About Respirator Approval Program

For Everyone

About

  • NIOSH is the federal agency responsible for evaluating and approving respirators used in U.S. workplace settings.
  • NIOSH only approves respirators that meet its strict quality assurance and performance requirements as identified in regulation 42 Code of Federal Regulations Part 84 (42 CFR Part 84).
Image of respirator testing during approval process.

What it is

The NIOSH approval is more than just passing a one-time test or claiming that a product meets a standard at the time of application. Achieving NIOSH approval requires active quality assurance on the part of the approval holder. A NIOSH approval holder must continue to meet the conditions of the approval as it was granted. NIOSH ensures this through post-market conformity evaluations.


Confidently protected

The respirator approval process provides users confidence that their respirator will provide the expected level of protection, as long as it fits properly and is worn correctly. This confidence is critical to workers who rely on respirators to protect them.

Current projects

Average Number of Days for New Approvals Granted 2018-2024
Only projects that were successfully granted approval are included among these averages.
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Status of Current Approval Projects: Air-Purifying Respirators August 3, 2026
Status of Current Approval Projects: Air-Purifying Respirators August 3, 2026
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Status of Current Approval Projects: Air-Supplied Respirators August 3, 2026
Status of Current Approval Projects: Air-Supplied Respirators August 3, 2026
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Status of Current Approval Projects: Combination APRs and ASRs August 3, 2026
Status of Current Approval Projects: Combination APRs and ASRs August 3, 2026
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Respirator Approval Summary

Currently, NIOSH has over 9,000 active approvals. From January to June 2026, NIOSH has added 142 new approvals.

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Infographic showing the number of respirator approvals using a pie chart from January through June 2026.
NIOSH's respirator approval numbers from January to June 2026.

Infographic showing the number of respirator approvals from January through June 2026. The data is shown using a pie chart with an illustration for each approval schedule. The illustrations are of a respirator type that falls under the highlighted approval schedule.

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Content Source
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
About This Page
Published: April 23, 2025
Updated: March 4, 2025

This page was last updated on this date. Updates may include minor edits, image changes, or other modifications to page content.

Reviewed: March 4, 2025

The information on this page was last reviewed by subject matter experts to ensure accuracy.