Major changes for approval of telecom equipment in Lebanon

Lebanon is a country at the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea,
being bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south, and Cyprus not far west from the coastline. The country’s population is about 6 mill with Beirut as the capital and largest city.

Lebanon is a country at the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea, being bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south, and Cyprus not far west from the coastline. The country’s population is about 6 mill with Beirut as the capital and largest city.

Lebanon has a checkered history, also in modern times. In 2020, an enormous explosion in a warehouse in Beirut resulted in widespread destruction, significant loss of lives and an economic collapse. Largely because of its location, the country is often subject to tragic war actions, perhaps more than ever these days. Still, the authorities are apparently dedicated to keeping the country in control in areas like telecommunication.

It was recently announced that Type Approval responsibility for telecom equipment was shifted from the Ministry of Telecommunications (MoT) to the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA). Apparently, this implies that all Type Approval certificates previously issued by the MoT must be replaced by Type Approval Certificates issued by the TRA, which has only two years validity.

There seems to be no transitional or “grandfathering” arrangement between the MoT and the TRA for the automatic migration or recognition of older MoT certificates. Thus, an existing MoT-issued certificate would no longer be valid for regulatory purposes and needs to be replaced by a TRA-issued Type Approval Certificate. In the meantime, product imports and customs clearance may be denied, and thus market access hindered.

As part of this regulatory evolution, the TRA has introduced a new official TRA conformity label, which must be
applied to certified products to show compliance under the new TRA regime.

Manufacturers and exporters of products for sale in Lebanon are advised to:

• Review their current approvals and identify any MoT-issued certificates still in use.
• Initiate the renewal and re-issuance process with the TRA in a timely manner.
• Ensure continued market access in Lebanon by maintaining valid TRA certificates.
• Ensure that their products carry the TRA conformity label to demonstrate regulatory compliance.

For further information and/or assistance with certification of products for Lebanon or other Middle East countries, please contract Lars.Hjerpseth@nemko.com

(This article is triggered by an email from CERTA Consulting; edited by T.Sollie)