Is it time to replace your race suit? Let’s get you track-ready. Is your helmet in date?
Nine helmet standards are accepted at Motorsport UK national events in 2026, and only one of them has a date against it. That one is Snell SA2015, and it runs out at the end of this year. Everything else on the list is open ended, whatever you may have read elsewhere, including on the older version of this page.
If SA2015 is the only current standard in your helmet, it is legal now and it will not be in January. Check every label before replacing it. A dual-standard helmet can remain acceptable when its other approval is still on the list.
What Motorsport UK accepts
These are the standards a scrutineer will approve for all Motorsport UK national events. Correct on 4 August 2026, taken from Edition 4 of the 2026 rules.
| Standard | Where it comes from | Accepted until |
|---|---|---|
| SNELL SA2015ACT ON THIS | Snell Memorial Foundation | 31.12.26 |
| FIA 8860-2010 | FIA, top tier | No date set |
| FIA 8859-2015 | FIA, the club racing workhorse | No date set |
| FIA 8860-2018 | FIA, top tier | No date set |
| FIA 8860-2018-ABP | FIA, top tier with advanced ballistic protection | No date set |
| FIA 8859-2024 | FIA, current general standard | No date set |
| FIA 8859-2024-ABP | FIA, current standard with ballistic protection | No date set |
| SNELL SA2020 | Snell Memorial Foundation | No date set |
| SNELL SA2025 | Snell Memorial Foundation | No date set |
Motorsport UK National Competition Rules 2026, Chapter 9, section 7.1. The same list is drawn as Diagram 9 in Chapter 7 Appendix 13. Standards get reviewed and superseded, and the rules say so themselves, so check the current rules before an event rather than trusting any retailer page, this one included.
For international events the FIA regulations apply instead, and your championship can always be stricter than the national list. A series is free to insist on 8860 when the national rules would accept 8859, and several do. Read your own regulations before you buy anything, because that is the document the scrutineer works to on the day.
Karting and juniors
A different list, and the one that catches families out.
Kart racing, 15 and over
- FIA 8878-2024
- Snell K2015, K2020 and K2025
- Snell FIA CMR2007 and CMS2007
- Snell FIA CMR2016 and CMS2016
- Junior drag racing runs to the same list
Under 15, cadet and Bambino
- Snell FIA CMR2007 and CMS2007 only
- Snell FIA CMR2016 and CMS2016 only
- Maximum helmet weight 1550g, checked at any time during an event
- No car helmet, whatever it is approved to
- No motorcycle helmet
A child under 15 needs a CMR or CMS helmet. Not a small adult kart helmet, not a motorcycle helmet, and not a car helmet borrowed from a parent. The weight limit is the reason: 1550g on a young neck is the whole point of the standard, and it is checked at the event. Buying the wrong one is an expensive way to get sent home from a first race meeting.
One more karting rule that surprises people. If your helmet has the M6 anchorage points for a head restraint, those anchorages must not be fitted while the helmet is used in karting. Take them out before the meeting.
The ASN sticker
The standard makes a helmet eligible. The sticker makes it approved.
Check the standard first
There is no point presenting a helmet that is not on the list. Read the label inside the shell and match it against the table above.
Get it inspected
A scrutineer, a Motorsport UK technical official or a selected manufacturer checks the helmet for conformity and condition. Poor condition means no sticker.
Sticker goes on the shell
Roughly where your right ear sits. Blue covers all disciplines, green or yellow covers kart racing only. A fee is payable to the approving scrutineer.
It stays with that helmet
The stickers are printed on foil and individually numbered. Once one is on, it cannot be lifted and reapplied to another helmet.
A HANS or hybrid device carries its own ASN sticker on the yoke, on the same terms. For national events, Snell SA2015 and SA2020 helmets are accepted with an FHR provided the anchorage points are marked as homologated to FIA 8858-2010. If you are pairing a new device with an older helmet, confirm that marking before you buy.
Reading your own helmet
Two labels, and they tell you different things.
01The approval label
Inside the shell, usually under the lining at the back or on the chin strap. It gives the standard, the manufacturer and a serial number. This is the one the scrutineer reads, and the one that decides whether the helmet is on the list.
02The production date
A separate marking, often a month and year. It has no bearing on the Motorsport UK list, but it tells you how old the shell and the liner are. Manufacturers generally put the working life at five to ten years from manufacture, used or not.
If the label is unreadable, photograph whatever is left of it and send it over, or bring the helmet into the showroom. We would rather tell you it is fine than have you find out at scrutineering that it is not. Do not work it out from the model name, because most models were sold under more than one approval across their production run.
What does not expire your helmet
Three ideas that circulate and are not in the rules.
“FIA helmets are valid for ten years from the homologation date.”▾
Not on the Motorsport UK list. FIA 8859-2015 was homologated eleven years ago and is still accepted with no end date. The ten year figure comes from other equipment and from some championship regulations, and it gets applied to helmets where it does not belong. Read your own series regulations, which can be stricter, and treat the national list as the floor.
“My helmet is out of date because it is old.”▾
Age alone does not remove a helmet from the list. Condition does. Anything more than minor superficial damage is likely to see the scrutineer pull the sticker and impound the helmet for the event, and any impact at all means it is finished regardless of how it looks. Age is a good reason to replace a helmet. It is not the rule that stops you competing.
“Snell and FIA are the same thing.”▾
They are separate bodies with separate testing. Many helmets carry both, which is why you see two labels, but the standards are listed independently and the dates differ. Snell SA2015 comes off the list at the end of 2026. No FIA standard on the list has a date.
That distinction matters. Motorsport UK confirmed in February 2026 that a helmet approved to both SA2015 and FIA 8859-2015 remains acceptable after the Snell approval expires, because FIA 8859-2015 is still valid. Read every label before you replace a dual-standard helmet.
Helmets on the current standards
Every one of these carries FIA 8859-2024, so none of them is near a date. A spread from club budget up to full carbon.
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From £315.00 Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
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From £389.00 Excl. VAT Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
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From £415.00 Excl. VAT Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
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From £519.00 Excl. VAT Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
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From £711.00 Excl. VAT Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Common questions
How do I tell which standard my helmet is?▾
There is a label inside the shell, usually under the lining at the back or on the chin strap. It carries the standard, the manufacturer and a serial number. If yours is worn away or you cannot make it out, photograph what is left and send it to us, or bring the helmet in. Do not guess from the model name, because the same model is often sold in more than one approval.
My helmet is ten years old but the standard has no expiry. Is it still legal?▾
Legal and sensible are two different questions. Motorsport UK dates the standard, not the helmet, so an old lid to a current standard is still on the accepted list. What actually removes it from an event is condition: the scrutineer can pull the sticker and impound the helmet for anything more than superficial damage. Shells and liners age whether or not you have used them, and manufacturers generally put the working life at five to ten years from manufacture.
I have a Snell SA2015. What do I need to do?▾
Read every approval label in the helmet. SA2015 comes off the Motorsport UK list after 31.12.26, but a dual-standard helmet can remain acceptable if its second standard is still valid. Motorsport UK gives the example of a helmet carrying both SA2015 and FIA 8859-2015. That FIA standard remains accepted, so the helmet does not automatically expire with its Snell label. If SA2015 is the only current standard in yours, replace it before your first 2027 event.
Does the ASN sticker matter as much as the standard?▾
Yes, and it is the part people get caught by. A helmet to an accepted standard with no sticker on it is not approved. A scrutineer, a Motorsport UK technical official or a selected manufacturer has to check the helmet and affix one, and there is a fee. The stickers are foil, individually numbered and cannot be moved to another helmet once they are on.
What colour sticker do I need?▾
Blue for a helmet approved across all disciplines. Green or yellow, as applicable, for a helmet accepted for kart racing only. If you race cars and karts on the same helmet, check it is on the car list rather than assuming.
Can I fit a camera to my helmet?▾
Not unless the camera is built in by the manufacturer and that model is approved with it. Drilling, bonding or strapping a camera to the shell invalidates the approval. The same goes for any other structural alteration. An intercom is allowed if it is fitted to the manufacturer’s own instructions.
What about my HANS or hybrid device?▾
It needs its own ASN sticker, on the yoke. For Motorsport UK national events, Snell SA2015 and SA2020 helmets are accepted with an FHR device provided the anchorage points on the helmet are marked as homologated to FIA 8858-2010. Check that marking before you buy a device to go with a helmet you already own.
My son karts. Does he need something different?▾
Under 15, and for Cadet and Bambino, it is the Snell FIA CMR and CMS standards only, and the helmet is weight limited to 1550g. A car helmet or a motorcycle helmet will be turned away, and so will a full size kart helmet. It is a common and expensive mistake with junior kit.
Send us a photo of the label
Photograph the label inside the shell and send it over, and we will tell you where you stand against the current list. If it is time for a new one, book the showroom and try a few on, because a helmet you have only seen online is a gamble on shape as much as size.
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