Mexico NOM & IFETEL Certification Services

General Information:

NOM & CoC

Norma Oficial Mexicana (NOM) is an official Mexican standards publication body. NOM standards are used for the NOM mark certification as well as other types of Mexican certification schemes. Most electrical products operating over 24V AC/DC require compliance with NOM safety standards. Compliance with the standards are mostly demonstrated via one of two main paths: The first path is Certificate of Conformity (CoC), which can be issued by foreign certification bodies that have the proper Mexican accreditations. A CoC approved product cannot bear the NOM marking, but is an acceptable route to compliance, and provides a number of advantages as can be seen in the certification details. The second path is the NOM Certification. The NOM Certification is governed by Mexican Certification Authority ANCE. Official NOM Mark/Certifications can be issued by Mexican Certification Bodies accredited by ANCE. NOM Certifications require that a sample be evaluated in-country by an authorized Mexican laboratory. This Laboratory will then submit its evaluation findings to a Mexican Certification Body, who then issues the NOM Certificate.

IFETEL

Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones (IFT) is the Federal Institute of Telecommunication also commonly referred to as IFETEL. IFETEL certification is applicable to telecommunication equipment including wireless products. In general any product that uses a frequency to transmit and/or receive, and telecom products that connect to satellites, the PSTN, or public network require IFETEL certification. IFETEL certification also requires testing to NOM standards, but is separate from a NOM certification. IFETEL testing must be performed by an accredited laboratory in Mexico. There is no IFETEL mark, but once a product has been approved, it must be marked with its issued IFETEL ID number.

Challenges Obtaining and Maintaining NOM and IFETEL Certifications:

Determining whether a product falls within the scope of mandatory certification regulations;
Determine the type of compliance scheme that is best suited to the circumstances;
Arrange for in-country testing;
Deciding if a modular approval (vs system approval) is a practical compliance option;
Determining whether multiple models can be included on a single certificate;
Determining whether certificate extensions are permitted to be issued;
Language barriers encountered in dealing with test and certification agencies;
Locating and maintaining a responsive local representative;
Keeping certificates up to date when certificate validity periods vary depending on type of certification obtained.

How Can We Help?

As a consulting laboratory, G&M’s team is required to have a solid grasp of regulatory requirements along with the ability to align certification programs to our customer’s needs. We have the background to properly manage your Mexico NOM and IFETEL Certification Projects. The following are services we provide to expedite certification projects:

Determine whether or not products fall under mandatory certification
Provide guidance on type of certification scheme most beneficial
Advise whether or not in-country testing is a good option when optional
Identify requirements that are not applicable under specific conditions
Identify when one sample can represent a family
Align certification programs to our customer’s needs
Identify a responsive and reputable in-country representative
Administer an On-line Certificate Validity Tracking Tool
Assist with providing certificate extensions to distributors/ importers

For more information, additional questions, or to request a quote – Please submit an online RFQ, request for information, or call.

Certification Details

NOM

Mark – Yes
In-Country Representation – Yes
In-Country Testing – Yes
Expiration Details – 1 year
Continuing Surveillance –No Factory Inspections. Market surveillance may occur once a year

COC

Mark – No
In-Country Representation – Yes
In-Country Testing – No
Expiration Details – No expiration
Continuing Surveillance –No Factory Inspections. No Market surveillance

IFETEL

Mark – No certification mark, but ID number must be on the product.
In-Country Representation – Yes
In-Country Testing – Yes
Expiration Details – When a product is first certified, the certification is valid for 1 year. The renewal after this certification has no expiration date.
Continuing Surveillance – No Factory Inspections. Random surveillance is possible.

Insource Homologation Management

We have found that often times certification bottlenecks can occur within a manufacturer’s organization. As a result, we offer a service to provide internal help managing regulatory certification tasks. Because G&M is not a certification body, we are in a unique position to offer valuable regulatory expertise without any conflict of interest issues. In such cases we place G&M certification experts into our customers’ organizations to manage the certification process for them. Once on the inside, our managers can leverage G&Ms collective experience to guide certification processes in an efficient and cost-effective manner. To learn more about this service see our Homologation Management Service Page.

Certificate Alert and Tracking System (CATS)

Untimely expirations of certificates can cause delays in product deliveries. Re-certification of products will generally be treated as new submittals instead of certificate renewals. This can be time-consuming and costly. G&M provides a web-based certification tracking system that alerts users when expirations are coming, provides on-line storage of important certification documentation, and is searchable by certification specific criteria. For more information on this system see our CATS page.

Mexico NOM and IFETEL Certification Service