> For clean Markdown of any page, append .md to the page URL. > For a complete documentation index, see https://tieback.io/docs/llms.txt. > For AI client integration (Claude Code, Cursor, etc.), connect to the MCP server at https://tieback.io/docs/_mcp/server. # Harmonised Technical Specification > The umbrella term used in Regulation (EU) 2024/3110 for the technical instruments that set essential characteristics, assessment methods and requirements for construction products, comprising harmonised standards drafted under Article 5 and other harmonised technical specifications adopted under Article 6. ## Definition In Regulation (EU) 2024/3110, the collective term for the technical instruments that make the Regulation operative for a given construction product family or category. It covers harmonised standards drafted by European standardisation organisations following a Commission standardisation request under Article 5, and other harmonised technical specifications adopted by the Commission under Article 6. Whether a product is covered by one determines whether the manufacturer must draw up a declaration of performance and conformity under Article 13. ## Expanded Explanation Regulation (EU) 2024/3110 is a framework. It does not itself state what a cement, an insulation board or a window must declare. That content arrives through harmonised technical specifications, family by family, over time. Two routes exist. Under **Article 5**, the Commission may request one or more European standardisation organisations, in accordance with Article 10 of Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012, to draft harmonised standards laying down essential characteristics and their assessment methods. Under **Article 6**, the Commission may adopt other harmonised technical specifications itself. The second route is new relative to Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 and gives the Commission a way to proceed where the standardisation route does not deliver. Where no harmonised technical specification covers a product, the alternative is the **European Assessment Document** and the **European Technical Assessment** issued by a Technical Assessment Body. The practical consequence is staggered coverage. A product family whose specification is adopted early faces detailed requirements sooner than one whose specification comes later, so two products in the same catalogue can sit in materially different regulatory positions at the same moment. ## Why It Matters For a construction digital product passport, the applicable harmonised technical specification decides the substance of what is published: which essential characteristics are declared, in what units and classes, and by what assessment method. The Regulation supplies the container; the specification supplies the content. Article 95(3) also preserves harmonised standards referenced under Article 17(5) of Regulation (EU) No 305/2011 and in force on 8 January 2026, which remain valid under that Regulation until withdrawn or otherwise repealed. ## Relationship to Digital Product Passports Identifying the applicable specification is the first analytical step in any construction passport programme, because everything downstream, from test scope to declared values to validation rules, derives from it. Under Article 7 a harmonised standard may confer a [presumption of conformity](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/presumption-of-conformity) with product requirements, which is a legal effect the specification acquires within the framework the Regulation creates. ## Common Misconceptions #### A harmonised technical specification is legislation It is not. Regulation (EU) 2024/3110 is the law. A harmonised technical specification operates within the framework the law creates, and a harmonised standard drafted under an Article 5 request is one species of it. #### Harmonised technical specification and harmonised standard mean the same thing Every harmonised standard adopted under Article 5 is a harmonised technical specification. Not every harmonised technical specification is a harmonised standard, because Article 6 provides another route. #### If no specification covers my product I have no obligations The European Assessment Document and European Technical Assessment route exists precisely for that case, and other obligations under the Regulation continue to apply. ## Related Terms * [Harmonised Standard](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/harmonised-standard) * [Presumption of Conformity](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/presumption-of-conformity) * [Declaration of Performance and Conformity](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/declaration-of-performance-and-conformity) * [Technical Documentation](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/technical-documentation) * [Conformity Assessment](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/conformity-assessment) * [Notified Body](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/notified-body) * [Delegated Act](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/delegated-act) ## Related Knowledge Base Articles * [Digital Product Passports for Construction Products: What Companies Need to Know](/docs/knowledge-base/industry-guides/digital-product-passports-for-construction-products) * [The Digital Product Passport Standards Landscape](/docs/knowledge-base/standards-and-technology/the-digital-product-passport-standards-landscape) * [How Conformity Assessment Works for Digital Product Passports](/docs/knowledge-base/regulations/how-conformity-assessment-works-for-digital-product-passports) ## Related Articles * [Declaration of Performance and Conformity](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/declaration-of-performance-and-conformity) * [Data Carrier](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/data-carrier) * [EPCIS](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/epcis) * [GS1](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/gs1) * [GS1 Digital Link](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/gs1-digital-link) * [GTIN](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/gtin) * [QR Code](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/qr-code) * [Resolver](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/resolver) ## See Also * [Standards and Technology](/docs/knowledge-base/standards-and-technology/overview) * [Regulations](/docs/knowledge-base/regulations/overview) ## References * Regulation (EU) 2024/3110 laying down harmonised rules for the marketing of construction products, OJ L, 2024/3110, 18.12.2024: [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/3110/oj](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/3110/oj) * Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012 on European standardisation: [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2012/1025/oj](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2012/1025/oj) ## About This Article About This Article
Last Reviewed
2026-08-09
Next Scheduled Review
2027-08-09
Article Version
1.0
tieback Knowledge is a continuously maintained reference library covering Digital Product Passports, product traceability, product compliance and related regulations. Articles are reviewed regularly as legislation, standards and implementation guidance evolve. ## Related Docs * [Standards and Technology](/docs/knowledge-base/standards-and-technology/overview) * [Industry Guides](/docs/knowledge-base/industry-guides/overview) * [Glossary](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/overview)