Glossary
Type Approval
The certification process that authorises a new vehicle type for sale in a given market. EU type approval (WVTA) is recognised across all EU member states.
Standard: EU Regulation 2018/858
Definition
Type approval is the certification by which a national or regional regulator confirms that a vehicle type meets safety, emissions, and environmental rules. In the EU, the Whole Vehicle Type Approval (WVTA) regime under Regulation 2018/858 lets a manufacturer submit a vehicle for testing in one member state and then sell it across the whole single market without re-testing. The approval is identified by a code printed on the Certificate of Conformity (CoC), which is issued for every individual vehicle and references the underlying type-approval number. The UK runs an equivalent national scheme post-Brexit. The US uses self-certification rather than government type approval, which is part of why US-market and EU-market versions of the same nameplate often differ in safety equipment, lighting, and emissions calibration.
Why it matters when buying a used car
A car that lacks valid EU type approval cannot be registered in any EU member state without an expensive individual-vehicle inspection. Used imports from outside the EU (US, Japan, UAE) are where this bites hardest.
Often confused with
CoC
A paper document issued for every new EU-type-approved vehicle, certifying that the unit was built to the approved type. Required for re-registration in another EU country.
Homologation
The broader process of certifying a vehicle type for road use in a given market. Type approval is the formal output of homologation.
CoP
The regulator's ongoing audit that verifies every car coming off the line still matches the approved type, not just the test sample.