How to check a motorcycle helmet is ECE 22.06 certified: read the label, the number and the dates

A helmet is ECE 22.06 certified when its design has been type-approved under UN Regulation No. 22, 06 series, and it carries the approval label that proves it. That label is a circled E and a country number, an approval number whose first two digits are 06, a letter code for the chin-bar type, and a production serial number, sewn to the chin strap. A retailer page that says "ECE 22.06" is a claim; the label is the evidence. In ALLR's catalog, 7,112 of 13,919 complete helmet pages (51.1%) state ECE 22.06 (ALLR data, 2026-10-24, spare parts excluded). This guide shows how to read the label, what the regulation's transition dates mean for what you can still find on shelves, and what voids the approval. For what the tests measure, see ECE 22.06 vs Snell M2025.

Read the label, piece by piece

Regulation No. 22 requires every helmet to bear, sewn to its retention system (the chin strap), one of the labels described in para 5.1.4; a different securing method is allowed if it complies (para 5.1.10). The mark is a circle containing an E and the number of the approving country (5.1.4.1.1), the approval number (5.1.4.1.2), a slash and a symbol for the lower face cover (5.1.4.1.2.1), and a dash and a production serial number (5.1.4.1.2.2). Annex 2A of the regulation shows example arrangements of these elements. A mark such as E4 with 061406/J and a serial number reads as: country number 4, 06 series, helmet with no lower face cover (J).

Three more markings are required and are easy to check. Every helmet must be marked with its size and its maximum weight to the nearest 50 grams as sold, including supplied accessories (para 14.3). A wearer-information label must say, in the language of the destination country, that the helmet must fit closely and be securely attached and should be replaced after a violent impact (para 14.1). And a helmet sold with a visor must carry a label naming the visor types approved for it (para 14.4). A helmet missing the sewn label, the weight or the warning is not complying with the regulation as written.

05 or 06: the dates that decide what is on shelves

The 06 series was adopted by the UN World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations on 24 June 2020 (document WP.29/2020/60, 38 votes in favor, none against). The cover of the adopted text gives the 06 series' date of entry into force as 3 January 2021. Its transitional provisions (paras 15.1.1 to 15.1.4) first say that from entry into force no Contracting Party may refuse approval under the 06 series (15.1.1), then set three deadlines counted from that date:

Counting from 3 January 2021, our arithmetic puts the three deadlines at 3 July 2022, 3 July 2023 and 3 January 2024; the regulation states the intervals, not those dates. The sale prohibition is optional for each Contracting Party, so the practical result is that 05-series helmets still exist in shops, as old stock or in countries that have not banned them, and that 05 is a real difference rather than a typo. In ALLR's catalog 1,308 complete helmet pages state ECE 22.05, and none states both series (ALLR data, 2026-10-24); for what changed between them, see ECE 22.05 vs 22.06.

What can void it: accessories

For helmets marketed with accessories, the regulation has the helmet examined so that the supplementary equipment has no adverse effect, with the evaluation done both with and without the accessory (para 7.3.1.3.5). It then states that no helmet shall be modified from its original specification as manufactured, that accessories must be fitted in accordance with the helmet manufacturer's instructions, and that only accessories tested during the helmet's type approval keep the type approval valid. The text does not name particular devices, but a camera or intercom is an accessory, so it is covered only if it was tested in that helmet's type approval and fitted per the maker's instructions. This is a statement about the approval, not about what any court or insurer would do. Check the rules where you ride. If you are choosing an intercom, see Cardo vs Sena.

What ALLR's catalog states (ALLR data, 2026-10-24)

ALLR records the certification each retailer states and shows it on the product page. Counts below are all 13,919 complete helmet pages in the Canadian view of the catalog (the helmets shelf holds 14,241 pages; 322 spare parts such as visors and plates are excluded, as on the helmet certification availability tool); one page can state several certifications. "Stated" means a retailer page said it, not that we have seen the label.

By helmet type, stated 22.06 is most common on open-face (1,016 of 1,809 pages, 56.2%), full-face (4,297 of 7,915, 54.3%) and adventure (196 of 364, 53.8%) pages, then modular (573 of 1,288, 44.5%) and off-road (1,025 of 2,348, 43.7%). Only 5 of the 195 half-helmet pages (2.6%) state it. The helmets whose pages most widely state 22.06 include the Shoei RF-1400notifications_active, AGV K6 Snotifications_active, HJC C10notifications_active and the Arai Quantum-Xnotifications_active. Arai is the caution: its North American Contour-X, Regent-X and Signet-X pages state DOT and Snell but not ECE, so confirm which regional version you are buying.

"Not stated" is not "uncertified": 3,628 pages simply did not state a label we could read. We rank those below confirmed helmets in the certification filter instead of hiding them. You can filter the helmets catalog by certification, and the product page shows how many retailer pages confirm each label.

A five-step check before you buy

About these figures

Catalog counts are a dated snapshot (2026-10-24) of the public API, spare parts excluded and with each helmet page counted once; live figures are on the helmets catalog and the method is on the methodology page. Label rules come from the adopted UN Regulation No. 22, Revision 5 (06 series), read on unece.org. For the full buying sequence, start at the buyer's guide hub.