The revised EU Energy Performance Building Directive (EPBD) was finalized and published in May 2024. According to the regulations, all EU member states must transpose the directive into their national law by May 29, 2026—meaning that the revised EPBD will officially enter full implementation from May 2026.
For Chinese lighting exporters, this is the first and most urgent compliance test they face this year. The mandatory requirements of the EPBD directly overturn the traditional logic that "meeting the standards for individual lighting fixtures is sufficient for market entry."
The core requirements of the new regulations are extremely clear:
All newly constructed commercial buildings in the EU must be required to install automatic lighting control systems and building automation systems. This clause directly transforms smart lighting from a previously optional value-added feature into a mandatory standard for new commercial projects. Specifically:
1. Products are no longer isolated lighting units; they must possess core attributes of network connectivity and integrability, seamlessly integrating into the building's overall intelligent management system to achieve dynamic dimming, energy consumption monitoring, and intelligent control based on human activity and natural lighting.
2. Technically, standardized adaptation is essential, focusing on compatibility with the EU's Smart Ready Indicators (SRI) and globally recognized communication protocols such as Matter to ensure product interoperability.
3. The driver must meet the mandatory requirements of D4i Gen 2, not only possessing basic DALI dimming functionality but also complying with DALI Part 250–253 standards for energy metering and fault diagnosis. Furthermore, the driver must be independently installed, using pluggable terminals, and cannot share a heat dissipation path with the LED module.
For many domestic companies that primarily produce traditional lighting units or simple smart units, this means that if they cannot achieve intelligent upgrades and system integration adaptation, even if luminous efficacy and energy efficiency indicators meet all standards, they will be unable to enter the core EU market for new commercial buildings, directly facing the risk of being excluded from mainstream procurement lists.
If the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products (EPBD) has drawn the red lines for smart lighting market access, then the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products (ESPR), which officially came into effect on July 18, 2024, has reshaped the underlying logic of product compliance from a top-level design perspective. ESPR expands the regulatory boundaries from energy-related products to almost all physical goods, and upgrades the evaluation criteria from a single energy efficiency parameter to the environmental impact and sustainability performance throughout the product's entire lifecycle.
The "dual regulatory" system formed by EPBD and ESPR together propels Chinese lighting exporters to a critical juncture of comprehensive capability upgrading.
Customs data for the first quarter of 2026 shows that my country's total lighting product exports amounted to approximately US$11.4 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 3.5%. Exports to the US declined significantly, while exports to the EU market bucked the trend, increasing by 8%. A survey conducted at the Hong Kong Spring Lighting Fair, which just concluded on April 23, also showed that nearly half of the respondents expect sales to increase in the next two years, and consumers are willing to pay a premium of nearly 30% for smart lighting. This indicates that the European market is not shrinking, but rather that the entry barriers are rising. Those companies that have taken the lead in completing intelligent, standardized, and green upgrades are expected to gain a larger market share in the next round of market reshuffling.
