The new protective eyewear standards EN ISO 16321-1:2022 came into effect on the 11th of November 2025. The new standards are replacing the EN 166:2001 standards, that came into effect in 2001. After more than twenty years the European Union and United Kingdom have new standards, so let's look at what has changed.

Notable Changes in the New Standards

Six new head sizes have been introduced in the new standards including European and Asian head shapes. These new sizes are replacing the old two sizes (small and medium) and are being implemented to improve both protection and comfort for users

All protective eyewear must go through a basic impact test with a new larger and heavier steel ball. New impact levels have been brought in to include high speed impact, C (45 m/s), D (80 m/s) and E (120 m/s). Protection zones are now defined as: C being OPZ (Orbital Protection), D being EOZ (Extended Orbital), and E being FPZ (Face Protection), to ensure a wider coverage of both eyes and face.

Lenses must now allow 80% of light to pass through making the luminous transmittance requirements stricter, and the scatter testing has now been replaced with the new wider angle haze testing.

Physical testing has been revised with new penetration testing limiting vent and gap openings to 1.5mm, and requiring heat stability testing to now run for 120 minutes.

To improve user understanding new product markings have been added with new codes covering fogging, chemical exposure, streams of liquid, radiant heat, and more performance claims.

What Does This Mean for Protective Eyewear Certified Before the 11th of November 2025

Protective eyewear products certified using the old EN 166:2001 standards can be sold and used until the expiry of their current certification, which is up to a maximum of five years from date of issuing. Therefore, if a product was certified to EN 166:2001 before the new standards came into effect, this product may be sold and remain in use until late November 2029 depending on the date of certification.

This article is not exhaustive, but we hope it has given you a better understanding of how the new EN ISO 16321-1:2022 standards have affected protective eyewear products. For more information, please feel free to get in touch with our team of PPE experts. You can call us on 0402 32116 (Arklow) or 021 484 1370 (Cork).