How to tell if a door is fire rated

An FD rating comes from the British fire test for doors, BS 476-22. The number is the minutes the door kept its integrity in the test, so an FD30 door held back fire for 30 minutes and an FD60 door for 60. An S on the end, as in FD30S, means the door also limits smoke getting through at room temperature.

Newer doors are often rated to the European test instead, written as E30 or E30 Sa. The building guidance for England lists both side by side for now. From 2 September 2029 it will use only the European ratings, so new doors will increasingly be labelled that way.

The rating belongs to the whole door as it was tested, including its frame, seals, glazing and hardware. The building guidance warns that small differences in detail can significantly affect the rating, which is why a new letterbox or glass panel needs to suit that door.

For new blocks of flats in England, the building guidance sets FD30S as the minimum for a flat front door that opens onto a shared corridor or landing, and for the doors into a protected stairway. A door in a wall that separates two buildings needs at least 60 minutes. In an existing building, your fire risk assessment is what decides whether each door is good enough for where it is.

A fire door from a third party scheme carries a label on the top edge of the door, in the frame, or as a plug set into the door. The label has a unique code that traces the door back to its certificate and maker. Government guidance says modern fire doors should show a visible fire resistance rating.

Some buildings also put an inspection tag on each fire door. A tag records when the door was last inspected and by whom. It is not the rating, so look for the maker’s label as well.

No label does not mean the door has failed. Government guidance for England says a door without a certificate, or without strips and seals, is not unfit for that reason alone. A door that met the standard when the block was built, or when the door was made, will usually still protect the escape route, as long as it is undamaged and the gaps round it are not too large. Whether it is good enough is a question for the fire risk assessment, not for a self check.

In a new block, yes: FD30S with a self closer. In an existing block, the door needs to be good enough for the risk, and your fire risk assessment says whether it is. Government guidance is clear that the 2022 England regulations are not there to make leaseholders replace older doors that met the standard of their day.

If a resident swaps their front door, the guidance says the new one must be fire resisting and fitted by a competent person, and the resident must give its technical details to whoever is responsible for the building. The change should be agreed with them first.

• Look for a label or plug on the top edge of the door and in the frame. You may need a step to see the top edge
• Photograph the label and write down any code on it, so the maker can trace the certificate
• Compare the door with the others in the building. One flat door of a different design may mean it has been replaced
• Look for changes since it was fitted, such as a new letterbox or a hole where a lock was taken out
• Check the door has a self closer and shuts fully from wide open and from around 15 degrees. Our guide to fire door closers has the full check
• If there is no label, record that and check what your fire risk assessment says about the door, rather than marking it as a fail

This guide follows the rules in England. Wales shares the Fire Safety Order but not the 2022 England regulations, and Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own fire safety law. Your fire risk assessment is the place that says what applies to your building, and a self check never replaces a fire door inspection by a competent person.

We put fire doors right across County Durham, Teesside and Tyne and Wear. If you are further away, a dated report from Door by Door is exactly what a local fire door specialist will want to see.