CTEP is the California Type Evaluation Program, run by the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Division of Measurement Standards. It is the programme under which a device type — including an EV charger model that will sell electricity by the kilowatt-hour — is evaluated once. A model that passes receives a Certificate of Approval, which allows its metering to be used for paid charging in California. As of October 2026, it is the name to check when a quote claims California metering compliance.
Key Takeaways
- CTEP is California’s type evaluation programme, run by the Division of Measurement Standards.
- Its Certificate of Approval attaches to a charger model and clears that model’s metering for paid, per-kilowatt-hour charging in California.
- Model evaluation and field inspection of the installed unit are two separate gates.
- No EVDANCE listing states a CTEP certificate; for a paid California project, confirm the model’s position in writing before purchase.
Why a Charger Needs Evaluating at All
The moment a site sells energy by the kilowatt-hour, the number on the driver’s bill stops being a display figure and becomes a commercial measurement — the same legal category as the gallon on a fuel pump. A charger used only for free charging, or priced by the session or the hour, sits in a different lane; our guide to how charging stations price their sessions sets out those models.
Type evaluation answers that problem at the level of the model, not the individual unit. The programme examines a submitted device type — its metering design, what it displays, and how it records a transaction — and decides whether it measures well enough for trade.
What the Certificate Attaches To
| Question | The CTEP answer |
|---|---|
| What is evaluated? | A device type: the charger model as submitted, in the configuration examined |
| What does the certificate approve? | That model’s metering for commercial use — selling electricity measured in kilowatt-hours in California |
| What does it not cover? | Electrical safety, which belongs to the separate NRTL listing system, and installation quality, which belongs to the permit process |
| Where is it checked? | In the programme’s own published records, against the exact model name — not in a seller’s brochure |
Two consequences follow. Approval is model-specific: a certificate held by one charger in a range says nothing about the model next to it. And the evaluated design is the approved design: changes that touch the metering side are the programme’s business, not an assumption.
Evaluation Is the Model; Inspection Is the Device
A Certificate of Approval does not inspect your charger. It clears the model. The individual unit is a separate step: commercial measuring devices are placed into service and checked by weights-and-measures officials — state and county sealers — who verify the field device matches the approved type and measures correctly. A buyer therefore has two questions to close: does this model hold a certificate, and will this unit pass its placing-in-service inspection? The first is answered in the programme’s records before purchase; the second is arranged with the local weights-and-measures office as part of the launch work, alongside the procurement and installation steps the U.S. Department of Energy describes.
CTEP and EVDANCE Chargers
No EVDANCE listing states CTEP evaluation or a California Certificate of Approval, and this article does not add that claim. The EV-AC03201T dual-connector AC station states OCPP 1.6J, RFID access and an IP54 enclosure — a networked station designed for priced charging — but its page names no metering approval. For a California project that will bill by the kilowatt-hour, the CTEP position for the exact model is therefore a written pre-purchase check: ask for the certificate reference for the model you are ordering, and confirm it in the programme’s records. Safety listing, market marks and protocol claims are separate files again, mapped in our guide to EV charger certifications; commercial projects can start from the commercial charging range.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CTEP the same as NTEP?
Not as a document. NTEP is the national type evaluation programme; CTEP is California’s own programme. A certificate issued through another route is not automatically the California document, so the exact model’s status is checked in CTEP’s own published records before a California launch.
Does CTEP approval mean a charger is electrically safe?
No. CTEP evaluates measurement. Safety listing is a separate system — an NRTL listing to the applicable safety standard — and a charger needs the right evidence in both files for a paid public site.
Does a home charger need CTEP certification?
No. The programme concerns commercial measurement — devices used to sell a measured quantity. A home charger that bills nobody by the kilowatt-hour is outside that lane.
Related Reading
- How Much Do EV Charging Stations Charge? Pricing Models Explained
- EV Charger Certifications Explained: CE, UKCA, UL, ETL and CB
- OCPP Explained for Charge Point Operators
- How Much Does It Cost to Install a Commercial EV Charging Station?
Sources & Standards
- California Type Evaluation Program (CTEP) — California Department of Food and Agriculture, Division of Measurement Standards
- U.S. DOE AFDC — Procurement and Installation for EV Charging Infrastructure
- NIST Handbook 44 — Specifications, Tolerances, and Other Technical Requirements for Weighing and Measuring Devices
