ISO 7010:2019

Graphical symbols: Safety colours and safety signs: Registered safety signs.

ISO 7010 is the international register of safety signs: the standard artwork for prohibition, warning, mandatory, safe condition and fire equipment signs, each with a reference number such as E001. It is the source every compliant safety sign in the UK and Ireland should be drawn from.

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What it asks of your signs

01Use the registered artwork as supplied. The standard provides scalable original artwork for reproduction, and safety signs should never be redrawn or restyled to match a brand.
02Escape signs are drawn from the safe condition (E) series. BS 5499-4 applies to escape route signs that conform to it, including E001 and E002.
03The 2020 revision added safe condition signs such as an emergency exit for people unable to walk or with a walking impairment. Check whether your evacuation strategy needs them.
04Name the amendment state in your specification. The register grows each year, and BSI's current adoption is BS EN ISO 7010:2020+A8:2024.
05ISO 7010 sets the signs. Where they go and how big they are comes from BS 5499-4, BS 5499-10 and the fire strategy.

What it contains

ISO 7010 prescribes safety signs for accident prevention, fire protection, health hazard information and emergency evacuation. The shapes and colours follow ISO 3864-1 and the symbol design follows ISO 3864-3. It applies wherever safety issues relating to people need to be addressed, and excludes signals for rail, road, river, maritime and air traffic. Each sign has a registration number with a letter prefix for its family, and the standard ships the original artwork for reproduction.

The third edition, ISO 7010:2019, has been amended eleven times, from Amd 1:2020 to Amd 11:2026. BSI's UK adoption, BS EN ISO 7010:2020+A8:2024, also folds in more than 40 water safety symbols from ISO 20712-1 and newer signs such as mandatory hand and surface disinfection.

Legal status in the UK and Ireland

No regulation in either jurisdiction makes ISO 7010 mandatory by name. The safety signs regulations set intrinsic features and allow pictograms to vary slightly provided the meaning holds. HSE's L64 uses BS EN ISO 7010 for its examples, and I.S. 3217:2023 expects new emergency lighting sign installations in Ireland to use I.S. EN ISO 7010 graphics. Using the register is the straightforward way to show your signs meet the law.

A new edition is coming

ISO has marked the 2019 edition for revision. ISO/DIS 7010, the fourth edition, closed its enquiry vote on 13 August 2026. Until it is published, ISO 7010:2019 with its amendments remains the current edition. If your project runs into 2027, check for a new edition before artwork is finalised.

Common mistakes

Mixing old BS 5499 style running men with ISO 7010 figures in one building.
Pairing an escape pictogram with an arrow pointing in a direction the standards do not support, or using an arrow alone.
Copying signs from supplier catalogues of unknown vintage instead of the registered artwork.

Editions and history

ISO 7010:2011 and its amendments are withdrawn; the third edition, ISO 7010:2019, is current. In the UK, HSE's 2015 L64 cited BS EN ISO 7010:2012+A5:2015, since followed by BS EN ISO 7010:2020 and its consolidated amendments, the latest being +A8:2024. ISO/DIS 7010 (edition 4) is in development.

Sources checked

A summary in our own words, checked on 16 October 2026. It is not the document itself and not legal advice.

Equivalents and related

The same ground, elsewhere.

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