New common rules for drinking water in the EU

26.05.2025

European Drinkring Water Directive (EU) 2020/2184

Thanks to a comprehensive and protective framework established by the European Parliament, citizens across the EU already benefit from access to safe and sufficient drinking water. However, to ensure the continued access of high-quality drinking water, it is essential that the water quality is consistently monitored and managed in line with standards of the latest scientific evidence. 

Challenges due to national differences

Today, national product approvals are in place, but requirements differ from one member state to another. This creates added costs and complexity for manufacturers to market in the European Union, while consumers are left uncertain about whether or not products comply with the necessary health requirements. 

Harmonising rules across the EU

To promote alignment and support the continued access of high-quality drinking water, six harmonized acts have now been published under Article 11 of the European Drinking Water Directive (EU) 2020/2184:

• Methodologies for testing and accepting starting substances (Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/365)
• The European positive lists of starting substances (Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/367)
• Procedures and methods for testing and accepting final materials (Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/368)
• Procedure regarding inclusion in or removal from the European positive lists (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/369)
• Conformity assessment procedures (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/370)
• Harmonized specifications for the marking of products (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/371)

These acts establish the minimum requirements for materials that come into contact with water intended for human consumption across all EU member states. 

Implementation timeline

All new products placed on the EU market must comply with these new requirements by 31 December 2026. However, products holding a valid national certification as of that date may continue to be sold until 31 December 2032, but exclusively to the market within the country in which the certification was issued. 

Strict requirements for testing and documentation

The Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/367 specifies maximum tolerable concentration at the tap (MTCtap) for many substances or group of substances, along with an expiry date for each substance by which an application must be submitted to maintain inclusion on the positive list. The Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/368 outlines the required testing procedures, including migration testing in both chlorinated water (23 °C ± 2 °C) and non-chlorinated water at relevant temperatures, an evaluation of the Enhancement of Microbial Growth (EMG), and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to identify non-intentionally added substances (NIAS). The level of requirements and the applicable assessment procedures depend on the Risk Group (RG) assigned to the product defined by the product group and corresponding conversion factor used to calculate the MTCtap values.

AVK GUMMI is prepared for the future

While the implementing acts of the Directive (EU) 2020/2184 can be complex to navigate, AVK GUMMI A/S has extensive experience with similar drinking water approval processes and is already confident and actively engaged with the requirements of the new European Directive. In line with this commitment, AVK GUMMI is currently developing new generations of our universal drinking water compounds, specifically designed to comply with the standards set by the Directive (EU) 2020/2184. AVK GUMMI has also carefully selected the most qualified and accredited certification bodies and testing institutes, fully equipped to manage this demanding and complex certification process. With this setup, AVK GUMMI is well-positioned to initiate and support new projects within the European Drinking Water Directive.