OND: Outdoor Noise Directive (Directive 2000/14/EC), explained

OND in plain terms

The Outdoor Noise Directive (OND), formally Directive 2000/14/EC, is the EU’s law on how loud outdoor machinery may be and how that loudness is declared. It harmonises the noise emission standards, conformity assessment procedures, marking, technical documentation and data collection for equipment for use outdoors, to make the internal market work while protecting human health and well-being (Art. 1). It applies to the 57 types of equipment listed in Articles 12 and 13 and defined in Annex I, but only when the equipment is placed on the market or put into service as an entire unit suitable for its intended use (Art. 2(1)). Equipment for use outdoors means machinery, as defined in the machinery legislation, that is self-propelled or can be moved and is intended, according to its type, to be used in the open air and contributes to environmental noise exposure, plus non-powered equipment for industrial or environmental applications intended for outdoor use; use under tents, rain roofs or in the shell of a house counts as use in the open air (Art. 3(a)).

The directive does two different things. For 22 types listed in Article 12 it sets a permissible sound power level that the guaranteed level may not exceed (Art. 12). For 41 types listed in Article 13 it requires noise marking only (Art. 13). Either way, no equipment may be placed on the market or put into service until the manufacturer, or its authorised representative established in the Community, has ensured that it meets the noise requirements, that the conformity assessment has been completed and that it bears the CE marking and the indication of the guaranteed sound power level and is accompanied by an EC declaration of conformity (Art. 4(1)). Where neither is established in the Community, the obligations fall on whoever places the equipment on the market or puts it into service there (Art. 4(2)).

The directive was adopted on 8 May 2000, entered into force on its publication on 3 July 2000, had to be transposed by 3 July 2001 and applies from 3 January 2002, when it repealed nine earlier equipment-specific noise directives; the stricter stage II limits apply from 3 January 2006 (Art. 21, Art. 22 and Art. 23). It has been amended six times: Directive 2005/88/EC (the Article 12 table), Regulation (EC) No 219/2009 and Regulation (EU) 2019/1243 (the Commission’s power to update Annex III), Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1208 (the new Annex III from 22 May 2025), Directive (EU) 2024/2839 (Article 16 deleted from 29 November 2025) and Directive (EU) 2024/2749 (emergency procedures from 30 May 2026). Two corrigenda are folded into the English consolidated text, one to Directive 2005/88/EC and one to the delegated regulation; the two corrigenda recorded against the 2000 act itself concern the German, Finnish and Italian versions.

Official text Read the directive on EUR-Lex: consolidated text of 30 May 2026 (CELEX 02000L0014-20260530) and the original act (CELEX 32000L0014); the document information page lists the amending acts, corrigenda and repealed directives.

Scope

The directive covers only equipment placed on the market or put into service as an entire unit suitable for its intended use. Non-powered attachments placed on the market or put into service separately are excluded, except hand-held concrete-breakers and picks and hydraulic hammers (Art. 2(1)). Equipment primarily intended for the transport of goods or persons by road, rail, air or waterway, and equipment specially designed and constructed for military and police purposes and for emergency services, is excluded altogether (Art. 2(2)). A machine type that appears in neither Article 12 nor Article 13 is outside the directive, and the thresholds matter: dozers, dumpers, excavators, excavator-loaders, graders, loaders and landfill compactors are listed only below 500 kW, compressors only below 350 kW and motor hoes only below 3 kW, while power generators below 400 kW carry a limit and those of 400 kW and above are marking-only equipment (Art. 12 and Art. 13). The power source decides as well: only aerial access platforms with a combustion engine are listed, brush cutters and grass trimmers are combustion-engine units by definition, and lawn trimmers and lawn edge trimmers are electrically powered with cutting elements of not more than 10 J each, so an electric aerial access platform or brush cutter is outside the directive and an electric string trimmer within the 10 J limit is a limit-bound lawn trimmer (Art. 12, Art. 13 and Annex I, items 1, 2, 24 and 33).

The 22 types subject to noise limits are combustion-engine builders’ hoists for goods, compaction machines, but only vibrating and non-vibrating rollers, vibratory plates and vibratory rammers (explosion rammers are marking-only equipment under Article 13), compressors below 350 kW, hand-held concrete-breakers and picks, combustion-engine construction winches, dozers, dumpers, excavators, excavator-loaders, graders, hydraulic power packs, loader-type landfill compactors, lawnmowers other than agricultural and forestry equipment and multi-purpose devices above 20 kW, electrically powered lawn trimmers and lawn edge trimmers, combustion-engine counterbalanced lift trucks other than the smaller counterbalanced trucks up to 10 tonnes, loaders, mobile cranes, motor hoes below 3 kW, paver-finishers without a high-compaction screed, power generators below 400 kW, tower cranes and welding generators (Art. 12). The 41 marking-only types run from aerial access platforms with combustion engine, combustion-engine brush cutters, portable chain saws, hedge trimmers, combustion-engine grass trimmers, leaf blowers and collectors, scarifiers and shredders to drill rigs, piling equipment, pipelayers, trenchers, road milling machines, joint cutters, concrete mixers and truck mixers, refuse collection vehicles, power sweepers, suction vehicles, high pressure flushers and water jet machines, snow-removing machines, piste caterpillars, cooling equipment on vehicles, glass recycling containers, mobile waste containers and water pump units not for use under water (Art. 13). Every type is defined in Annex I, and the definition decides borderline cases.

The definition of machinery in Article 3(a) still cites Article 1(2) of Directive 98/37/EC. That directive was repealed by Directive 2006/42/EC, whose Article 25 construes references to it as references to the new directive, and Directive 2006/42/EC is in turn repealed by Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 with effect from 20 January 2027 (Directive 2006/42/EC, Art. 25; Regulation (EU) 2023/1230, Art. 51(2) as corrected). Likewise the conformity assessment procedures and the CE marking are defined by reference to Decision 93/465/EEC, which Decision No 768/2008/EC repealed with references construed as references to itself (Art. 3(b) and (c); Decision No 768/2008/EC, Art. 8). The definition of the sound power level cites EN ISO 3744:1995 and EN ISO 3746:1995 (Art. 3(d)), while the measurement annex now prescribes EN ISO 3744:2010 (Annex III, Part A).

The duties fall on the manufacturer, on its authorised representative established in the Community, and, where neither is established there, on any person placing the equipment on the market or putting it into service in the Community (Art. 4). Since 16 July 2021, Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 lists the directive as point 12 of its Annex I and, under Article 4, requires an economic operator established in the Union, a manufacturer, importer, authorised representative or fulfilment service provider, for every piece of equipment placed on the market (Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, Art. 4 and Annex I). In Denmark, executive order nr. 506 of 14 May 2025 on noise from machines for use outdoors repeats the scope, marks the limit-bound types (G) in bilag 1 and lists them in bilag 2, makes the first person marketing or putting a machine into use in the Community step into the manufacturer’s obligations, and binds anyone else marketing a new machine to the marking, declaration and limit rules (executive order nr. 506/2025, § 1, § 4, § 9, bilag 1 and bilag 2).

What you must do

Noise limits

For the 22 types of Article 12 the guaranteed sound power level may not exceed the permissible level in the table, which depends on net installed power P in kW, electric power Pel in kW, mass m in kg or cutting width L in cm. At stage II the values are: compaction machines 105 dB up to 8 kW, 106 dB from 8 to 70 kW and 86 + 11 lg P above; tracked dozers, loaders and excavator-loaders 103 dB up to 55 kW and 84 + 11 lg P above; wheeled dozers, loaders and excavator-loaders, dumpers, graders, loader-type landfill compactors, combustion-engine counterbalanced lift trucks, mobile cranes, non-vibrating rollers, paver-finishers and hydraulic power packs 101 dB up to 55 kW and 82 + 11 lg P above; excavators, builders’ hoists, construction winches and motor hoes 93 dB up to 15 kW and 80 + 11 lg P above; hand-held concrete-breakers and picks 105 dB up to 15 kg, 92 + 11 lg m from 15 to 30 kg and 94 + 11 lg m from 30 kg; tower cranes 96 + lg P; welding and power generators 95 + lg Pel up to 2 kW, 96 + lg Pel from 2 to 10 kW and 95 + lg Pel above 10 kW; compressors 97 dB up to 15 kW and 95 + 2 lg P above; lawnmowers and lawn trimmers 94 dB up to 50 cm, 98 dB from 50 to 120 cm and 103 dB above 120 cm. The result is rounded to the nearest integer (Art. 12, table).

The stage II figures are merely indicative for nine groups: walk-behind vibrating rollers, vibratory plates above 3 kW, vibratory rammers, steel-tracked dozers, steel-tracked loaders above 55 kW, combustion-engine counterbalanced lift trucks, compacting screed paver-finishers, hand-held combustion-engine concrete-breakers and picks between 15 and 30 kg, and lawnmowers, lawn trimmers and lawn edge trimmers. For them the stage I figures continue to apply until the directive is amended, which has not happened, but only in the bands that carry the footnote: for example 108 dB, 109 dB and 89 + 11 lg P for the vibrating compaction machines, 106 dB and 87 + 11 lg P for steel-tracked dozers and 87 + 11 lg P for steel-tracked loaders above 55 kW, 104 dB and 85 + 11 lg P for combustion-engine counterbalanced lift trucks, and 94 + 11 lg m for hand-held breakers between 15 and 30 kg, whose lighter and heavier bands keep the stage II figures of 105 dB and 94 + 11 lg m; for lawnmowers and lawn trimmers the stage I figures of 96 dB, 100 dB and 105 dB continue to apply up to 50 cm, from 70 to 120 cm and above 120 cm, while the band from 50 to 70 cm takes the stage II figure of 98 dB (Art. 12, table and footnote 2). Single-engine mobile cranes kept the stage I figures until 3 January 2008 (Art. 12, table footnote 3).

Measuring and guaranteeing the sound power level

The sound power level LWA is the A-weighted sound power in dB relative to 1 pW (Art. 3(d)). The measured level is determined by the Annex III method, from a single representative machine or the average of several (Art. 3(e)); the guaranteed level is determined under Annex III, includes the uncertainties due to production variation and measurement procedures, and is the value the manufacturer or its authorised representative confirms is not exceeded (Art. 3(f)). Since 22 May 2025, Annex III as replaced by Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1208 requires the basic noise emission standard EN ISO 3744:2010 with the general supplements of Part A and the equipment-specific noise test code of Part B, which sets the test environment, the environmental correction K2A, the measurement surface, the microphone positions, the mounting and the calculation where several operating conditions are tested; Part B prevails over Part A, and where no Part B code fits a model the guaranteed level is determined under Part A alone (Annex III, introduction). The surface sound pressure level is measured at least three times until two values differ by no more than 1 dB, and the reported sound power level is rounded to the nearest whole number; the environmental correction may be neglected up to 0,5 dB and the test environment fails above 4 dB (Annex III, Part A, points 2 to 4).

Because the Article 12 limits were set with the methods of 2000, a limit-bound machine whose conformity would differ between the old and the new method is measured, by the manufacturer, the notified body and the surveillance authority alike, with the version of Annex III applicable before 22 May 2025 until the limits are amended, and the test report then records both measurements (Annex III, introduction and Part A, point 3; Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1208, recital 4). Authorities and notified bodies must accept old-method test reports for models whose first item was placed on the market or put into service before 22 May 2025 until 22 May 2028 (Annex III, Part A, point 3). The Commission adopted the delegated act under Article 18a, which allows it to adapt Annex III to technical progress without direct impact on the measured level of Article 12 equipment (Art. 18a).

Conformity assessment and notified bodies

For Article 12 equipment the manufacturer or its authorised representative subjects each type, before placing on the market or putting into service, to one of three procedures: internal control of production with assessment of the technical documentation and periodical checking (Annex VI), unit verification (Annex VII) or full quality assurance (Annex VIII); for Article 13 equipment the internal control of production of Annex V applies (Art. 14(1) and (2)). Under Annex VI a notified body of the manufacturer’s choice receives the technical documentation before the first item is placed on the market, reports that it satisfies the directive, and then either makes periodical checks of the marking, the declaration and the uncertainty evaluation, with noise tests only if the checks are unsatisfactory, or makes random product checks with noise tests on a sample; the body sets the frequency but checks at least once every three years, and reports non-conforming equipment to the notifying Member State (Annex VI, points 5 and 6). Under Annex VII the body examines the equipment against the documentation, agrees the test location, carries out the noise tests and issues a certificate of conformity, copies of which are kept for 10 years from placing on the market (Annex VII). Under Annex VIII the body assesses and periodically audits a quality assurance system for design, manufacture and final inspection, presuming conformity for systems implementing EN ISO 9001, and may make unexpected visits (Annex VIII, points 3 and 4).

Member States appoint the bodies against the minimum criteria of Annex IX, independence from the designer, builder, supplier and installer, professional integrity, competent staff, guaranteed impartiality, liability insurance and professional secrecy, notify them to the Commission with their tasks and identification numbers, and withdraw a notification when the criteria are no longer met; the Commission publishes the list (Art. 15 and Annex IX). In Denmark, Miljøstyrelsen designates the bodies on application and revokes designations that no longer meet the criteria or the procedures (executive order nr. 506/2025, § 8). The Commission’s NANDO database lists the bodies notified for the directive (European Commission, noise emission by outdoor equipment page).

Declaration, technical documentation and marking

The manufacturer or its authorised representative draws up an EC declaration of conformity for each type of equipment with at least the Annex II particulars: name and address, the name and address of the person keeping the technical documentation, a description of the equipment, the procedure followed and the notified body where appropriate, the measured sound power level of a representative machine, the guaranteed sound power level, a reference to the directive, the declaration of conformity, the other Community directives applied, the place and date and the signatory (Art. 8(1) and Annex II). A Member State may require the declaration in its official language; in Denmark it must be in Danish when the machine is marketed there (Art. 8(2); executive order nr. 506/2025, § 7, stk. 2). A specimen of the declaration is kept together with the technical documentation for 10 years from the date on which the equipment was last manufactured (Art. 8(3)). The technical documentation must allow the conformity to be assessed and contain at least the name and address, a description of the equipment, make, trade name, type, series and numbers, the technical data relevant to identify the equipment and assess its noise emission, the reference to the directive, the technical report of the noise measurements and the technical instruments applied with the evaluation of the uncertainties due to production variation and their relation to the guaranteed level (Annex V, point 3). Member States must let the Commission and the other Member States obtain, on a reasoned request, all information used during the conformity assessment (Art. 14(3)).

Conforming equipment bears the CE marking, whose components are at least 5 mm high, accompanied by the indication of the guaranteed sound power level: the single number in dB, the sign LWA and the Annex IV pictogram, if possible at least 40 mm high, both affixed visibly, legibly and indelibly to each item (Art. 11(1) to (3) and Annex IV). Markings likely to mislead about the CE marking or the indication are prohibited, other markings may not reduce their visibility or legibility, and where other CE-marking directives apply, the single CE marking indicates conformity with them too, with the particulars of those directives given in the accompanying documents (Art. 11(4) and (5)). Equipment so marked and accompanied by the declaration is presumed to conform and may not be prohibited, restricted or impeded; non-conforming equipment may be shown at trade fairs, exhibitions and demonstrations under a visible sign that it does not conform (Art. 6 and Art. 7).

Obligations by role

Manufacturers ensure conformity before placing on the market, measure and guarantee the sound power level, run the right procedure, draw up the declaration and the technical documentation, affix the markings and keep the documents for 10 years (Art. 4(1), Art. 8, Art. 11 and Art. 14). Authorised representatives established in the Community may perform all of these tasks in the manufacturer’s name (Art. 3(f), Art. 4(1) and Art. 8). Where neither is established in the Community, the person placing the equipment on the market or putting it into service carries every obligation (Art. 4(2)); in Denmark the first person marketing or putting a machine into use in the Community steps into the manufacturer’s obligations, and anyone else marketing a new machine may do so only with the markings, the declaration and, for bilag 2 machines, within the limits (executive order nr. 506/2025, § 4 and § 9). Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 adds the economic operator established in the Union, a manufacturer, importer, authorised representative or fulfilment service provider, who verifies the declaration and documentation, keeps the declaration available, informs the authorities of risks, cooperates on corrective action and is named on the equipment or its papers (Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, Art. 4). Users are bound by the Member States’ rules on the use of equipment in sensitive areas and on working hours, which the directive leaves untouched (Art. 17).

The former Article 16 required a copy of every EC declaration of conformity to be sent to the responsible national authority and the Commission, which collected and published the noise data. Directive (EU) 2024/2839 deleted it, because the guaranteed level is already marked on the equipment, with effect through the national measures from 29 November 2025; the Danish duty to send copies to Miljøstyrelsen and the Commission ended the same day (Directive (EU) 2024/2839, recital 5, Art. 2(1) and Art. 5(1); executive order nr. 506/2025, § 7, stk. 6, and § 18, stk. 2).

Emergency procedures

Since 30 May 2026, Articles 17a to 17d apply in an internal market emergency mode activated under Regulation (EU) 2024/2747, and only to equipment designated as crisis-relevant goods and listed in a Commission implementing act (Art. 17a). Notified bodies then process applications for Article 12 equipment as a priority without disproportionate cost and make reasonable efforts to increase testing capacity (Art. 17b). A Member State may authorise, on a justified request, the placing on the market of specific Article 12 equipment for which the notified-body procedure has not been carried out but whose compliance with the noise requirements has been demonstrated otherwise; the Commission may extend the authorisation to the whole Union, and equipment covered by that extension must carry the information that it is placed on the market as a ‘crisis-relevant good’ in the form the implementing act specifies. By way of derogation from Articles 6 and 11, equipment authorised under Article 17c(1) does not bear the CE marking and Article 6 does not apply to it. The manufacturer declares conformity on its sole responsibility, the authorisation ends at the latest with the emergency mode, and the surveillance authorities keep all corrective and restrictive powers under Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 (Art. 17c). Market surveillance of the listed equipment is prioritised and authorities assist each other with experts and testing capacity (Art. 17d). Directive (EU) 2024/2749 had to be transposed by 29 May 2026 and applies from 30 May 2026 (Directive (EU) 2024/2749, Art. 11).

Enforcement and penalties

Member States must take appropriate measures so that equipment is placed on the market or put into service only if it conforms, bears the CE marking and the guaranteed sound power level and is accompanied by the declaration, and their authorities assist each other in market surveillance (Art. 5). Where non-compliant equipment is found, the Member State makes the manufacturer or its authorised representative bring it into conformity; where the Article 12 limits are exceeded or non-compliance continues, it restricts or prohibits the placing on the market or putting into service or has the equipment withdrawn, and informs the Commission and the other Member States, which the Commission then consults and rules on (Art. 9). Every restrictive measure must state its reasons and the legal remedies and time limits available (Art. 10). Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 lists the directive as point 12 of its Annex I and, since 16 July 2021, supplies the surveillance authorities’ powers to demand documents and supply-chain information, buy and test samples, require corrective action, prohibit the making available and have equipment withdrawn, recalled or destroyed (Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, Art. 14, Art. 16 and Annex I). The directive contains no penalty article; penalties come from national law.

In Denmark the directive is implemented by executive order nr. 506 of 14 May 2025 on noise from machines for use outdoors (maskinstøjsbekendtgørelsen), issued under sections 7(1)(1), 7a(1), (2) and (5), 67, 79e, 80(2) and 110(3) of the environmental protection act (lov om miljøbeskyttelse), which the order cites in the consolidation then in force, LBK nr. 1093 of 11 October 2024; the act has since been consolidated again as LBK nr. 1742 of 22 December 2025. The order is in force from 22 May 2025 and replacing order nr. 1590 of 30 June 2021 (executive order nr. 506/2025, preamble and § 18). The directive is not among the acts listed in the Danish product act, so surveillance sits with Miljøstyrelsen: it supervises compliance (§ 10), can prohibit the marketing of a bilag 2 machine that exceeds the limits or whose marketing has been prohibited in another Member State, and the continued use of such a machine put into service without being marketed (§ 11), can demand documents, technical specifications, conformity data and embedded software access, supply-chain and distribution information, quantities and equivalent models, and website ownership details (§ 13), can buy samples under a covert identity and reverse-engineer them (§ 14), and can order online content changed or removed (§ 15). The environmental authorities may also restrict the use of a machine or prescribe when and how it is used (§ 12). Unless a higher penalty is due under other legislation, breaches of the marketing, marking, declaration and limit rules in §§ 3 to 7 and § 9, a notified body’s failure to report that it no longer meets the criteria, breach of a prohibition and failure to comply with the information and online-content orders are punished with a fine, rising to imprisonment of up to 2 years for intentional or grossly negligent breaches that harm or endanger the environment or seek an economic advantage, and companies can be held liable (§ 17). Decisions of a notified body can be appealed to Miljøstyrelsen; Miljøstyrelsen’s own decisions cannot be appealed to another administrative authority (§ 16).

How Conphora helps

Conphora monitors the Outdoor Noise Directive, its measurement annex and the Danish maskinstøjsbekendtgørelse, and maps your outdoor equipment against Articles 12 and 13, flagging whether a machine is subject to a limit or to marking only, which stage of the table applies, whether the guaranteed sound power level, the LWA marking, the EC declaration of conformity and the technical documentation agree, and whether a notified body is required. The platform helps you build and keep the 10-year records, combines the noise declaration with the machinery, EMC and other declarations the same machine needs, and alerts you when the limits, the test codes, the Danish order or the enforcement setup change.

See how Conphora works · See plans and pricing

Sources

• Directive 2000/14/EC, consolidated text of 30 May 2026 (EUR-Lex)
• Directive 2000/14/EC as published in OJ L 162, 3 July 2000 (EUR-Lex)
• Document information, amendments, corrigenda and repealed acts for CELEX 32000L0014 (EUR-Lex)
• Directive 2005/88/EC amending the Article 12 table (EUR-Lex)
• Regulation (EC) No 219/2009, regulatory procedure with scrutiny (EUR-Lex)
• Regulation (EU) 2019/1243, delegated powers for Annex III (EUR-Lex)
• Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1208 replacing Annex III (EUR-Lex)
• Directive (EU) 2024/2839 deleting Article 16 (EUR-Lex)
• Directive (EU) 2024/2749 on emergency procedures (EUR-Lex)
• Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 on market surveillance and compliance of products (EUR-Lex)
• Directive 2006/42/EC on machinery, replacing Directive 98/37/EC (EUR-Lex)
• Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 on machinery, repealing Directive 2006/42/EC from 20 January 2027 (EUR-Lex)
• Decision No 768/2008/EC on a common framework for the marketing of products, replacing Decision 93/465/EEC (EUR-Lex)
• Noise emission by outdoor equipment, with the Guidelines for the application of Directive 2000/14/EC updated July 2025 (European Commission, DG GROW)
• Notified bodies under Directive 2000/14/EC (NANDO, now the Single Market Compliance Space, European Commission)
• Bekendtgørelse nr. 506 af 14. maj 2025 om støj fra maskiner til brug i det fri (maskinstøjsbekendtgørelsen) (Retsinformation)
• Bekendtgørelse nr. 1590 af 30. juni 2021 om støj fra maskiner til brug i det fri, repealed 22 May 2025 (Retsinformation)
• Regler, love og direktiver om støj (Miljøstyrelsen)

This guide is for general information and is not legal advice.