In this paper we study the performance test items and improvement plans of surge protective devices for low-voltage power circuits used in railway system. Above of all, the sources of electromagnetic interference in railway system are researched. And then we compared domestic railway standard with IEC and IEEE standards far the test items and methodologies of surge protective devices. Through the investigations, we found that the domestic standard is behind in the number of test items and methods on surge protective devices. As the countermeasures, we suggest removing component tests of surge protective devices, separating standards for power and signal standards, and using international surge waveform. In applying to domestic railway surge protective devices, surge limiting voltage measuring and surge endurance tests by international standard methods are good result.