I plan on selling a development board similar to an Arduino Uno, but with a different AVR microcontroller. My PCB is RoHS, and all of my components are as well. The board doesn't emit any kind of EMF, and stays below 12VDC.
Are there any certifications I would need to get to sell to the US market? Is there anything else I would need to get to sell to Canada or the EU?
Potentially none, if you are selling it as an evaluation board, not a finished product.
I can't speak for the oodles of random boards on the market, but major manufacturers are generally careful to point out that their evaluation boards are not FCC/CE approved, not finished components/units/modules, may not meet safety either (e.g. a bare board with mains voltage going into it is in no possible way UL/CE safe!).
These exceptions are allowed specifically when operated by a "skilled technician", or in a laboratory setting, etc. (Exact language can be found in the various safety and EMC regulations.) Basically, such equipment is provided as-is; operate at user's own risk, and responsibility for anything (like EMI); etc.
For example, TI (I just happen to have an EVM datasheet handy here) has a disclaimer which opens something like this:
1.1 EVMs are intended solely for product or software developers for use in a research and development setting to facilitate feasibility evaluation, experimentation, or scientific analysis of TI semiconductors products. EVMs have no direct function and are not finished products. EVMs shall not be directly or indirectly assembled as a part or subassembly in any finished product. For clarification, any software or software tools provided with the EVM (“Software”) shall not be subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein but rather shall be subject to the applicable terms that accompany such Software
1.2 EVMs are not intended for consumer or household use. EVMs may not be sold, sublicensed, leased, rented, loaned, assigned, or otherwise distributed for commercial purposes by Users, in whole or in part, or used in any finished product or production system.
The unfortunate reality of the market these days is, regulation is thin, suppliers are small and numerous (for the kinds of things you're contemplating), and so a couple things are simultaneously true:
Consumers have less recourse seemingly than ever: with so many suppliers, of small size (especially those in foreign countries that have few or no treaties with western countries, on the exchange of legal remedies such as these), it's largely caveat emptor (buyer beware).
For your part: unless the listing or supplier says otherwise, fully expect anything to be as-is condition, only. Or, in the extreme, only spend what money you have to spare -- in case you get nothing back at all, as may happen from shadier suppliers or marketplaces.
Suppliers have more liability than ever, given there are so many small ones (i.e., the cost of legal actions might be in the 10-100+ k$ range, which such suppliers are lucky to see in a year, if that, i.e. including hobbyist suppliers), and so little understanding of the legal and regulatory system, and how to prepare their products appropriately.
Or that it's utterly infeasible to do so -- typical testing at a nationally recognized test lab (NRTL) costs in the 10s k$, and we may be talking boards worth less than $100 being sold in quantities of perhaps hundreds, unless you get amazingly lucky.
Regulators seem to have little interest -- or budget, as the case may be -- to pursue such cases. If an interference source has been reported by, perhaps one, perhaps several, licensed users, the FCC (or etc.) may send out a black van to locate the source and issue a cease-and-desist. Once a suspect has been identified, it can escalate from C&Ds to fines or more, but until then, there's nothing they can do. In principle, they could police the airwaves in a much more active manner, but it seems that's not very common anymore.
Even if a buyer has a problem, and identifies the seller or manufacturer at fault (well enough to sue them), there may be no point as, again, there's little money in it, and little to be won. Going after small fry isn't a winning strategy. (Legal remedies are fairly limited, and largely reactive: a to-be victim may not have standing until suffering monetary or other damages. Exceptions include parties with additional rights -- like licensed operators.)
So, whether or not the product is marketed and documented properly as such, might not matter all that much, in practical terms. But it's one of those situations where, although the risk is small, the cost when it does fire is huge.
When you're a larger corporation, you're more likely to get sued, and it's worth spending those costs up front, as insurance against litigation and liability later. It's a lot easier to settle out of, or dismiss, a frivolous case when the lawyer or judge sees the fine print provided with the product.
Conversely, there are plenty of cases where larger corporations choose not to follow regulations: there are only so many effects a civil case can bring, and regulations rarely carry criminal penalties (but, beware those that do!). A civil case might range from monetary damages, to court orders altering the nature of business, or prohibiting it entirely. But to a large enough corporation, if the business is worth more than the punishment, it's not a punishment at all, it's profit with a kickback already taken out of it -- simply a cost of doing business. (Similarly: legal expenses are still expenses e.g. for tax purposes -- no matter who they're fighting, including the government itself!)
Mind, I may be a professional, but I'm merely an engineer. I can't speak for the legal profession. I'm not a lawyer, this is not legal advice, etc. Especially beware of all the cagey language I've used ("less than ever" "more than ever" "not very common anymore" etc.), which isn't even based on research, just impressions; opinion.
I think that I was able to find my answer. As jonk and Kartman said in the comments, it boils down to different criteria and capabilities of an electrical / electronic device, and the markets or places it would be sold in.
For my case, it may be getting the RoHS certification and making sure it complies with FCC guidelines. (for US markets)
There's some more information about this topic in this post, and one of the answers fit my case really well.
If it how's the potential to emit RF (but is not designed to) then you need to check and see if it could be in an unintentional radiator (anything with frequencies above 9 kilohertz) and file it as such with the FCC. You can produce boards that are unintentional radiators and not file if they are below a certain amount or for hobbyist use.
The thing to avoid here is you don't want your product to cause interference with a radio because if somebody doesn't like that and they link that to your name you could face legal action.
https://www.fcc.gov/oet/ea/rfdevice
If the board has a radio on it then it's an intentional radiator and you need to file it through the FCC.
As far as safety goes and Nationally Recognized Testing Labs (NRTL), you don't need a certify your product if it isn't dangerous. Products are dangerous if they have voltages over 63 volts or if they can cause injury to somebody like getting too hot or pinching hazards etc. If your product does one of these things then you probably need to look at it in an NRTL certification. The idea here is to avoid liability and also to comply with safety standards
