IEC 60598-2-8:2013 specifies requirements for handlamps and similar portable luminaires which are held in the hand, hooked up or resting on a surface for use with electric light sources on supply voltages not exceeding 250 V. This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition, published in 1996, its Amendment 1 (2000) and its Amendment 2 (2007). It constitutes a technical revision. This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition.
a) The requirements have been updated to make them consistent and to solve contradicting requirements introduced in the Amendment 2. In that amendment, a requirement was introduced specifying that handlamp shall always be classified as rough service luminaire only. The implication of this statement was that according to 4.13.4 of Part 1 this kind of luminaire shall always be IP54. This requirements is in contradiction with several points of this Part 2 where it is considered acceptable for ordinary luminaires (e.g. 8.11.1, 8.11.2 and 8.13.1).
b) Furthermore, the contradiction between the requirement in 8.7.1 and 8.7.2 regarding the type of material used for the protective cover has been corrected.

This publication is to be read in conjunction with IEC 60598-1:2008.