EN IEC 62281:2019/A2:2023

Safety of primary and secondary lithium cells and batteries during transport

Sicherheit von primären und sekundären Lithiumzellen und -batterien beim Transport

Sécurité des piles et des accumulateurs au lithium pendant le transport

Varnost primarnih in sekundarnih litijevih členov in baterij med transportom - Dopolnilo A2 (IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023)

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 06-Apr-2023
• ICS: 29.220.10 - Primary cells and batteries
• Technical Committee: CLC/SR 35 - Primary batteries
• Drafting Committee: IEC/TC 35 - IEC_TC_35
• Current Stage: 6060 - Document made available - Publishing
• Start Date: 07-Apr-2023
• Due Date: 31-Jan-2023
• Completion Date: 07-Apr-2023
• Ref Project: SIST EN IEC 62281:2019/A2:2023 - Safety of primary and secondary lithium cells and batteries during transport (IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023)

Relations

• Amends: EN IEC 62281:2019 - Safety of primary and secondary lithium cells and batteries during transport
• Effective Date: 25-Nov-2021

Overview

EN IEC 62281:2019/A2:2023 (also published as IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023) is the CENELEC amendment to the international standard on the safety of primary and secondary lithium cells and batteries during transport. Issued April–June 2023, Amendment 2 updates the standard to align with recent changes to the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria (notably chapter UN 38.3 revisions) and clarifies requirements for assembled battery systems, overcharge protection and test reporting. This European adoption must be implemented nationally by 2023‑12‑31.

Key topics and requirements

• Alignment with UN 38.3: Technical changes reflect amendments to UN Manual of Tests and Criteria (ST/SG/AC.10/11/Rev.7/Amend.1), reinforcing compatibility with widely used transport tests for lithium cells and batteries.
• Assembled battery requirements: Adds the phrase “assembled from batteries that have passed all applicable tests” to large battery assembly clauses (including assemblies > 6 200 Wh), stressing validated component-level testing before assembly.
• Overcharge protection:
  • Expands scope to explicitly reference vehicles in overcharge protection requirements.
  • For assembled batteries without intrinsic overcharge protection but intended as components in equipment or vehicles that provide protection, the standard requires:
    • Verification of overcharge protection at the battery assembly, equipment or vehicle level, and
    • Measures to prevent use of charging systems that lack overcharge protection through physical systems or process controls.
• Test report requirements: Test report summary must include the name and title of the responsible person, confirming validity of the information provided.
• Bibliography updates: References updated to include UN Manual Amendment 1 (2021) and the UN Model Regulations, 22nd revised edition (2021).

Practical applications and users

This amendment is essential for professionals responsible for lithium battery transport safety and regulatory compliance:

• Battery and cell manufacturers (primary and secondary)
• Battery pack assemblers and OEMs (including automotive and e‑mobility)
• Shippers, freight forwarders and carriers handling lithium cells/batteries
• Test laboratories performing UN 38.3 and IEC/EN test regimes
• Compliance officers, certification bodies and national regulators updating transport rules and documentation

Practical uses include design and validation of battery assemblies, verification of overcharge protection at system level, preparation of compliant test reports, and alignment of transport documentation and packaging to current UN and IEC/CENELEC requirements.

Related standards

• IEC 62281 (base edition)
• UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Chapter 38.3 (and Amendments)
• UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods, Model Regulations (22nd ed., 2021)

Keywords: EN IEC 62281:2019/A2:2023, lithium battery transport safety, UN 38.3, overcharge protection, battery testing, primary and secondary lithium cells.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-junij-2023
Varnost primarnih in sekundarnih litijevih členov in baterij med transportom -
Dopolnilo A2 (IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023)
Safety of primary and secondary lithium cells and batteries during transport (IEC
62281:2019/AMD2:2023)
Sicherheit von primären und sekundären Lithiumzellen und -batterien beim Transport
(IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023)
Sécurité des piles et des accumulateurs au lithium pendant le transport (IEC
62281:2019/AMD2:2023)
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN IEC 62281:2019/A2:2023
ICS:
29.220.10 Primarni členi in baterije Primary cells and batteries
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

EUROPEAN STANDARD EN IEC 62281:2019/A2

NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM April 2023
ICS 29.220.10
English Version
Safety of primary and secondary lithium cells and batteries
during transport
(IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023)
Sécurité des piles et des accumulateurs au lithium pendant Sicherheit von Primär- und Sekundär-Lithiumbatterien beim
le transport Transport
(IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023) (IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023)
This amendment A2 modifies the European Standard EN IEC 62281:2019; it was approved by CENELEC on 2023-03-31. CENELEC
members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this amendment the
status of a national standard without any alteration.
Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC
Management Centre or to any CENELEC member.
This amendment exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by translation under the
responsibility of a CENELEC member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre has the same status as
the official versions.
CENELEC members are the national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic,
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Türkiye and the United Kingdom.

European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
Comité Européen de Normalisation Electrotechnique
Europäisches Komitee für Elektrotechnische Normung
CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2023 CENELEC All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC Members.
Ref. No. EN IEC 62281:2019/A2:2023 E

European foreword
The text of document 35/1511/FDIS, future IEC 62281/AMD2, prepared by IEC/TC 35 "Primary cells
and batteries" was submitted to the IEC-CENELEC parallel vote and approved by CENELEC as
The following dates are fixed:
• latest date by which the document has to be implemented at national (dop) 2023-12-31
level by publication of an identical national standard or by endorsement
• latest date by which the national standards conflicting with the (dow) 2026-03-31
document have to be withdrawn
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. CENELEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Any feedback and questions on this document should be directed to the users’ national committee. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found on the CENELEC website.
Endorsement notice
The text of the International Standard IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023 was approved by CENELEC as a
European Standard without any modification.

IEC 62281 ®
Edition 4.0 2023-02
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
A MENDMENT 2
AM ENDEMENT 2
Safety of primary and secondary lithium cells and batteries during transport

Sécurité des piles et des accumulateurs au lithium pendant le transport

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
COMMISSION
ELECTROTECHNIQUE
INTERNATIONALE
ICS 29.220.10 ISBN 978-2-8322-6403-4

– 2 – IEC 62281:2019/AMD2:2023
© IEC 2023
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
SAFETY OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY LITHIUM CELLS
AND BATTERIES DURING TRANSPORT

AMENDMENT 2
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote international
co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To this end and
in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications, Technical Reports,
Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as "IEC Publication(s)"). Their
...