Toaster Certification Requirements by Market

Updated 2026-11-09

Quick answer

A toaster is a portable cooking appliance under IEC 60335-2-9 (EN 60335-2-9 for CE and UKCA, AS/NZS 60335.2.9 for Australia) and under UL 1026 for a US listing. The tests that matter most are jammed-bread and food-load ignition behaviour, crumb tray containment, outer surface temperature, and a cord set short enough for counter use.

The simplest appliance with the strictest abnormal test

A toaster has no motor, no pump and no software in its basic form. It is also the appliance most likely to start a kitchen fire, which is why both the IEC and the UL standards spend unusual effort on one scenario: bread stuck against a live element.

For certification purposes a toaster is a portable cooking appliance under IEC 60335-2-9, which names toasters in its scope alongside grills, portable ovens and waffle irons. In North America it falls under UL 1026, household electric cooking and food serving appliances, which contains toaster-specific requirements and has been revised in recent years to add safeguards for toasters and requirements for “stay on” functions based on food-load ignition testing.

Certification table by market

Market	Status	Standard	Who tests or certifies	Typical lead time
EU	Mandatory CE	EN IEC 60335-1 + EN 60335-2-9; EMC; RoHS	Competent lab; importer declares	Lab quote per project
Great Britain	UKCA or CE recognised	BS EN 60335-2-9	Competent lab; UK responsible person	Lab quote per project
United States	Listing expected by retail	UL 1026	UL Solutions or Intertek	Lab quote per project
Canada	Listing expected	UL 1026 / CSA C22.2 with Canadian differences	UL, Intertek, CSA	Lab quote per project
Australia / NZ	RCM for declared articles	AS/NZS 60335.2.9	Accredited lab plus EESS registration	Lab quote per project
Saudi Arabia	SABER certificate	IEC 60335-2-9 with Saudi differences	IECEE-recognised lab	Lab quote per project
UAE	ECAS	IEC 60335-2-9	Accredited lab, MOIAT	Lab quote per project
Japan	PSE	IEC 60335-2-9 with JIS differences	Registered assessment body	Lab quote per project
Korea	KC	KC 60335-2-9	KTC, KTL or KTR	Lab quote per project
Brazil	INMETRO	IEC 60335-2-9 with Brazilian differences	Accredited certification body	Lab quote per project
Mexico	NOM	NOM-003 with IEC basis	ANCE or NYCE	Lab quote per project

The tests that decide whether a toaster passes

Jammed bread and food-load ignition. A slice is jammed so the carriage cannot release. The element keeps heating. The test checks whether the bread carbonises and ignites, and whether any thermal cut-out acts in time. Designs that rely only on the timer, with no independent thermal protection, are the ones that fail.

“Stay on” and override functions. A bagel, defrost or keep-warm mode that holds the carriage down is treated as a separate function. The lab needs to know about it before writing the test plan, because the requirement is not the same as for a standard pop-up cycle.

Outer surface temperature. Side walls, the top plate and the base are measured at the end of a full cycle and after several consecutive cycles. Steel-bodied toasters with a single-wall construction run hotter than double-wall models, and the difference decides whether a “cool touch” claim is legal.

Crumb tray and crumb containment. The tray must be removable without tools, must not allow crumbs to accumulate on live parts, and must not fall out in normal handling. The abnormal test also looks at what a build-up of crumbs does under repeated cycles.

Carriage and slot geometry. The carriage must not drop the bread onto the element, the slot guards must stop a finger reaching the element, and the high-lift function must not expose the element when raised.

Cord length and anchorage. Toasters are counter appliances, and standards limit how much cord is available so the appliance is not pulled off the counter. Cord length, anchorage and temperature rating are checked together.

Food contact and material questions

Part	Material	What buyers ask for
Slot guards	Stainless steel	Material declaration
Bun warmer rack	Stainless steel or coated steel	Coating declaration if coated
Sandwich cage	Aluminium with coating	Coating declaration and migration test
Crumb tray	Steel or aluminium	Material declaration
Housing	PP, ABS or steel	RoHS/REACH statements

The food-contact file for a plain slot toaster is thin. It becomes substantial as soon as the model has a non-stick sandwich cage or a coated warming rack, because those surfaces touch bread at high temperature.

Documents the importer should hold

Document	Purpose
Safety report to EN 60335-2-9 or UL 1026	Technical file core
Certificate with a checkable number	Retail and marketplace review
EU/UK declaration of conformity	Legal market access
EMC report	Thermostat and timer transients; digital models
RoHS and REACH statements	Substance compliance
Coating declaration	Sandwich cage or coated rack
Rating label and manual proof	Warnings, language, wattage
Packaging drop test record	Retail and e-commerce
Carton artwork showing the correct mark	Customs and retail audit

Why toaster shipments get rejected

One certificate, three models in the carton.
No independent thermal protection, so the jammed-bread test fails.
A “stay on” function not disclosed to the lab, so the report does not cover the shipped function.
Cord longer than the tested length, or a cord set with the wrong plug.
Outer wall temperature above the limit on a single-wall design.
Crumb tray loose or missing.
Wattage on the label differs from the tested rating.
No EU responsible person for consumer sales.

Plug, voltage and rating details

Item	EU	UK	US	Australia
Plug	CEE 7/7 or Europlug	BS 1363	NEMA 5-15	AS/NZS 3112
Voltage	230 V, 50 Hz	230 V, 50 Hz	120 V, 60 Hz	230 V, 50 Hz
Typical rating	700–1,500 W	700–1,500 W	700–1,200 W	700–1,500 W
Slot width claim	Measured in mm	Same	Same	Same

A 1,500 W toaster at 120 V draws 12.5 A, which is close to a US kitchen circuit limit when a kettle is on the same circuit. That is why US toaster designs are usually 900–1,200 W, and why the US version is a separate model rather than a plug change.

Frequently asked questions

Is a toaster a “portable cooking appliance”? Yes. IEC 60335-2-9 covers it directly, which keeps the toaster in the same family as contact grills and portable ovens.

Does a toaster need a GS certificate? Only if a German or Austrian retail channel asks. GS adds an annual factory inspection to the CE file and is common for mid-price and premium toasters.

Can a mechanical toaster skip EMC testing? Not in the EU. The EMC Directive applies to any appliance that can generate electromagnetic disturbance, and a thermostat switching a 1,000 W element does. The file is small but it must exist.

What about a toaster with a built-in clock or display? It needs full EMC testing, standby power assessment if it keeps a display alive, and a review of the software-controlled timing function.

Do I need a new report for a different housing colour? No, if the material and construction are unchanged. A different plastic, a different wall thickness, or a new element is a technical change.

How is a toaster oven different? It is an oven with a door, so it needs door-glass temperature, shelf retention and spillage tests. A slot toaster report does not cover it.

For country detail see the EU/, the US/, the UK/ and Japan and Korea/. Ask us for model-specific data through our contact page/, or see the toaster range/.

Frequently asked questions

Which standard covers an electric toaster?

IEC 60335-2-9, particular requirements for grills, toasters and similar portable cooking appliances. Toasters are named in the scope. In North America, UL 1026 covers household electric cooking and food serving appliances and contains specific toaster requirements, so it is the standard US and Canadian listing laboratories use.

Why does jammed bread matter so much?

Because a slice stuck against the element can carbonise and ignite. IEC 60335-2-9 and UL 1026 both include abnormal-operation tests for a jammed slice, and UL 1026 has been revised to add safeguards for toasters and requirements for "stay on" functions based on food-load ignition testing. A toaster that keeps heating with the carriage down and the bread jammed fails.

What is a "stay on" function and why is it regulated?

Some toasters let the user hold the carriage down or keep toasting without the timer. That defeats the pop-up safety logic, so UL 1026 now treats "stay on" as a separate function with its own requirements. If your model has a bagel, defrost or keep-warm function that overrides the timer, tell the lab before the test plan is written.

Do toasters need EMC testing?

The EU requires an EMC file even for a mechanical toaster, because the thermostat and any timer produce switching transients. In practice the file is small for a mechanical model and larger for one with a digital display or touch control. US models need FCC authorisation only when there is a digital control board or switching supply.

Is the crumb tray a certification item?

Yes, indirectly. The tray is part of the construction that keeps crumbs away from the element, and the abnormal test looks at what happens when crumbs accumulate. A tray that is hard to remove, or that lets crumbs fall onto a hot element, is both a safety and a returns problem.

Are there food-contact requirements for a toaster?

Fewer than for a blender, because bread touches metal guards and the slot area rather than a coated bowl. If the model has a bun warmer rack, a sandwich cage or a non-stick surface, those parts become food-contact items and need a material declaration, and for the EU a migration test where plastics or coatings are involved.

Can a 2-slice and a 4-slice toaster share a certificate?

Only if the element layout, timer, carriage mechanism and housing family are the same. A 4-slice model usually has two independent timers or a larger element, which is a different construction. Certificates that list one model and shipments that contain three are one of the most common retail compliance findings.

What is different for a toaster oven?

A toaster oven is a portable oven, not a slot toaster. It is still in the IEC 60335-2-9 family and under UL 1026, but it needs oven-type tests: door glass temperature, shelf retention, spillage and interior access. Do not certify a toaster oven with a slot toaster report.

Sources

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