the market before 20 January 2027. Member States may not impede the making available of those products. EC type-examination certificates also remain valid until they expire (Article 52(1) and (2) of the Regulation).
The protection attaches to each unit, not to a model. “Placing on the market” means the first making available of a product on the Union market (Article 3(12)). A unit first supplied on or after 20 January 2027 must therefore meet the Regulation. That is so even if identical units were sold under the Directive for years.
Example: a Dutch importer buys palletisers from a Swiss manufacturer. Units it supplied to customers in December 2026 stay under the Directive. A unit that is still in its warehouse and is first supplied in February 2027 needs a declaration of conformity under the Regulation. Dated delivery records decide which regime applies to each unit.
Do you hold stock, or sell a product range that straddles 20 January 2027? Ask MAAK Advocaten to check which of your machines still fall under the Directive and what your documentation needs before that date.
How does the Digital Omnibus on AI change the rules for machinery?
Regulation (EU) 2026/1744 moves the Machinery Regulation from Section A to Section B of Annex I to the AI Act. Machinery law, not a separate AI Act conformity assessment, will therefore govern high-risk AI in machinery.
The EU adopted the Omnibus on 8 July 2026 and published it in the Official Journal on 24 July 2026. It entered into force on 27 July 2026. Its recitals give the reason: to simplify the framework for AI-enabled machinery by moving to a sectoral approach.
For products covered by Section B legislation, only Article 6(1), Article 60a and Articles 102 to 112 of the AI Act apply (Article 2(2) AI Act as amended). The AI Act’s requirements for high-risk systems reach machinery only once they are written into the Machinery Regulation itself.
That is the next step. The Omnibus added a new duty to Article 8 of the Machinery Regulation. The Commission must adopt delegated acts that add AI requirements to Annex III. These concern AI systems that are high-risk under Article 6(1) of the AI Act because they are a safety component of machinery, or are machinery themselves. The requirements must reflect Chapter III, Section 2, and Articles 17, 19, 72 and 73 of the AI Act. The delegated acts must apply by 2 August 2028.
Until then, a new Article 20(10) fills the gap. Manufacturers that comply with harmonised standards or common specifications adopted under Articles 40 and 41 of the AI Act are presumed to meet the matching Annex III requirements. The AI Act’s own date for high-risk AI in Annex I products has moved to 2 August 2028 as well (Article 113 AI Act as amended).
What does the Warenwetbesluit machines 2026 require?
The Warenwetbesluit machines 2026 (Stb. 2026, 261) makes the Regulation enforceable in the Netherlands. It adds no product requirements. Instead, it turns each operator’s obligations into prohibitions that can be fined and requires core documents in Dutch.
The government adopted the decree on 9 September 2026 and published it on 16 September 2026. It enters into force on 20 January 2027 (Article 33) and replaces the Warenwetbesluit machines based on the Directive. The explanatory memorandum calls it a pure implementation without national additions. The Advisory Division of the Council of State had no comments on the draft (opinion of 8 July 2026, no. W12.26.00150/III). The full text is on officielebekendmakingen.nl (Stb. 2026, 261, in Dutch).
The prohibitions refer directly to the Regulation. For each operator, the decree lists the articles it may not act contrary to:
| Operator | Obligations under Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 | Warenwetbesluit machines 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Articles 10, 11, 21, 22, 24(1) to (4) and 25(1) to (4) | Article 4(1) |
| Person who substantially modifies machinery | Article 18 | Article 4(2) |
| Authorised representative | Article 12 | Article 5 |
| Importer | Articles 13 and 14; Articles 10 and 11 where Article 17 treats the importer as manufacturer | Article 6 |
| Distributor | Articles 15 and 16; Articles 10 and 11 where Article 17 treats the distributor as manufacturer | Article 7 |
For importers and distributors these obligations are new compared with the Machinery Directive, as the explanatory memorandum notes. Importers must, for example, check two things before placing machinery on the market. Has the manufacturer carried out the right conformity assessment procedure, and has it drawn up the technical documentation (Article 13(2) of the Regulation)?
Which machinery documents must be in Dutch?
Six documents must in any event be in Dutch: the instructions for use, the safety information, the Annex III information, the assembly instructions, the EU declaration of conformity and the EU declaration of incorporation (Article 4(3) Warenwetbesluit machines 2026).
Distributors carry a matching duty. They must ensure Dutch versions of the instructions and information under Article 15(2) of the Regulation. The same goes for the assembly instructions under Article 16(2) (Article 7(3) of the decree). Every model sold in the Netherlands therefore needs a Dutch set, including models sourced from outside the EU.
Manufacturers may supply instructions digitally under Article 10(7) of the Regulation. They must then remain accessible for the expected lifetime of the machinery and for at least 10 years after it was placed on the market. If the user asks at the time of purchase, the manufacturer must provide a paper copy free of charge within one month. For machinery that non-professional users can be expected to use, the manufacturer must always supply the essential safety information on paper.
What fines apply under the Dutch machinery decree?
Each prohibition carries an administrative fine of EUR 525 or EUR 1,050. The lower amount applies to businesses with 50 or fewer employees on the day of the infringement, the higher amount to larger businesses.
Those amounts come from the annex to the Warenwetbesluit bestuurlijke boeten on wetten.overheid.nl (Article 3 sets out the two columns). Article 29 of the new decree links the existing fine rows to the 2026 decree. According to the memorandum, the amounts do not change. Serious infringements can also lead to criminal sanctions under the Economic Offences Act (Wet op de economische delicten).
Supervision and the designation of conformity assessment bodies are in practice mandated to the Netherlands Labour Authority (Nederlandse Arbeidsinspectie). For how inspections and sanctions work in practice, see CE marking enforcement in the Netherlands and your options against a penalty from a Dutch regulatory authority.
What happens to existing certificates and notified bodies?
Machinery that met the old decree on 19 January 2027 and was placed on the market on or before that date may still be made available. Certificates valid on that date are deemed issued under the new decree (Article 31).
Articles 8 to 11 of the decree, on the designation of EU conformity assessment bodies, entered into force on 17 September 2026. That is the day after publication (Article 33). This lets Dutch bodies apply for designation, and the Dutch state notify them, before the Regulation applies on 20 January 2027.
This matters most for Annex I, Part A products. That list includes safety components with fully or partially self-evolving behaviour using machine learning approaches ensuring safety functions, and machinery with embedded systems of that kind (points 5 and 6). For these products, the conformity assessment routes in Article 25(2) all involve a notified body from 20 January 2027, regardless of the later AI delegated acts. Our page on legal support with CE marking in the Netherlands explains how that process runs.
Are harmonised standards available under the Machinery Regulation?
Not on the official sources we checked on 12 October 2026. Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/2015 added standards under the Directive and repeals the Directive’s list from 20 January 2027. The Commission has not published a list of standards under the Regulation.
Decision (EU) 2026/2015 of 4 September 2026 entered into force on 7 September 2026, the day of its publication. It adds new and revised standards to the list in Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/1586. Among them are EN ISO 13855:2024, EN ISO 14119:2025, EN IEC 62061:2021 as amended by A1:2024, EN ISO 10218-1:2025 and EN ISO 10218-2:2025 on industrial robots, and parts 1 to 4 of EN ISO 18497 on automated agricultural machinery. Article 2 repeals the whole list with effect from 20 January 2027.
The sources do not show whether a decision under the Regulation will carry these references over before that date. The Commission’s 2026 work programme for European standardisation (C/2026/1695) mentions requests under the Machinery Regulation only once. It does so as work to coordinate with a planned request for lifts.
Here is why this matters. For Annex I, Part B machinery, internal production control (module A) is only open in one case. The manufacturer must build the machinery to harmonised standards or common specifications specific to that category, covering all relevant essential requirements (Article 25(3)). Without them, the manufacturer needs a route with a notified body. The options are EU type-examination followed by module C, full quality assurance (module H) or unit verification (module G).
Is the Omnibus IV proposal on digitalisation already law?
No. The Commission’s proposal of 21 May 2025 on digitalisation and common specifications, COM(2025) 504, would also amend the Machinery Regulation. It has not been adopted, and the consolidated text of 27 July 2026 lists only the 2024 and 2026 amendments.
The proposal deals with matters such as electronic communication with market surveillance authorities and access to the EU declaration of conformity in digital form. It also covers the digital product passport where other EU legislation requires one. Until an amending act appears in the Official Journal, plan on the current text of the Regulation.
What should manufacturers and importers do before 20 January 2027?
Check per model and per unit which regime applies, which conformity assessment route remains open without harmonised standards, and whether your Dutch documents are ready. Importers should collect the required documents from non-EU manufacturers in good time.
A practical order of work, based on Articles 10, 13, 25 and 52 of the Regulation and Article 4(3) of the Dutch decree:
- Record the date of first supply for every unit in stock, so you can show which units fall under Article 52.
- Classify each model as Annex I, Part A, Annex I, Part B, or neither, and identify any machine-learning safety functions.
- For Part B models on module A, list the standards you rely on and plan a notified-body route in case they give no presumption under the Regulation.
- Prepare Dutch versions of the instructions, safety information, assembly instructions and both EU declarations.
- If you supply instructions digitally, keep them accessible for at least 10 years and set up a process for paper copies within one month.
- As an importer, check the conformity assessment, the CE marking and the accompanying documents before you place each machine on the market.
- Watch the Official Journal for a standards decision under the Regulation and for the AI delegated acts under Article 8.
Supplying machinery to the Netherlands and unsure whether your conformity route or Dutch documentation will hold from 20 January 2027? Have MAAK Advocaten review your machinery compliance before the deadline. For related obligations, see our overview of product compliance in the Netherlands.
Which dates matter for the Machinery Regulation?
Four dates frame the transition: 17 September 2026, 20 October 2026, 20 January 2027 and 2 August 2028. There is no published date yet for a standards decision under the Regulation, for the AI delegated acts or for the Omnibus IV proposal.
| Date | What happens | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 17 September 2026 | Rules on designating EU conformity assessment bodies in force in the Netherlands | Articles 8 to 11 and 33 Warenwetbesluit machines 2026 |
| 20 October 2026 | Deadline for Member States to notify their penalty rules to the Commission | Article 50(2) Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 |
| 20 January 2027 | Machinery Regulation applies; Directive 2006/42/EC and Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/1586 repealed; Warenwetbesluit machines 2026 in force | Articles 51(2) and 54 Regulation (EU) 2023/1230; Article 2 Decision (EU) 2026/2015; Article 33 Warenwetbesluit machines 2026 |
| 2 August 2028 | Latest date of application of the AI delegated acts for Annex III; AI Act high-risk rules for Annex I products apply | Article 8 Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 as amended; Article 113 AI Act as amended |
Frequently asked questions about the Machinery Regulation 2027
Does the Netherlands have to transpose the Machinery Regulation?
No. The Regulation is binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States (Article 54). The Warenwetbesluit machines 2026 only makes it enforceable in the Netherlands, sets the Dutch language requirement and regulates the designation of conformity assessment bodies.
Does machinery with AI safety functions need a separate AI Act assessment?
Not after Regulation (EU) 2026/1744. Delegated acts will add the AI requirements to Annex III of the Machinery Regulation and must apply by 2 August 2028. Machine-learning safety components already need a notified body under Article 25(2) from 20 January 2027.
Can I keep selling machines from stock after 20 January 2027?
Yes, for units placed on the market before that date in conformity with the Directive (Article 52(1)). A unit first made available on or after 20 January 2027 must comply with the Regulation. Keep dated records of first supply for each unit.
Must the EU declaration of conformity be in Dutch?
Yes, for machinery supplied in the Netherlands. Article 4(3) of the Warenwetbesluit machines 2026 requires both EU declarations to be in Dutch in any event. The same applies to the instructions and the safety information.
Who enforces the Machinery Regulation in the Netherlands?
In practice, the Netherlands Labour Authority (Nederlandse Arbeidsinspectie), under a mandate. The administrative fines are EUR 525 or EUR 1,050 per prohibition, depending on company size. Serious infringements can also lead to criminal sanctions under the Economic Offences Act.
