Digital Technology Assessment Criteria (DTAC) guidance for buyers and suppliers

DTAC covers the core standards, policies and best practice required for use in the NHS and adult social care across 5 areas:

• Clinical safety
• Data protection
• Technical security
• Interoperability
• Usability and accessibility

It brings together standards and policies that digital health products must meet to be used in the NHS. This helps buyers and manufacturers understand what is needed to use these products in England. It also means products are checked in the same way, so manufacturers face less uncertainty.

DTAC applies alongside, but does not replace, other required approvals. For example, products may still need medical device certification or to register with the Information Commissioner’s Office.

DTAC is also used alongside other checks like the Data Security and Protection Toolkit and the pre-acquisition questionnaire for medical devices.

Further reviews are still ongoing to some of the standards within DTAC, such as the DCB0129 and DCB0160 standards, which help manage clinical risks in Health IT systems.

There are also commitments to set standards for technology used in social care, updates to medical device rules and work to further simplify our approach to standards. We will update DTAC further to take account of changes when they happen.

NHS England reviewed its Digital Technology Assessment Criteria (DTAC) in 2024, engaging with industry, and has revised its approach to assuring technology to make it simpler and less demanding for both industry and NHS bodies.

If you have any questions contact the DTAC team.