Beginning Aug. 12, 2026, the new European Union Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) (Regulation (EU) 2025/40 - PPWR) will replace the Packaging Waste Directive 94/62/EC (PPWD). The PPWR marks a fundamental shift from the PPWD by creating a uniform, directly applicable EU framework for packaging. Under the regulation, Member States are barred from introducing additional national packaging requirements unless explicitly permitted by the PPWR.
For an overview of the PPWR's background and its specific implications for e-commerce businesses, see our prior client alert from 2025.
The PPWR aims to reduce packaging and packaging waste and support a circular packaging economy across the EU by setting requirements covering the entire packaging life cycle, including strict rules on recyclability, recycled content, labeling, and waste reduction. While the PPWR applies from Aug. 12, many substantive obligations will become applicable gradually between 2027 and 2040.
Scope of the PPWR
- The PPWR imposes obligations on all economic operators throughout the packaging supply chain, including manufacturers, suppliers, importers, distributors, authorized representatives, final distributors, and fulfillment service providers. Accordingly, the PPWR is also relevant for non-EU businesses selling packaged products or packaging in the EU.
- It covers all packaging and packaging waste regardless of material or origin (i.e., industrial, retail, or household contexts). Packaging is defined broadly as any item made of any material intended for the containment, protection, handling, delivery, or presentation of products.
New Obligations for Companies Under the PPWR
Under the PPWR, companies are subject to extended producer responsibility (EPR) and must meet new design, material, and compliance requirements to retain EU market access.
Design and Composition
- Plastic packaging must contain minimum shares of recycled material, with thresholds depending on packaging type and increasing targets over time.
- Packaging must be designed to minimize substances of concern, to protect human health and the environment. This includes specific concentration limits for PFAS in food-contact packaging and a ban on packaging containing lead, cadmium, mercury, or hexavalent chromium above certain aggregate concentration limits.
- Beginning in 2030, packaging must be designed to reduce weight and volume to the minimum necessary to ensure functionality. Specific rules will also restrict excessive packaging for certain packaging types, particularly transport and e-commerce packaging.
Recyclability and Reuse
- Packaging placed on the market must meet PPWR recyclability requirements, subject to phased implementation and technical criteria. Increasing recyclability performance thresholds apply over time, with the result that non-compliant packaging may no longer be placed on the market.
- Certain packaging formats and sectors are subject to reuse and refill obligations, and reusable packaging must be designed for multiple trips or rotations within a reuse system.
- Beginning in 2030, specific single-use packaging formats, particularly specified single-use plastic packaging formats, may no longer be placed on the market.
Labeling and Identification
- Packaging must generally bear a harmonized label and clear identification markings to facilitate consumer sorting and waste management. Manufacturers must also ensure packaging bears a type, batch, serial number, or another element allowing its identification.
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
- Producers are subject to EPR for packaging they make available on the market, particularly regarding end-of-life management of packaging waste. This includes registration in the producer register, reporting of packaging types and quantities, payment of financial contributions, and information obligations toward users and waste management actors.
Conformity Assessment and Documentation
- Manufacturers must ensure packaging conformity before placing it on the market, including conducting a conformity assessment and issuing an EU Declaration of Conformity.
- Technical documentation must be prepared, retained (typically for up to ten years), and provided to authorities upon request.
Non-Compliance
Non-compliance with the PPWR may result in legal, reputational, and commercial consequences. Compliance with the PPWR, subject to applicable transitional periods and phased implementation, is a precondition for placing packaging and packaged products on the EU market.
The PPWR does not harmonize penalties at the EU level. Instead, it requires Member States to provide for effective, proportionate, and dissuasive penalties, exposing companies to potential fines and administrative sanctions under national law. In cases of non-compliance, competent national authorities may require corrective action, including withdrawal or recall of packaging and packaged products. Given the documentation, labeling, and reporting obligations under the PPWR, companies may also face enforcement risks where they are unable to demonstrate compliance or provide required data to authorities.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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