China CCC Ex Certification for Explosion-Protected Equipment

China regulates explosion-protected electrical equipment through China Compulsory Certification (CCC). Since October 1, 2020, products that fall under the "explosion-proof electrical" category of the CCC catalogue may not leave the factory, be sold, be imported or be used in other business activities without a CCC certificate and the CCC mark. Certification is to the GB/T 3836 series (China's adoption of IEC 60079), is issued only by bodies designated by the Certification and Accreditation Administration (CNCA), and always includes a factory inspection. An IECEx or ATEX certificate does not replace it.

This page covers the product certification side for manufacturers and importers. For how China fits alongside other national schemes, see Ex certification by country; for the two international reference systems, see ATEX vs IECEx.

Key dates

Which products need CCC

CNCA-C23-01:2024 applies to Group I (mining), Group II (gas) and Group III (dust) explosion-protected electrical products in 18 product types:

• motors
• electric pumps (motor and pump built as one coaxial unit)
• power distribution equipment (distribution boards, junction boxes, power supplies)
• switches, control and protection products (circuit breakers, relays, push buttons)
• starters, including soft starters and variable-frequency drives
• transformers and instrument transformers
• electric actuators and solenoid valves, including valve positioners
• plugs, sockets and connectors
• monitoring products (cameras, monitors, displays, industrial computers, audible and visual alarms)
• communication and signaling devices (radios, telephones, loudspeakers, network equipment)
• air conditioning and ventilation equipment (fans, heaters, dehumidifiers)
• electric heating products, including trace heating
• Ex accessories and Ex components (cable entry devices, conduit and junction boxes, flameproof enclosures, terminals, insulators)
• instruments (data acquisition units, counters, encoders)
• sensors
• safety barriers and associated apparatus (Zener and isolating barriers, intrinsically safe power supplies)
• instrument boxes and panels
• luminaires and lamp control devices (added by the 2024 rule)

Many of these entries explicitly include the same product "used as an Ex component", so parts supplied for building into other Ex equipment can also be in scope. The SAMR catalogue description table (2023 revision) excludes some products outright:

• pumps where the motor and pump are separate units connected on site, for example by a belt
• solenoid valves that are listed in the special equipment catalogue
• mobile terminals such as handsets that communicate through base stations
• any product that does not have one of the functions described for the listed types

Non-electrical equipment is not covered. Combustible gas detection and alarm products became a separate CCC category from July 1, 2025 under the same 2024 announcement; confirm with a designated body which rule applies to an Ex-protected gas detector.

Designated certification bodies

Only CNCA-designated bodies can issue CCC certificates for Ex products. The six bodies designated in August 2019, which also appear in CNCA's published directory of designated bodies, are:

"NEPSI" and "CNEx/CQST" are the names most often seen on certificates. They are different organizations: NEPSI is the Shanghai institute, and CQST is the national Ex electrical product test center operated by CNEx in Nanyang. The China Mining Products Safety Approval and Certification Center (CMAC) is an IECEx ExCB but is not one of the CCC bodies above. Check CNCA's online directory for the current list before choosing a body.

GB/T 3836 and IEC 60079

Certification is to the GB/T 3836 part for each type of protection plus the general requirements in GB/T 3836.1. The part numbers do not match IEC's numbering:

GB/T 3836.1-2021 is a modified adoption (MOD) of IEC 60079-0:2017. It replaced GB 3836.1-2010 and the separate dust standard GB 12476.1-2013. The CCC rule says the edition currently in force applies. IEC published edition 8 of IEC 60079-0 in June 2026; until China adopts it, a test report to a newer IEC edition is still assessed against the GB/T text in force. See Ex standards and protection methods for the technical background.

How CCC Ex certification works

The standard model in CNCA-C23-01:2024 is type testing + initial factory inspection + post-certification surveillance.

1. Application and unit division. The applicant (a foreign manufacturer can apply directly, with equivalent legal documents) applies to a designated body, which splits the product range into certification units by equipment group, type of protection, product type, construction and safety parameters.
2. Type testing. In principle this is done by a CNCA-designated laboratory. The rule also says a compliant type test report submitted with the application shall be accepted, and bodies may witness tests or use the manufacturer's own laboratory under CNCA's common rules.
3. Initial factory inspection. Covers every site where the product is made, checks the quality system and product consistency, and normally follows successful testing. SITIIAS states that, because Ex products are higher-risk, it inspects the factory before certification in principle in every case.
4. Certificate. The rule sets a general target of issuing the certificate within 90 days of accepting the application. Certificates are valid for five years; renewal must be requested within 90 days before expiry.
5. Surveillance. Follow-up inspections, preferably unannounced, and/or sampling from production. Frequency depends on the factory's A-to-D risk class; SITIIAS, for example, audits class A factories once every 24 months, class B every 12 or 18 months (taking IECEx and ISO 9001 results into account) and class C every 12 months.

For small single batches (no more than five units, a signed sales contract, same materials and production conditions), the 2024 rule adds an alternative model: type testing + 100% inspection. The certificate is valid for no more than six months and cannot be renewed or changed.

Using IECEx certificates and test reports

China is an IECEx member country (member body: CNCA), and five of the six designated bodies are IECEx ExCBs. In its 2019 report to the IECEx Management Committee, China stated that IECEx ExTRs are directly recognized for CCC. The CCC rule itself does not mention IECEx; it relies on the general provision that a compliant type test report shall be accepted. In practice this means:

• An existing ExTR can cut or remove retesting, but the designated body decides what extra testing is needed for differences between the IEC edition tested and the GB/T edition in force.
• The IECEx Certificate of Conformity itself is not a CCC certificate, and an IECEx QAR does not replace the CCC factory inspection.
• ATEX certificates have no formal status in CCC. EN IEC 60079 test data may still be useful technically, but agree this with the body first.

Products outside CCC: the voluntary Ex certificate

Products outside the catalogue description, such as non-electrical equipment and base-station mobile handsets, are not CCC products, and CNCA told designated bodies in 2020 to cancel any CCC certificates issued for them. The same Chinese Ex bodies continue to offer voluntary Ex certification to the GB/T 3836 series, often called an Ex certificate of conformity (防爆合格证). CQM, for example, runs voluntary Ex certification rules alongside its CCC rules. Buyers in China often specify such a certificate for equipment that CCC does not cover. Equipment for underground coal mines is also subject to China's separate mine product safety mark (MA) system.

Marking

The CCC mark must be applied in a visible position on the product body, or printed or molded on the nameplate. Where that is not possible, it goes on the smallest package and in the accompanying documents. The Ex marking follows GB/T 3836.1, which uses the same structure as IEC 60079-0, and the nameplate carries the certificate reference of the designated body. A typical nameplate therefore shows:

CCC mark
Ex db IIB T4 Gb        (Ex marking per GB/T 3836.1)
Certificate no. of the designated body
Manufacturer, model, serial number, ratings

See Ex markings explained and equipment protection levels for how to read the Ex string.

CCC Ex compared with ATEX and IECEx

Practical steps for exporters

1. Check the product against the 2023 catalogue description table and the 2024 rule; if it is out of scope, decide whether customers will want a voluntary Ex certificate.
2. Ask the chosen designated body how it will use your IECEx ExTR and which GB/T edition gaps need testing.
3. Prepare key component and material lists and quality documents for the factory inspection, and design the nameplate with room for the CCC mark and certificate reference.

Area classification, equipment selection and installation in China follow GB 3836.15-2024 and related standards and are the plant operator's responsibility. This page summarizes the certification rules; confirm scope decisions with a designated body.

Frequently asked questions

What is CCC Ex certification?

It is China Compulsory Certification for explosion-protected electrical products. Since October 1, 2020, products in the Ex category of the CCC catalogue need a CCC certificate from a CNCA-designated body and the CCC mark before they can be made, sold or imported in China.

Is NEPSI certification the same as CCC?

No. NEPSI (SITIIAS in Shanghai) is one of the six bodies designated to issue CCC certificates for Ex products. It also issues IECEx certificates and voluntary Chinese Ex certificates, so check which certificate you actually hold.

Does China accept IECEx certificates?

An IECEx certificate does not replace CCC. China told IECEx in 2019 that ExTRs are recognized for CCC, so an existing ExTR can reduce testing, but a CCC certificate, a factory inspection and the CCC mark are still required.

Which Ex products are outside CCC in China?

Non-electrical equipment, mobile handsets that use base stations, pumps with separately mounted belt-driven motors, and any product without one of the functions listed in the catalogue description. These can be given a voluntary Chinese Ex certificate instead.

How long is a CCC Ex certificate valid?

Five years, kept valid by surveillance inspections. Renewal is requested within 90 days before expiry. Small-batch certificates issued under the type test plus 100% inspection model last no more than six months.

Sources

1. CNCA: CNCA-C23-01:2024 Compulsory product certification implementation rule, explosion-proof electrical (Chinese PDF)
2. SAMR: Announcement 2019 No. 34, explosion-proof electrical products moved from production licence to CCC (Chinese)
3. SAMR: Announcement 2024 No. 9, CCC for Ex luminaires and other products (Chinese)
4. CNCA: Announcement 2022 No. 6 on GB/T 3836 certification standards (Chinese)
5. SAMR: CCC catalogue description and definition table, 2023 revision (Chinese PDF)
6. SITIIAS (NEPSI): SITIIAS-C23-01:2024 detailed CCC implementation rules (Chinese PDF)
7. IECEx: Report from China regarding acceptance of Ex products, ExMC Dubai 2019
8. IECEx: Certification Bodies (ExCBs)