Requirements to install SOS button on transportation are removed for 4 years

On September 26, 2023 at the meeting of the EEC Council in Moscow, Kazakhstan defended the right of domestic manufacturers and official distributors of foreign manufacturers of motor vehicles not to equip cars with devices or systems for calling emergency services (SOS button) until December 31, 2027.

All EAEU member states agreed with the proposal of the Kazakh side, which was headed by Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin. The relevant changes will be made to the decision of the Customs Union Commission of 2011. Thus, domestic manufacturers of vehicles and official representatives of foreign manufacturers until December 31, 2027 will be able to conduct conformity assessment and put into circulation vehicles of categories M and N (cargo and passenger), without being equipped with emergency call devices.

This decision will favorably affect the development of the automotive industry in Kazakhstan. It will contribute to the expansion of the model range of vehicles and the entry of new brands into the Kazakhstan market.

It should be recalled that the requirements for equipping personal vehicles of categories N and M imported into the territory of the EAEU countries with devices for calling emergency and operational services (SOS button) are set out in the technical regulations of the Customs Union. Earlier, until February 1, 2024, official importers and manufacturers of vehicles of these categories of the EAEU countries were exempted from these obligations.

Taking into account the appeals of car owners on the high cost of installation (almost 25% of the cost of customs clearance, depending on the year of manufacture), the shortage of microchips and components for the manufacture of SOS buttons, as well as, due to the current geopolitical situation, the inability of foreign car manufacturers to assess the operability of these devices in accredited Russian testing laboratories, the issue of extending the period of mandatory equipment has been repeatedly raised by the Kazakh side. Now vehicles of categories M and N produced and imported by official importers into the territory of the EAEU countries are exempted from the requirement of mandatory equipment with systems for calling emergency and operational services until December 31, 2027.