Certification Introduction:

The Standard organization of Nigeria (SON) is the Nigerian government agency responsible for formulating and enforcing quality standards for imported goods and domestically manufactured products. In order to ensure that the regulated products comply with the approved technical standards of the country or other international standards, and to protect Nigerian consumers from unsafe products or products that do not meet the standards, the Nigerian National Bureau of Standards has decided to implement the implementation of regulated products exported to the country. Pre-shipment Mandatory Conformity Assessment Procedure (hereinafter referred to as SONCAP).

On March 1, 2013, the Nigerian Bureau of Standards officially released a new SONCAP operation process. In the future, each independent third-party organization will no longer issue SONCAP certification directly, instead, exporters will apply for product conformity certification (CoC) in the exporting country. The importer then applies for the SC certificate to the Nigerian Bureau of Standards (SON) with a valid CoC.

Several Concepts in SONCAP Certification

In SONCAP certification, customers may mention these names: PC, SC, COC. These names are slightly different, but in most cases the meaning is the same, that is, if you want to obtain compulsory certification for products sold in Nigeria, for imported products, you need to go to Nigeria customs for customs clearance. Here are a few more specific concepts:

• SON - the abbreviation of Standards organization of Nigeria, namely the Nigerian Standards organization. This is a Nigerian government agency that can also be called the Nigerian Bureau of Standards. In January 2013, SON officially released a new SONCAP procedure with a revised full conformity assessment structure.

• SONCAP - Abbreviation for Standards organization of Nigeria Conformity Assessment Programmer, the Nigerian Standards organization Conformity Assessment Programme. It can be understood that SONCAP is a procedure and basis issued by SON to evaluate whether a product meets the minimum safety standards in Nigeria.

• PC - the abbreviation of Product Certificate, that is, product certificate, mandatory, and obtaining a PC certificate is the first step to be completed in the SONCAP program. The SONCAP conformity assessment process requires that the PC certificate must be obtained first before applying for the SONCAP certificate. It is also a prerequisite for Nigerian importers to obtain Form M. Some banks even need to show the PC certificate before issuing the letter of credit.

• FORM M-applied by the importer at the local bank using the PC certificate, which is similar to a form for import declaration, and is also the necessary information for the subsequent application of the SONCAP certificate.

• SC - short for SONCAP Certification, ie SONCAP certificate. It is the certificate that the importer applies for before shipment through PC certificate and FORM M, and submits the bill of lading after shipment. It is also the certificate that is finally handed over to the customs for customs clearance.

• COC——The abbreviation of Certificate Of Conformity, that is, the certificate of conformity, the certificate of conformity for a single batch of products, and the single batch is valid. This step has been abolished in the latest process, but because it has been in the SONCAP program for a while, it will still be mentioned frequently.

Applicable Product Range

Products currently regulated by SONCAP are as follows:

• Toy

• Electrical and electronic products that can be used by the general public such as in residential, office, retail, leisure and other environments. Including, but not limited to, home appliances, IT products, communication products, lighting products, audio-visual products, etc.

• Second hand car

• Auto spare parts

• Car tires

• car windscreen

• Auto spare parts

• Chemical products (eg motor oil, paint, asphalt, school chalk, kitchen utensils and cutlery)

• Construction and building materials

• Mechanical equipment and gas appliances (eg galvanized steel products, faucets and valves, ceramic and sanitary ware, suspended ceilings, gas tanks, kerosene stoves and hurricane lamps, aluminum products, mechanical backpacks, sprayers, electric pressure cookers, cement and plaster, etc.)

• Paper and stationery

• Safety protection equipment (eg fire fighting equipment, electronic safety equipment, etc.)

• Textiles and textile products

• Footwear

• medical instruments

• furniture

• Arts and crafts

• Leather, plastic and rubber products

The following products are not suitable for SONCAP:

• Food

• Medicines (Traditional Chinese Medicine)

• Medical examination equipment and machines, etc.

• Chemicals used as raw materials

• Military sanitary ware and equipment

• Goods listed as contraband by the Federal Government of Nigeria

• Goods such as used cars

Other:

Importers use the SONCAP certificate to go through customs clearance in Nigeria. All controlled products will be rejected by the customs when they arrive at the customs (ports, airports, land borders) in Nigeria without the SONCAP certificate, and the goods will be sampled and tested according to Nigeria's requirements. , the exporter/importer will bear all the costs (sampling, testing, demurrage), and may finally face the confiscation and destruction of the goods.