Legal provisions of COM(2022)677 - Packaging and packaging waste

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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.

dossier COM(2022)677 - Packaging and packaging waste.
document COM(2022)677 EN
date November 30, 2022



Chapter I
General provisions

Contents

Article 1 - Subject matter

1. This Regulation establishes requirements for the entire life cycle of packaging as regards environmental sustainability and labelling, to allow its placing on the market, as well as for the extended producer responsibility, collection, treatment and recycling of packaging waste.

2. This Regulation contributes to the efficient functioning of the internal market by harmonising national measures on packaging and packaging waste in order to avoid obstacles to trade, distortion and restriction of competition within the Union, while preventing or reducing the adverse impacts of packaging and packaging waste on the environment and human health, on the basis of a high level of environmental protection.

3. This Regulation contributes to the transition to a circular economy, by laying down measures in line with the hierarchy of waste in accordance with Article 4 of Directive 2008/98/EC.

Article 2 - Scope

1. This Regulation applies to all packaging, regardless of the material used, and to all packaging waste, whether such waste is used in or originates from industry, other manufacturing, retail or distribution, offices, services or households. 

2. This Regulation applies without prejudice to Union regulatory requirements for packaging such as those regarding safety, quality, the protection of health and the hygiene of the packed products, or to transport requirements, as well as without prejudice to the provisions of the Directive 2008/98/EC as regards the management of hazardous waste.

Article 3 - Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply:

(1) ‘packaging’ means items of any materials that are intended to be used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery or presentation of products and that can be differentiated into packaging formats based on their function, material and design, including:

(a)items that are necessary to contain, support or preserve the product throughout its lifetime without being an integral part of the product which is intended to be used, consumed or disposed of together with the product;

(b)components of, and ancillary elements to, an item referred to in point (a) that are integrated into the item;

(c)ancillary elements to an item referred to in point (a) that are hung directly on, or attached to, the product and that performs a packaging function without being an integral part of the product which is intended to be used, consumed or disposed of together with the product;

(d)items designed and intended to be filled at the point of sale, provided that they perform a packaging function;

(e)disposable items sold, filled or designed and intended to be filled at the point of sale, provided that they perform a packaging function;

(f)tea or coffee bags necessary to contain a tea or coffee product and intended to be used and disposed of together with the product;

(g)coffee or tea system single-serve unit necessary to contain a coffee or tea product and intended to be used and disposed of together with the product;

(2) ‘sales packaging’ means packaging conceived so as to constitute a sales unit consisting of products and packaging to the final user or consumer at the point of sale;

(3) ‘grouped packaging’ means packaging conceived so as to constitute a grouping of a certain number of sales units at the point of sale whether the latter is sold as such to the end user or it serves only as a means to replenish the shelves at the point of sale or create a stock-keeping or distribution unit, and which can be removed from the product without affecting its characteristics;

(4) ‘transport packaging’ means packaging conceived so as to facilitate handling and transport of a number of sales units or grouped packages, including e-commerce packaging but excluding road, rail, ship and air containers, in order to prevent physical handling and transport damage;

(5) ‘e-commerce packaging’ means transport packaging used to deliver products in the context of sale online or through other means of distance sales to the end user; 

(6) ‘making available on the market’ means any supply of a packaging for distribution, consumption or use on the Union market in the course of a commercial activity, whether in return for payment or free of charge;

(7) ‘placing on the market’ means the first making available of a packaging on the Union market;

(8) ‘economic operator’ means manufacturers, suppliers of packaging, importers, distributors, final distributors, and fulfilment service providers; 

(9) ‘manufacturer’ means any natural or legal person who manufactures packaging under its own name or trademark, or has packaging designed or manufactured, and uses that packaging for the containment, protection, handling, delivery or presentation of products under its own name or trademark, without it having been placed on the market previously;

(10) ‘producer’ means any manufacturer, importer or distributor, who, irrespective of the selling technique used, including by means of distance contracts as defined in Article 2(7) of Directive 2011/83/EU, makes available packaging for the first time within a territory of a Member States on a professional basis under its own name or trademark;

(11) ‘supplier’ means any natural or legal person who supplies packaging or packaging material to a manufacturer who uses this packaging for the containment, protection, handling, delivery or presentation of products under its own name or trademark;

(12) ‘importer’ means any natural or legal person established within the Union who places packaging, or a packaged product, from a third country on the Union market; 

(13) ‘distributor’ means any natural or legal person in the supply chain, other than the manufacturer or importer, who makes a packaging, or a packaged product, available on the market;

(14) ‘authorised representative’ means any natural or legal person established in the Union who has received a written mandate from the manufacturer to act on its behalf in relation to specified tasks with regard to the manufacturer’s obligations under this Regulation;

(15) ‘appointed representative for the extended producer responsibility’ means a legal or natural person established in a Member State where the producer makes packaging available on the market for the first time, other than the Member State where the producer is established, and who is appointed by the producer in accordance with third subparagraph of Article 8a(5) of Directive 2008/98/EC for fulfilling the obligations of that producer under Chapter VII of this Regulation;

(16) ‘final distributor’ means the distributor who delivers packaged products or products that can be purchased through refill to the end user;

(17) ‘consumer’ means natural persons who are acting for purposes which are outside their trade, business or profession;

(18) ‘end user’ means any natural or legal person residing or established in the Union, to whom a product has been made available either as a consumer or as a professional end user in the course of its industrial or professional activities and who no longer makes this product further available on the market in the form supplied to it;

(19) ‘composite packaging’ means a unit of packaging made of two or more different materials, excluding materials used for labels, closures and sealing, which cannot be separated manually and therefore form a single integral unit;

(20) ‘packaging waste’ means any packaging or packaging material falling within the definition of waste laid down in Article 3 of Directive 2008/98/EC, with the exception of production residues;

(21) ‘packaging waste prevention’ means measures that are taken before any packaging or packaging material has become packaging waste and that reduce the quantity of packaging waste, so that less or no packaging is required to contain, protect, handle, deliver or present products 

(22) ‘re-use’ means any operation by which reusable packaging is used again for the same purpose for which it was conceived;

(23) ‘single-use packaging’ means packaging which is not reusable packaging; 

(24) ‘rotation’ means the cycle that reusable packaging accomplishes from the moment it is placed on the market together with the products it is intended to contain, protect, handle, deliver or present, to the moment it is ready for being reused in a system for re-use with a view to it being supplied again to the end users together with the products;

(25) ‘trip’ means transfer of packaging, from filling or loading to emptying or unloading, as part of a rotation or on its own;

(26) ‘systems for re-use’ means organisational, technical /or financial arrangements, which enable the re-use either in a closed loop or open loop system. Deposit and return systems, when they ensure that packaging is collected for re-use, are considered as part of a ‘system for re-use’;

(27) ‘reconditioning’ means an operation necessary to restore a reusable packaging to a functional state for the purpose of its re-use;

(28) ‘refill’ means an operation by which an end user fills its own container, which fulfils the packaging function, with a product or several products offered by the final distributor in the context of a commercial transaction;

(29) ‘refill station’ means a place, where a final distributor offers to end users products that can be purchased through refill;

(30) ‘HORECA sector’ means Accommodation and Food Service Activities according to NACE Rev. 2 – Statistical classification of economic activities 79 ;

(31) ‘design for recycling’ means design of packaging, including individual components of packaging, in order to ensure its recyclability with state-of-the-art collection, sorting and recycling processes;

(32) ‘recycled at scale’ means collected, sorted and recycled through installed state-of-the-art infrastructure and processes, covering at least 75 % of the Union population, including packaging waste exported from the Union that meets the requirements of Article 47(5);

(33) ‘packaging category’ means a combination of material and specific packaging design, which determines the recyclability with the state of the art collection sorting and recycling processes and is relevant for the definition of the design for recycling criteria; 

(34) ‘integrated component’ means a packaging component that may be distinct from the main body of the packaging unit, and may be of a different material, but is integral to the packaging unit and its functioning and does not need to be separated from the main packaging unit in order to consume the product and is typically discarded at the same time as the packaging unit, although not necessarily in the same disposal route;

(35) ‘separate component’ means a packaging component that is distinct from the main body of the packaging unit, which may be of a different material, that needs to be disassembled completely and permanently from the main packaging unit in order to access the product, and that is typically discarded prior to and separately from the packaging unit;

(36) ‘unit of packaging’ means a unit as a whole, including any integrated or separate components, which together serve a packaging function such as the containment, protection, handling, delivery, storage, transport and presentation of products, and including independent units of grouped or transport packaging where they are discarded prior to the point of sale;

(37) ‘innovative packaging’ means a form of packaging that is manufactured using new materials, design or production processes, resulting in a significant improvement in the functions of packaging, such as containment, protection, handling, delivery or presentation of products, and in demonstrable environmental benefits, with the exception of packaging that is the result of modification of existing packaging for the sole purpose of improved presentation of products and marketing;

(38) ‘secondary raw materials’ means materials that have been obtained through recycling processes and can substitute primary raw materials;

(39) ‘post-consumer plastic waste’ means plastic waste that is generated from plastic products that have been placed on the market;

(40) ‘contact sensitive packaging’ means packaging that is intended to be used in any packaging applications in the scope of Regulations: (EC) No 1831/2003, (EC) No 1935/2004, (EC) No 767/2009, (EC) No 2009/1223, (EU) 2017/745, (EU) 2017/746, (EU) 2019/4, (EU) 2019/6, Directive 2001/83/EC, or Directive 2008/68/EC;

(41) ‘compostable packaging’ means packaging capable of undergoing physical, chemical, thermal or biological decomposition such that most of the finished compost ultimately decomposes into carbon dioxide, mineral salts, biomass and water, according to Article 47(4), and does not hinder the separate collection and the composting process or activity into which it is introduced in industrially controlled conditions;

(42) ‘single use plastic beverage bottles’ means beverage bottles listed in Part F of the Annex to Directive (EU) 2019/904; 

(43) ‘plastic’ means a polymer within the meaning of Article 3(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006, to which additives or other substances may have been added, and which is capable of functioning as a main structural component of packaging, with the exception of natural polymers that have not been chemically modified;

(44) ‘plastic carrier bags’ means carrier bags, with or without handle, made of plastic, which are supplied to consumers at the point of sale of products;

(45) ‘lightweight plastic carrier bags’ means plastic carrier bags with a wall thickness below 50 microns;

(46) ‘very lightweight plastic carrier bags’ means plastic carrier bags with a wall thickness below 15 microns;

(47) ‘thick plastic carrier bags’ means plastic carrier bags with a wall thickness between 50 and 99 microns;

(48) ‘very thick plastic carrier bags’ means plastic carrier bags with a wall thickness above 99 microns;

(49) ‘waste receptacles’ means containers, bins and bags used to store and collect waste; 

(50) ‘deposit’ means a fixed sum of money, not being part of the price of a packaged or filled product that is collected from the end user when purchasing such packaged or filled product, covered by a deposit and return system in a given Member State and redeemable when the end user returns the deposit bearing packaging to a collection point established for that purpose;

(51) ‘deposit and return system’ means a system, in which a deposit is charged to the end user when purchasing a packaged or filled product covered by this system, and redeemed to the end user when the deposit bearing packaging is returned to a collection point established for that purpose;

(52) ‘technical specification’ means a document that prescribes technical requirements to be fulfilled by a product, process or service;

(53) ‘harmonised standard’ means a standard as defined in Article 2(1), point (c) of Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012; 

(54) ‘conformity assessment’ means the process demonstrating whether the sustainability, safety, labelling and information requirements of this Regulation, relating to a packaging, have been fulfilled;

(55) ‘producer responsibility organisation’ means a legal entity that financially or financially and operationally organises the fulfilment of extended producer responsibility obligations on behalf of several producers;

(56) ‘life-cycle’ means the consecutive and interlinked stages that packaging goes through, from raw material acquisition or generation from natural resources to final disposal.

(57) ‘packaging presenting a risk’ means a packaging that, by not complying with a requirement set out in or pursuant to this Regulation other than those listed in Article 56(1), may adversely affect the environment or other public interests protected by that requirement;

(58) ‘packaging presenting a serious risk’ means a packaging presenting a risk for which, based on an assessment, the degree of the relevant non-compliance or the associated harm is considered to require rapid intervention by the market surveillance authorities, including cases where the effects of the non-compliance are not immediate;

(59) ‘online platform’ means online platform as defined in Article 3 point (i) of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065;

(60) ‘waste’ means waste as defined in Article 3 point (1) of Directive 2008/98/EC, with the exception of reusable packaging conveyed to reconditioning;

The definitions of ‘substance of concern’ and ‘data carrier’ laid down in Article [2 points (28) and (30)] of Regulation [Ecodesign for sustainable products] shall apply;

The definitions of ‘waste management’, ‘collection’, ‘separate collection’, ‘extended producer responsibility scheme’, ‘preparing for re-use’, and ‘recycling’ laid down in Article 3 points (9), (10), (11), (21), (16) and (17) of Directive 2008/98/EC apply;

The definitions of ‘market surveillance’, ‘market surveillance authority’, ‘fulfilment service provider’, ‘corrective action’, ‘recall’, ‘withdrawal’ and ‘risk’ laid down in Article 3 points (3), (4), (11), (16), (22), (23) and (18) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 apply.

An indicative list of items falling within the definition of packaging in point (1) is set out in Annex I.

Article 4 
Free movement

1. Packaging shall only be placed on the market if it complies with this Regulation.

2. Member States shall not prohibit, restrict or impede the placing on the market of packaging that complies with the sustainability requirements set out in Articles 5 to 10 of this Regulation.

3. Member States shall not prohibit, restrict or impede the placing on the market of packaging that complies with the labelling and information requirements set out in Article 11 of this Regulation.

4. In case Member States choose to maintain or introduce national sustainability requirements or information requirements additional to those laid down in this Regulation, those requirements shall not conflict with those laid down in this Regulation and the Member States shall not prohibit, restrict or impede the placing on the market of packaging that complies with the requirements under this Regulation for reasons of non-compliance with those national requirements.

5. In addition to the labelling requirements laid down in Article 11, Member States may provide for further labelling requirements, for the purpose of identifying the extended producer responsibility scheme or a deposit and return system other than those referred to in Article 44(1).

6. At trade fairs, exhibitions or similar events, Member States shall not prevent the showing of packaging, which does not comply with this Regulation, provided that a visible sign clearly indicates that such packaging does not comply with this Regulation and that it is not for sale until it has been brought into conformity.

Chapter II
Sustainability requirements

Article 5 - Requirements for substances in packaging

1. Packaging shall be so manufactured that the presence and concentration of substances of concern as constituents of the packaging material or of any of the packaging components is minimised, including with regard to their presence in emissions and any outcomes of waste management, such as secondary raw materials, ashes or other material for final disposal.

2. Without prejudice to the restrictions on chemicals set out in Annex XVII of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 or, where applicable, to the restrictions and specific measures on food contact packaging in Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004, the sum of concentration levels of lead, cadmium, mercury and hexavalent chromium resulting from substances present in packaging or packaging components shall not exceed 100 mg/kg.

3. Compliance with the requirements set out in paragraph 2 shall be demonstrated in the technical documentation drawn up in accordance with Annex VII.

4. Recyclability requirements established in delegated acts adopted pursuant to Article 6(5) shall not restrict the presence of substances in packaging or packaging components for reasons relating primarily to chemical safety. They shall address, as appropriate, substances of concern that negatively affect the re-use and recycling of materials in the packaging in which they are present, and shall, as appropriate, identify the specific substances concerned and their associated criteria and limitations.

5. In order to take account of the scientific and technical progress, the Commission may adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 58, to amend this Regulation in order to: 

(a)lower the sum of concentration levels of lead, cadmium, mercury and hexavalent chromium resulting from substances present in packaging or packaging components referred to in paragraph 2;

(b)determine the conditions under which the concentration level referred to in paragraph 2 shall not apply to recycled materials and to product loops, which are in a closed and controlled chain, as well as to determine the types of packaging which shall be exempted from the requirements laid down in that paragraph. Such delegated acts shall be time-limited, provide for appropriate marking and information requirements, and contain requirements for regular reporting in order to ensure that the exemption is regularly reviewed.

Article 6 - Recyclable packaging

1. All packaging shall be recyclable.

2. Packaging shall be considered recyclable where it complies with the following: 

(a)it is designed for recycling; 

(b)it is effectively and efficiently separately collected in accordance with Article 43(1) and (2);

(c)it is sorted into defined waste streams without affecting the recyclability of other waste streams;

(d)it can be recycled so that the resulting secondary raw materials are of sufficient quality to substitute the primary raw materials;

(e)it can be recycled at scale.

Point (a) shall apply from 1 January 2030 and point (e) shall apply from 1 January 2035.

3. Recyclable packaging shall, from 1 January 2030, comply with the design for recycling criteria as laid down in the delegated acts adopted pursuant to paragraph 4 and, from 1 January 2035, also with the recyclability at scale requirements laid down in the delegated acts adopted pursuant to paragraph 6. Where such packaging complies with those delegated acts, it shall be considered to comply with paragraph 2, points (a) and (e).

4. The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 58 to supplement this Regulation in order to establish design for recycling criteria and recycling performance grades based on the criteria and parameters listed in Table 2 of Annex II for packaging categories listed in Table 1 of that Annex, as well as rules concerning the modulation of financial contributions to be paid by producers to comply with their extended producer responsibility obligations set out in Article 40(1), based on the packaging recycling performance grade, and for plastic packaging, the percentage of recycled content. Design-for-recycling criteria shall consider state of the art collection, sorting and recycling processes and shall cover all packaging components.

The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 58 to amend Table 1 of Annex in order to adapt it to scientific and technical development in material and product design, collection, sorting and recycling infrastructure.

5. From 1 January 2030, packaging shall not be considered recyclable if it corresponds to performance grade E under the design for recycling criteria established in the delegated act adopted pursuant to paragraph 4 for the packaging category, to which the packaging belongs. 

These criteria shall be based at least on the parameters as listed in Table 2 of Annex II.

6. The Commission shall, for each packaging type listed in Table 1 of Annex II, establish the methodology to assess if packaging is recyclable at scale. That methodology shall be based at least on the following elements:

(a)amounts of packaging placed on the market in the Union as a whole and in each Member State;

(b)amounts of separately collected packaging waste, per packaging material listed in Table 1 of Annex II, in the Union as whole and in each Member State;

(c)recycling rates of packaging waste per packaging type listed in Table 1 of Annex II, in the Union as a whole and in each Member State or, when such data on recycling rates for packaging waste per packaging type cannot be made available, assumptions made based on average loss rates as referred to in Article 47(3);

(d)installed infrastructure capacities for sorting and recycling in the Union as a whole for each packaging type listed in Table 1 of Annex II.

7. The criteria and requirements referred to in paragraph 3 shall establish:

(a)the manner in which to express the result of the recyclability assessment in recyclability performance grades from A to E, as described in Table 3 of Annex II, based on the percentage of the packaging unit, in weight, which is recyclable according to paragraph 1;

(b)detailed design for recycling criteria for each packaging material and category listed in Table 1 of Annex II;

(c)a description, for each packaging category listed in Table 1 of Annex II, of the conditions for compliance with the respective performance grades;

(d)the modulation of the financial contributions to be paid by producers to comply with their extended producer responsibility obligations as referred to in Article 40, based on the packaging performance grade;

(e)the manner in which to assess the recyclability at scale for each packaging category listed in Table 1 of Annex II in order to establish, as of 2035, updated recyclability performance grades.

8. Compliance with the requirements set out in paragraphs 2 and 3 shall be demonstrated in the technical documentation concerning the packaging as set out in Annex VII.

Where a unit of packaging includes integrated components, the assessment of compliance with the design for recycling criteria and with the at scale recyclability requirements shall include all integrated components.

Where a unit of packaging includes separate components, the assessment of compliance with the design for recycling requirements and with the at scale recyclability requirements shall be done separately for each separate component.

All components of a unit of packaging shall be compatible with the state of the art collection, sorting and recycling processes and shall not hinder the recyclability of the main body of the unit of packaging.

9. From 1 January 2030, and by way of derogation from paragraphs 2 and 3, innovative packaging may be placed on the market for a maximum period of 5 years after the end of the calendar year when it has been placed on the market.

Where use is made of this derogation, innovative packaging shall be accompanied by technical documentation, referred to in Annex VII, demonstrating its innovative nature and showing compliance with the definition in Article 3(34) of this Regulation.

After the period referred to in the first sub-paragraph, such packaging shall be accompanied by the technical documentation referred to in paragraph 8.

10. Until 31 December 2034, this Article shall not apply to the following:

(a)immediate packaging as defined in Article 1, point (23), of Directive 2001/83/EC and in Article 4, point 25, of Regulation (EU) 2019/6; 

(b)contact sensitive plastic packaging of medical devices covered by Regulation (EU) 2017/745;

(c)contact sensitive plastic packaging of in vitro diagnostics medical devices covered by Regulation (EU) 2017/746.

11. The financial contributions to be paid by producers to comply with their extended producer responsibility obligations as referred to in Article 40 shall be modulated on the basis of the recyclability performance grade, as determined in accordance with the delegated acts referred to in paragraphs 4 and 6 of this Article and, as regards plastic packaging, also in accordance with the Article 7(6).

Article 7 - Minimum recycled content in plastic packaging

1. From 1 January 2030, the plastic part in packaging shall contain the following minimum percentage of recycled content recovered from post-consumer plastic waste, per unit of packaging:

(a)30 % for contact sensitive packaging made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) as the major component;

(b)10 % for contact sensitive packaging made from plastic materials other than PET, except single use plastic beverage bottles;

(c)30 % for single use plastic beverage bottles;

(d)35 % for packaging other than those referred to in points (a), (b) and (c).

2. From 1 January 2040, the plastic part in packaging shall contain the following minimum percentage of recycled content recovered from post-consumer plastic waste, per unit of packaging:

(a)50 % for contact sensitive plastic packaging, except single use plastic beverage bottles;

(b)65 % for single use plastic beverage bottles;

(c)65 % for plastic packaging other than those referred to in points (a) and (b);

3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply to the following:

(a)immediate packaging as defined in Article 1, point (23), of Directive 2001/83/EC and in Article 4, point (25), of Regulation (EU) 2019/6;

(b)contact sensitive plastic packaging of medical devices covered by Regulation (EU) 2017/745;

(c)contact sensitive plastic packaging of in vitro diagnostics medical devices covered by Regulation (EU) 2017/746;

(d)outer packaging as defined in Article 1, point (24), of Directive 2001/83/EC and in Article 4, point (26), of Regulation (EU) 2019/6 in cases where such packaging is necessary to comply with specific requirements to preserve the quality of the medicinal product.

4. Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply to compostable plastic packaging. 

5. Compliance with the requirements set out in paragraphs 1 and 3 shall be demonstrated in the technical information concerning the packaging referred to in Annex VII.

6. By 1 January 2030, the financial contributions paid by producers to comply with their extended producer responsibility obligations as laid down in Article 40 shall be modulated based on the percentage of recycled content used in the packaging.

7. By 31 December 2026, the Commission is empowered to adopt implementing acts establishing the methodology for the calculation and verification of the percentage of recycled content recovered from post-consumer plastic waste, per unit of plastic packaging, and the format for the technical documentation referred to in Annex VII. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

8. As of 1 January 2029, the calculation and verification of the percentage of recycled content contained in packaging under paragraph 1 shall comply with the rules laid down in the implementing act referred to in paragraph 7.

9. By 1 January 2028, the Commission shall assess the need for derogations from the minimum percentage laid down in paragraph 1, points b and d, for specific plastic packaging, or for the revision of the derogation established under paragraph 3 for specific plastic packaging.

Based on this assessment, the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 58 to amend this Regulation in order to:

(a)provide for derogations from the scope, timing or level of minimum percentage laid down in paragraph 1, points b and d, for specific plastic packaging, and, as appropriate,

(b)revise the derogations established in paragraph 3,

where suitable recycling technologies to recycle plastic packaging are not available because they are not authorised under the relevant Union rules or are not sufficiently installed in practice.

10. Where justified by the lack of availability or excessive prices of specific recycled plastics that may have adverse effects on human or animal health, security of food supply or the environment, making compliance with the minimum percentages of recycled content set out in paragraphs 1 and 2 excessively difficult, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt a delegated act in accordance with Article 58 to amend paragraphs 1 and 2 by adjusting the minimum percentages accordingly. In evaluating the justification of such adjustment, the Commission shall assess requests from natural or legal persons to be accompanied by relevant information and data on the market situation for this post-consumer plastic waste and best available evidence regarding the related risks to human or animal health, to the security of food supply or to the environment.

11. By [OP: Please insert the date = 8 years after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], the Commission shall review the situation regarding the use of recycled packaging materials in packaging other than plastics and, on this basis, assess the appropriateness of establishing measures, or setting targets, for increasing the use of recycled content in such other packaging, and where necessary present a legislative proposal.

Article 8 - Compostable packaging

1. By [OP: please insert the date = 24 months from the entry into force of this Regulation], packaging referred to in Article 3(1), points (f) and (g), sticky labels attached to fruit and vegetables and very lightweight plastic carrier bags shall be compostable in industrially controlled conditions in bio-waste treatment facilities. 

2. Where appropriate waste collection schemes and waste treatment infrastructure are available to ensure that packaging referred to in paragraph 1 enters the organic waste management stream, Member States are empowered to require that lightweight plastic carrier bags shall be made available on their market for the first time only if it can be demonstrated that those lightweight plastic carrier bags have been entirely manufactured from biodegradable plastic polymers, which are compostable in industrially controlled conditions.

3. By [OP: Please insert the date = 24 months from the date of entry into force of this Regulation], packaging other than that referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, including packaging made of biodegradable plastic polymers, shall allow material recycling without affecting the recyclability of other waste streams.

4. Compliance with the requirements set out in paragraphs 1 to 3 shall be demonstrated in the technical information concerning the packaging referred to in Annex VII.

5. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 58 to amend paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article by adding other types of packaging to the types of packaging covered by those paragraphs when it is justified and appropriate due to technological and regulatory developments impacting the disposal of compostable packaging and under the conditions set out in Annex III.

Article 9 - Packaging minimisation

1. Packaging shall be designed so that its weight and volume is reduced to the minimum necessary for ensuring its functionality taking account of the material that the packaging is made of. 

2. Packaging not necessary to comply with any of the performance criteria set out in Annex IV and packaging with characteristics that are only aimed to increase the perceived volume of the product, including double walls, false bottoms, and unnecessary layers, shall not be placed on the market, unless the packaging design is subject to geographical indications of origin protected under Union legislation. 

3. Empty space shall be reduced to the minimum necessary for ensuring the packaging functionality as follows:

(a)for sales packaging, in relation to the total volume of the packaged product and its characteristics;

(b)for grouped and transport packaging, including e-commerce packaging, in relation to the total volume of the grouped or transported products and their sales packaging;

For the purpose of assessing the compliance with this paragraph, space filled by paper cuttings, air cushions, bubble wraps, sponge fillers, foam fillers, wood wool, polystyrene, styrofoam chips or other filling materials shall be considered as empty space.

4. Compliance with the requirements set out in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be demonstrated in the technical documentation referred to in Annex VII, which shall contain the following elements:

(a)an explanation of the technical specifications, standards and conditions used to assess the packaging against the performance criteria and methodology set out in Annex IV;

(b)the identification of the design requirements which prevent further reduction of the packaging weight or volume, for each of these performance criteria;

(c)any test results, studies or other relevant sources used to assess the minimum necessary volume or weight of the packaging.

For reusable packaging, the assessment of compliance with the requirements set out in paragraph 1 shall take into account the function of reusable packaging as referred to in Article 10.

Article 10 - Reusable packaging

1. Packaging shall be considered reusable where if fulfils the following conditions:

(a)it has been conceived, designed and placed on the market with the objective to be re-used or refilled;

(b)it has been conceived and designed to accomplish as many trips or rotations as possible in normally predictable conditions of use;

(c)it can be emptied or unloaded without damage to the packaging, which prevents its re-use; 

(d)it is capable of being emptied, unloaded, refilled or reloaded while ensuring compliance with the applicable safety and hygiene requirements;

(e)it is capable of being reconditioned in accordance with Part B of Annex VI, whilst maintaining its ability to perform its intended function;

(f)it can be emptied, unloaded, refilled or reloaded while maintaining the quality and safety of the packaged product and allowing for the attachment of labelling, and the provision of information on the properties of that product and on the packaging itself, including any relevant instructions and information for ensuring safety, adequate use, traceability and shelf-life of the product;

(g)it can be emptied, unloaded, refilled or reloaded without risk to the health and safety of those responsible for doing so; 

(h)it fulfils the requirements specific to recyclable packaging when it becomes waste set out in Article 6.

2. Compliance with the requirements set out in paragraph 1 shall be demonstrated in the technical information concerning the packaging referred to in Annex VII. 


Chapter III
Labelling, marking and information requirements

Article 11 - Labelling of packaging

1. From [OP: Please insert the date = 42 months after the entry into force of this Regulation], packaging shall be marked with a label containing information on its material composition. This obligation does not apply to transport packaging. However, it applies to e-commerce packaging.

Packaging subject to deposit and return systems referred to in Article 44(1) shall, in addition to the labelling referred to in the first subparagraph, be marked with a harmonised label established in the relevant implementing act adopted pursuant to paragraph 5.

2. From [OP: Please insert the date = 48 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], packaging shall bear a label on packaging reusability and a QR code or other type of digital data carrier that provides further information on packaging reusability including the availability of a system for re-use and of collection points, and that facilitates the tracking of the packaging and the calculation of trips and rotations. In addition, reusable sales packaging shall be clearly identified and distinguished from single use packaging at the point of sale.

3. Where a unit of packaging covered by Article 7 is marked with a label containing information on the share of recycled content, that label shall comply with the specifications laid down in the relevant implementing act adopted pursuant to Article 11(5) and shall be based on the methodology pursuant to Article 7(7). Where a unit of plastic packaging is marked with a label containing information on the share of biobased plastic content, that label shall comply with the specifications laid down in the relevant implementing act adopted pursuant to Article 11(5).

4. Labels referred to in paragraphs 1 to 3 and the QR code or other type of digital data carrier referred to in paragraph 2 shall be placed, printed or engraved visibly, clearly legibly and indelibly on the packaging. Where this is not possible or not warranted on account of the nature and size of the packaging, they shall be affixed to the grouped packaging. 

Where Union legislation requires information on the packaged product to be provided via a data carrier, a single data carrier shall be used for providing the information required for both the packaged product and the packaging.

5. By [OP: Please insert the date = 18 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], the Commission shall adopt implementing acts to establish a harmonised label and specifications for the labelling requirements and formats for the labelling of packaging referred to in paragraphs 1 to 3 and the labelling of waste receptacles referred to in Article 12. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

6. By [OP: Please insert the date = 24 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], the Commission shall adopt implementing acts to establish the methodology for identifying the material composition of packaging referred to in paragraph 1 by means of digital marking technologies. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

7. Without prejudice to requirements concerning other harmonised EU labels, economic operators shall not provide or display labels, marks, symbols or inscriptions that are likely to mislead or confuse consumers or other end users with respect to the sustainability requirements for packaging, other packaging characteristics or packaging waste management options, for which harmonised labelling has been laid down in this Regulation.

8. Packaging included in an extended producer responsibility scheme or covered by a deposit and return system other than that referred to in Article 44(1) may be identified by means of a corresponding symbol throughout the territory in which that scheme or system applies. That symbol shall be clear and unambiguous and shall not mislead consumers or users as to the recyclability or reusability of the packaging. 

Article 12 - Labelling of waste receptacles for the collection of packaging waste

By 1 January 2028, labels that enable the separate collection of each material specific fraction of packaging waste that is intended to be discarded in separate receptacles shall be affixed, printed or engraved visibly, legibly and indelibly on all waste receptacles for collection of packaging waste.


Chapter IV
Obligations of economic operators other than the obligations in Chapters V and VII

Article 13 - Obligations of manufacturers 

1. When placing packaging on the market, manufacturers shall ensure that the packaging complies with the following:

(a)it has been designed and manufactured in accordance with the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 10;

(b)it is labelled in accordance with the applicable requirements set out in Article 11.

2. Before placing packaging on the market, manufacturers shall carry out the relevant conformity assessment procedure referred to in Article 33, or have it carried out on their behalf, and draw up the technical documentation referred to in Annex VII.

Where compliance of packaging with the applicable requirements has been demonstrated by the relevant conformity assessment procedure referred to in Article 33, manufacturers shall draw up an EU declaration of conformity in accordance with Article 34.

3. Manufacturers shall keep the technical documentation referred to in Annex VII and the EU declaration of conformity for 10 years after the packaging has been placed on the market.

4. Manufacturers shall ensure that procedures are in place for series production of packaging to remain in conformity with this Regulation. Changes in packaging design or in characteristics, as well as changes in harmonised standards, common technical specifications or other technical specifications by reference to which conformity is declared or by application of which its conformity is verified, shall be adequately taken into account by manufacturers. In case the manufacturers finds that the packaging’s conformity may be affected, they shall carry out a re-assessment in accordance with the conformity assessment procedure specified in Article 33 and Annex VII, or have it carried out on their behalf.

5. Manufacturers shall ensure that the packaging bears a type, batch or serial number or other element allowing its identification or, where the size or nature of the packaging does not allow so, that the required information is provided in a document accompanying the packaged product.

6. Manufacturers shall indicate on the packaging or on a QR code or another data carrier their name, registered trade name or registered trade mark as well as the postal address, and where available, the electronic means of communication, where they can be contacted. Where that is not possible, the required information shall be provided as part of the information through the QR code referred to in Article 11(2) or the data carrier referred to in Article 11(4) or in a document accompanying the packaged product. The postal address shall indicate a single point at which the manufacturer can be contacted. Such information shall be clear, understandable and legible.

7. Manufacturers shall ensure that information provided in accordance with paragraphs 5 and 6 is clear, understandable and legible, and does not replace, obscure or can be confused with information required by other Union legislation on the labelling of the packaged product.

8. Manufacturers who consider or have reason to believe that packaging which they have placed on the market is not in conformity with one or more of the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 shall immediately take the corrective measures necessary to bring that packaging into conformity, to withdraw it or recall it, as appropriate. Manufacturers shall immediately inform the market surveillance authority of the Member State in which they made the packaging available of the suspected non-compliance and of any corrective measures taken.

9. Manufacturers shall, further to a reasoned request from a national authority, provide all the information and documentation necessary to demonstrate the conformity of the packaging, including the technical documentation in a language, or languages, which can be easily understood by that authority. That information and documentation shall be provided in either paper or electronic form. The relevant documents shall be made available within 10 days of receipt of the request from the national authority. Manufacturers shall cooperate with the national authority on any action taken to remedy any case of non-compliance with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 10.

Article 14 - Information obligations of suppliers of packaging or packaging materials

1. Any supplier of packaging or packaging materials shall provide the manufacturer with all the information and documentation necessary for the manufacturer to demonstrate the conformity of the packaging and the packaging materials with this Regulation, including the technical documentation referred to in Annex VII and required under Articles 5 to 10, in a language or languages, which can be easily understood by the manufacturer. That information and documentation shall be provided in either paper or electronic form.

2. Where appropriate, the documentation and information provided for in legislation applicable to contact sensitive packaging shall be part of the information and documentation to be provided to the manufacturer pursuant to paragraph 1.

Article 15 - Obligations of authorised representative

1. A manufacturer may, by a written mandate, appoint an authorised representative.

The obligations laid down in Article 13(1) and the obligation to draw up technical documentation referred to in Annex VII and required under Articles 5 to 10 shall not form part of the authorised representative's mandate.

2. An authorised representative shall perform the tasks specified in the mandate received from the manufacturer. The mandate shall allow the authorised representative to do at least the following:

(a)keep the EU declaration of conformity and the technical documentation at the disposal of the national market surveillance authorities for 10 years after the packaging has been placed on the market;

(b)cooperate with the national authorities, at their request, on any measures taken with regard to non-compliances of the packaging covered by the authorised representative's mandate;

(c)further to a reasoned request from a national authority, provide that authority with all the information and documentation necessary to demonstrate the conformity of packaging in a language or languages, which can be easily understood by that authority;

(d)further to a request from a competent national authority, make available relevant documents within 10 days of the receipt of such a request;

(e)terminate the mandate if the manufacturer acts contrary to its obligations under this Regulation.

Article 16 - Obligations of importers

1. Importers shall only place on the market packaging which is compliant with the requirements of Articles 5 to 11.

2. Before placing packaging on the market, importers shall ensure the following:

(a)the appropriate conformity assessment procedure, referred to in Article 33 has been carried out and the technical documentation, referred to in Annex VII and required under Articles 5 to 10, has been drawn up by the manufacturer;

(b)the packaging is labelled in accordance with Article 11,

(c)the packaging is accompanied by the required documents;

(d)the manufacturer has complied with the requirements set out in Article 13(5) and (6).

Where an importer considers or has reason to believe that packaging is not in conformity with the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11, the importer shall not place the packaging on the market until it has been brought into conformity.

3. Importers shall indicate on the packaging their name and their registered trade name or registered trade mark as well as the postal address, and, where available, the electronic means of communication, where they can be contacted. Where that is not possible, the required information shall be provided via the data carrier or in a document accompanying the packaged product. The contact details shall be clear, understandable and legible.

4. Importers shall ensure that information provided in accordance with paragraph 3 is clear, understandable and legible, and does not replace, obscure or can be confused with information required by other Union legislation on the labelling of the packaged product.

5. Importers shall ensure that, while the packaging is under their responsibility, storage or transport conditions do not jeopardise its compliance with the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11.

6. Importers who consider or have reason to believe that packaging, which they have placed on the market, is not in conformity with the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11, shall immediately take the corrective measures necessary to bring that packaging into conformity, to withdraw it or recall it, as appropriate.

7. Importers shall immediately inform the market surveillance authorities of the Member States in which they made the packaging available of the suspected non-compliance and of any corrective measures taken.

8. Importers shall, for 10 years after the packaging has been placed on the market, keep a copy of the EU declaration of conformity at the disposal of the market surveillance authorities and ensure that the technical documentation referred to in Annex VII and required under Articles 5 to 10 can be made available to those authorities, upon request.

9. Importers shall, further to a reasoned request from a national authority, provide that authority with all the information and documentation necessary to demonstrate the conformity of packaging, including technical documentation, with the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11, in a language or languages, which can be easily understood by that authority. That information and documentation shall be provided either in paper or electronic form. The relevant documents shall be made available within 10 days of receipt of the request from the national authority.

10. Importers shall cooperate with the competent national authority on any action taken to remedy any case of non-compliance with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11.

Article 17 - Obligations of distributors

1. When making packaging available on the market, distributors shall act with due care in relation to the requirements of this Regulation.

2. Before making packaging available on the market, distributors shall verify the following:

(a)the producer, that is subject to the obligations on extended producer responsibility for the packaging is registered in the register of producers referred to in Article 40;

(b)the packaging is labelled in accordance with Article 11;

(c)the manufacturer and the importer have complied with the requirements set out in Article 13(5) and (6) and Article 16(3) respectively.

3. Where a distributor, before making packaging available on the market, considers or has reason to believe that the packaging is not in conformity with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 or that the manufacturer is not complying with those applicable requirements, the distributor shall not make the packaging available on the market until it has been brought into conformity or until the manufacturer complies.

Distributors shall ensure that, while the packaging is under their responsibility, storage or transport conditions do not jeopardise its compliance with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11.

4. Distributors who consider or have reason to believe that packaging, which they have made available on the market with the packaged product, is not in conformity with the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 shall make sure that the corrective measures necessary to bring that packaging into conformity, to withdraw it or recall it, as appropriate, are taken.

Distributors shall immediately inform the market surveillance authorities of the Member States in which they made the packaging available of the suspected non-compliance and of any corrective measures taken.

5. Distributors shall, further to a reasoned request from a national authority, provide that authority with all the information and documentation to which they have access and that is relevant for demonstrating the conformity of a packaging with the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 in a language or languages, which can be easily understood by that authority. That information and documentation shall be provided in paper or electronic form.

Distributors shall cooperate with the national authority on any action taken to remedy any case of non-compliance with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11.

Article 18 - Obligations of fulfilment service providers

Fulfilment service providers shall ensure that for packaging that they handle, the conditions during warehousing, handling and packing, addressing or dispatching, do not jeopardise the packaging’s compliance with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11.

Article 19 - Case in which obligations of manufacturers apply to importers and distributors

An importer or a distributor shall be considered a manufacturer for the purposes of this Regulation and shall be subject to the obligations of the manufacturer under Article 14, where they place packaging on the market under their own name or trademark or modify packaging already placed on the market in a way that may affect compliance with the relevant requirements of this Regulation.

Article 20 - Identification of economic operators

1. Economic operators shall, upon request, provide information to the market surveillance authorities on the following:

(a)the identity of any economic operator that has supplied them with packaging;

(b)the identity of any economic operator to which they have supplied packaging.

2. Economic operators shall be able to provide the information referred to in paragraph 1 for 10 years after they have been supplied with the packaging and for 10 years after they have supplied the packaging.

Article 21 - Obligation related to excessive packaging

1. Economic operators who supply products to a final distributor or an end user in grouped packaging, transport packaging or e-commerce packaging, shall ensure that the empty space ratio is maximum 40 %.

2. For the purpose of this calculation:

(a)empty space shall mean the difference between the total volume of grouped packaging, transport packaging or e-commerce packaging and the volume of sales packaging contained therein;

(b)empty space ratio shall mean the ratio of the empty space as defined in point (a) of this paragraph and the total volume of the grouped packaging, transport packaging or e-commerce packaging.

Space filled by filling materials such as paper cuttings, air cushions, bubble wraps, sponge fillers, foam fillers, wood wool, polystyrene or Styrofoam chips, shall be considered as empty space.

3. Economic operators using sales packaging as e-commerce packaging shall be exempted from the obligation laid down in paragraph 1. They shall nevertheless ensure that such sales packaging complies with the requirements in Article 9.

Article 22 - Restrictions on use of certain packaging formats

1. Economic operators shall not place on the market packaging in the formats and for the purposes listed in Annex V.

2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1, economic operators shall not place on the market packaging in the formats and for the purposes listed in point 3 of Annex V as of 1 January 2030.

3. Member States may exempt economic operators from point 3 of Annex V if they comply with the definition of micro-company in accordance with rules set out in the Commission Recommendation 2003/361, as applicable on [OP: Please insert the date = the date of entry into force of this Regulation], and where it is not technically feasible not to use packaging or to obtain access to infrastructure that is necessary for the functioning of a reuse system.

4. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 58 to amend Annex V in order to adapt it to technical and scientific progress with the objective to reducing packaging waste. When adopting those delegated acts, the Commission shall consider the potential of the restrictions on the use of specific packaging formats to reduce the packaging waste generated while ensuring an overall positive environmental impact, and shall take into account the availability of alternative packaging solutions that meet requirements set out in legislation applicable to contact sensitive packaging, as well as their capability to prevent microbiological contamination of the packaged product.

Article 23 - Obligations in relation to reusable packaging

1. Economic operators who place reusable packaging on the market shall ensure that a system for re-use of such packaging is in place, which meets the requirements laid down in Article 24 and Annex VI.

2. The description of the system’s compliance with those requirements shall be drawn up as part of the technical documentation on reusable packaging to be provided pursuant to Article 10(2). For that purpose, the manufacturer shall request the relevant written confirmations from system participants set out in Annex VI.

Article 24 - Obligation related to systems for re-use

1. Economic operators making use of reusable packaging shall participate in one or more systems for re-use and shall ensure that the systems for re-use, which the reusable packaging is part of, comply with the requirements laid down in Part A of Annex VI.

2. Economic operators making use of reusable packaging shall recondition such packaging in compliance with Part B of Annex VI, prior to offering it again for use by end users.

Article 25 - Obligations related to refill

1. Where economic operators offer the possibility to purchase products through refill, they shall inform end users of the following:

(a)the types of containers that may be used to purchase the products on offer through refill;

(b)the hygiene standards for refill, 

(c)the responsibility of the end user in relation to the health and safety regarding the use of the containers referred to in point (a).

This information shall be regularly updated and either clearly displayed on the premises or otherwise provided to end users.

2. Economic operators enabling refill shall ensure that refill stations comply with the requirements laid down in Part C of Annex VI and with any requirements set in other Union legislation for the sale of products through refill.

3. Economic operators enabling refill shall ensure that packaging offered to the end users at the refill stations is not provided free of charge or is provided as a part of a deposit and return system. 

4. Economic operators may refuse to refill a container provided by the end user, if the end user does not abide with the requirements communicated by the economic operator in accordance with paragraph 1. 

Article 26 - Re-use and refill targets

1. From 1 January 2030, economic operators making large household appliances listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/19/EU available on the market for the first time within the territory of a Member State shall ensure that 90 % of those products are made available in reusable transport packaging within a system for re-use.

2. The final distributor making available on the market within the territory of a Member State in sales packaging cold or hot beverages filled into a container at the point of sale for take-away shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 20 % of those beverages are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 80 % of those beverages are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill.

3. A final distributor that is conducting its business activity in the HORECA sector and that is making available on the market within the territory of a Member State in sales packaging take-away ready-prepared food, intended for immediate consumption without the need of any further preparation, and typically consumed from the receptacle, shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 10 % of those products are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 40 % of those products are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill.

4. The manufacturer and the final distributor making available on the market within the territory of a Member State in sales packaging alcoholic beverages in the form of beer, carbonated alcoholic beverages, fermented beverages other than wine, aromatised wine products and fruit wine, products based on spirit drinks, wine or other fermented beverages mixed with beverages, soda, cider or juice, shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 10 % of those products are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 25 % of those products are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill.

5. The manufacturer and the final distributor making available on the market within the territory of a Member State in sales packaging alcoholic beverages in the form of wine, with the exception of sparkling wine, shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 5 % of those products are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 15 % of those products are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill.

6. The manufacturer and the final distributor making available on the market within the territory of a Member State in sales packaging non-alcoholic beverages in the form of water, water with added sugar, water with other sweetening matter, flavoured water, soft drinks, soda lemonade, iced tea and similar beverages which are immediately ready to drink, pure juice, juice or must of fruits or vegetables and smoothies without milk and non-alcoholic beverages containing milk fat, shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 10 % of those products are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 25 % of those products are made available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or by enabling refill.

7. Economic operators using transport packaging in the form of pallets, plastic crates, foldable plastic boxes, pails and drums for the conveyance or packaging of products in conditions other than provided for under paragraphs 12 and 13 shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 30 % of such packaging used is reusable packaging within a system for re-use;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 90 % of such packaging used is reusable packaging within a system for re-use.

8. Economic operators using transport packaging for the transport and delivery of non-food items made available on the market for the first time via e-commerce shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 10 % of such packaging used is reusable packaging within a system for re-use;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 50 % of such packaging used is reusable packaging within a system for re-use;

9. Economic operators using transport packaging in the form of pallet wrappings and straps for stabilization and protection of products put on pallets during transport shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 10 % of such packaging used is reusable packaging within a system for re-use;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 30 % of such packaging used for transport is reusable packaging within a system for re-use;

10. Economic operators using grouped packaging in the form of boxes, excluding cardboard, used outside of sales packaging to group a certain number of products to create a stock-keeping unit shall ensure that:

(a)from 1 January 2030, 10 % of such packaging used is reusable packaging within a system for re-use;

(b)from 1 January 2040, 25 % of such packaging they used is reusable packaging within a system for re-use.

11. Targets laid down in paragraphs 1 to 10 shall be calculated for the period of a calendar year.

12. Transport packaging used by an economic operator shall be reusable where it is used for transporting products:

(a)between different sites, on which the operator performs its activity; or

(b)between any of the sites on which the operator performs its activity and the sites of any other linked enterprise or partner enterprise, as defined in Article 3 of the Annex to Commission Recommendation 2003/361, as applicable on [OP: Please insert the date = the date of entry into force of this Regulation].

This obligation applies to pallets, boxes, excluding cardboard, trays, plastic crates, intermediate bulk containers, drums and canisters, of all sizes and materials, including flexible formats.

13. Economic operators delivering products to another economic operator within the same Member State shall use only reusable transport packaging for the purpose of the transportation of such products.

This obligation applies to pallets, boxes, excluding cardboard, plastic crates intermediate bulk containers, and drums, of all sizes and materials, including flexible formats.

14. Economic operators shall be exempted from the obligation to meet the targets in paragraphs 2 to 10 if, during a calendar year, they:

(a)placed not more than 1000 kg of packaging on the market; or

(b)complied with the definition of micro-company in accordance with rules set out in the Commission Recommendation 2003/361, as applicable on [OP: Please insert the date = the date of entry into force of this Regulation].

15. Economic operators shall be exempted from the obligation to meet the targets in paragraphs 2 to 6 if, during a calendar year, they have a sales area of not more than 100 m2, including also all storage and dispatch areas.

16. The Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 58 to supplement this Regulation in order to establish:

(a)targets for other products than those covered by paragraphs 1 to 6 of this Article and other packaging formats than those in paragraphs 7 to 10, based on the positive experiences with measures taken by Member States under Article 45(2),

(b)exemptions for economic operators additional to those listed in points (a) to (c) of paragraph 14 of this Article,

(c)exemptions for specific packaging formats covered by the targets laid down in paragraphs 2 to 6 of this Article in case of hygiene, food safety or environmental issues preventing the achievement of those targets. 

17. By [OP: Please insert the date = 8 years after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], the Commission shall review the situation regarding reuse of packaging and, on this basis, assess the appropriateness of establishing measures, reviewing the targets laid down in this Article, and setting new targets for the reuse and refill of packaging, and where necessary present a legislative proposal.

Article 27 - Rules on the calculation of the attainment of the re-use and refill targets 

1. For the purpose of demonstrating the attainment of the targets laid down in Article 26(1), the economic operator making large household appliances listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/19/EU available on the market for the first time within the territory of a Member State shall calculate the following:

(a)the number of units of sales of those appliances in reusable packaging within a system for re-use made available on the market for the first time within the territory of a Member State in a calendar year; 

(b)the number of units of sales of those appliances in packaging other than reusable packaging as referred to in point (a) made available on the market for the first time within the territory of a Member State in a calendar year.

2. For the purpose of demonstrating the attainment of the targets laid down in Article 26(2) to (6), the final distributor, or manufacturer, as appropriate, making available on the market such products within the territory of a Member State shall calculate, for each target separately, the following:

(a)the number of units of sales of beverages and food in reusable packaging within a system for re-use made available on the market within the territory of a Member State in a calendar year; 

(b)the number of units of sales of beverages and food made available on the market within the territory of a Member State in a calendar year through refill;

(c)the number of units of sales of beverages and food made available on the market within the territory of a Member State by other means than those referred to in points (a) and (b) in a calendar year.

3. For the purpose of demonstrating the attainment of the targets laid down in Article 26(7) to (10), the economic operator using such packaging shall calculate, for each target separately, the following:

(a)the number of equivalent units of each of the packaging formats listed in Article 26(7) to (10) constituting reusable packaging within a system for re-use they used in a calendar year;

(b)the number of equivalent units of each of the packaging formats listed in Article 26(7) to (10), other than those indicated in point (a), that they used in a calendar year.

4. By 31 December 2028, the Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing detailed calculation rules and methodology regarding the targets set out in Article 26.

The implementing act shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

Article 28 - Reporting to the competent authorities on re-use and refill targets

1. The economic operators referred to in Article 26(1) to (10) shall report to the competent authority, referred to in Article 35 of this Regulation, data concerning the attainment of the targets laid down in Article 26 for each calendar year.

2. The report referred to in paragraph 1 shall be submitted within six months after the end of the reporting year for which the data are collected.

3. The first reporting period shall concern the calendar year starting on 1 January 2030.

4. The competent authorities shall establish electronic systems through which data shall be reported to them and specify the formats to be used.

5. Competent authorities may request any additional information necessary to ensure the reliability of the data reported.

6. Member States shall make public the results of the reports referred to in paragraph 1.

Chapter V
Plastic carrier bags

Article 29 - Plastic carrier bags

1. Member States shall take measures to achieve a sustained reduction in the consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags on their territory.

A sustained reduction is achieved if the annual consumption does not exceed 40 lightweight plastic carrier bags per person, or the equivalent target in weight, by 31 December 2025, and subsequently by 31 December in each year thereafter.

2. Measures to be taken by Member States to meet the target set out in paragraph 1 may vary depending on the environmental impact of lightweight plastic carrier bags when they are manufactured, recycled or disposed of, and their composting properties, durability or specific intended use. Such measures may, by way of derogation from Article 4, include marketing restrictions, provided that they are proportionate and non-discriminatory.

3. Member States may take measures, such as economic instruments and national reduction targets, as regards any kind of plastic carrier bags, regardless of their wall thickness, in accordance with the obligations arising from the Treaty.

4. Member States may exclude very lightweight plastic carrier bags, which are required for hygiene purposes or provided as sales packaging for loose food to prevent food wastage from the obligations set out in paragraph 1.


Chapter VI
Conformity of packaging

Article 30 - Test, measurement and calculation methods

For the purposes of compliance and verification of compliance of packaging with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 and 24 of this Regulation, tests, measurements and calculations shall be made using reliable, accurate and reproducible methods, which take into account the generally recognised state-of-the art methods, and whose results are deemed to be of low uncertainty.

Article 31 - Presumption of conformity

1. Tests, measurements or calculation methods referred to in Article 30 which are in conformity with harmonised standards or parts thereof, the references of which have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union, shall be presumed to be in conformity with the requirements covered by those standards or parts thereof set out in that Article.

2. Packaging which is in conformity with harmonised standards or parts thereof, the references of which have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union, shall be presumed to be in conformity with the requirements, or parts thereof, covered by those standards set out in Articles 5 to 11 and 24.

Article 32 - Common technical specifications

1. Packaging which is in conformity with common technical specifications referred to in paragraph 2, or parts thereof, shall be presumed to be in conformity with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 and 24 to the extent that those requirements are covered by those common technical specifications or parts thereof.

2. The Commission may, by means of implementing acts, establish common technical specifications for the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 and Article 24 where the following conditions are fulfilled:

(a)there is no harmonised standard covering the relevant requirements the reference of which is published in the Official Journal of the European Union or the standard does not satisfy the requirements it aims to cover;

(b)the Commission has requested, pursuant to Article 10(1) of Regulation 1025/2012, one or more European standardisation organisations to draft or to revise a harmonised standard for the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 and Article 24 and either of the following conditions are fulfilled:

(i) the request has not been accepted by any of the European standardisation organisations to which the request was addressed;

(ii) the request has been accepted by at least one of the European standardisation organisations to which the request was addressed, but the standards requested:

–are not adopted within the deadline set in the request;

–do not comply with the request;

–are not fully in line with the requirements they aim to cover.

Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

3. When references of a harmonised standard are published in the Official Journal of the European Union, the Commission shall assess whether implementing acts referred to in paragraph 2, or parts thereof which cover the same requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 and Article 24 need to be repealed or amended.

Article 33 - Conformity assessment procedure

Conformity assessment of packaging with the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 shall be carried out in accordance with the procedure set out in Annex VII.

Article 34 - EU declaration of conformity

1. The EU declaration of conformity shall state that the fulfilment of the requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11 has been demonstrated.

2. The EU declaration of conformity shall have the model structure set out in Annex VIII, shall contain the elements specified in the module set out in Annex VII and shall be continuously updated. It shall be translated into the language or languages required by the Member State in which the packaging is placed on the market or made available on the market.

3. Where packaging or the packaged product are subject to more than one Union act requiring an EU declaration of conformity, a single EU declaration of conformity shall be drawn up in respect of all such Union acts. That declaration shall state the Union acts concerned and their publication references. It may be a dossier made up of relevant individual EU declarations of conformity.

4. By drawing up the EU declaration of conformity, the manufacturer assumes responsibility for the compliance of the packaging with the requirements laid down in this Regulation.

Chapter VII 
Management of packaging and of packaging waste

SECTION 1 – General provisions

Article 35 - Competent authority

1. Member States shall designate one or more competent authorities responsible for implementation and enforcement of the obligations set out in this Chapter and in Article 26(1) to (10), Article 27, Article 28 and Article 29.

2. Member States shall lay down the details of the organisation and operation of the competent authority or competent authorities, including administrative and procedural rules governing:

(a)the registration of producers in accordance with Article 39;

(b)the organisation and monitoring of reporting requirements under Article 39(7);

(c)the oversight of the implementation of the extended producer responsibility obligations in accordance with Article 40;

(d)the making available of information in accordance with Article 50.

3. By [OP: Please insert the date = 3 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], Member States shall notify the Commission of the names and addresses of the competent authorities designated pursuant to paragraph 1. Member States shall inform the Commission without undue delay of any changes to the names or addresses of those competent authorities.

Article 36 - Early warning report

1. The Commission shall, in cooperation with the European Environment Agency, draw up reports on the progress towards the attainment of the targets laid down in Articles 38 and 46 at the latest three years before each of the deadlines laid down in those Articles.

2. The reports referred to in paragraph 1 shall include the following:

(a)an estimation of the attainment of the targets by each Member State;

(b)a list of Member States at risk of not attaining the targets within the respective deadlines, accompanied by appropriate recommendations for the Member States concerned;

(c)examples of best practices that are used throughout the Union which could provide guidance for progressing towards attaining the targets.

Article 37 - Waste management plans

Member States shall include in the waste management plans required pursuant to Article 28 of Directive 2008/98/EC a dedicated chapter on the management of packaging and packaging waste, including measures taken pursuant to Articles 38 and 45 of this Regulation.

SECTION 2 – Waste prevention

Article 38 - Prevention of packaging waste

1. Each Member State shall reduce the packaging waste generated per capita, as compared to the packaging waste generated per capita in 2018 as reported to the Commission in accordance with Decision 2005/270/EC, by

(a)5 % by 2030;

(b)10 % by 2035;

(c)15 % by 2040.

2. Member States shall implement measures aiming to prevent the generation of packaging waste and to minimise the environmental impact of packaging.

3. For the purpose of paragraph 2, Member States may use economic instruments and other measures to provide incentives for the application of the waste hierarchy, such as measures referred to in Annexes IV and IVa to Directive 2008/98/EC, or other appropriate instruments and measures, including incentives through extended producer responsibility schemes and requirements on producers or producer responsibility organisations to adopt waste prevention plans. Such measures shall be proportionate and non-discriminatory and be designed so as to avoid barriers to trade or distortions of competition in conformity with the Treaty.

4. By [OP: Please insert the date = 8 years after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], the Commission shall review the targets laid down in paragraph 1. To that end, the Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament and to the Council, accompanied, if the Commission finds it appropriate, by a legislative proposal.

5. A Member State may, while observing the general rules laid down in the Treaty and complying with the provisions set out in this Regulation, adopt provisions which go beyond the minimum requirements set out in this Article.

SECTION 3 - Register of producers and extended producer responsibility


Article 39 - Register of producers

1. Member States shall establish a register which shall serve to monitor compliance of producers of packaging with the requirements set out in this Chapter.

The register shall provide links to other national registers of producers’ websites to facilitate, in all Member States, registration of producers or appointed representatives for the extended producer responsibility.

2. Producers shall be obliged to register in the register referred to in paragraph 1. They shall, to that end, submit an application for registration in each Member State where they make packaging available on the market for the first time. Where a producer has appointed a producer responsibility organisation as referred to in Article 41(1), the obligations set out in this Article shall be met by that organisation, unless otherwise specified by the Member State in which the register is established. 

3. The obligations set out in this Article may, on the producer’s behalf, be met by an appointed representative for the extended producer responsibility.

4. Producers shall not make available packaging on the market, if they or, where applicable, their appointed representatives for the extended producer responsibility, are not registered in such Member State.

5. The application for registration shall include the information to be provided in accordance with Part A of Annex IX. Member States may request additional information or documents if it is necessary for an efficient use of the register.

6. Where an appointed representative for the extended producer responsibility represents more than one producer, it shall in addition to the information to be provided pursuant to paragraph 5, provide the name and the contact details of each one of the represented producers separately.

7. The producer or, where applicable, the producer’s appointed representative for the extended producer responsibility or the producer responsibility organisation shall report to the competent authority responsible for the register, by 1 March for each full preceding calendar year, the information set out in Part B of Annex IX.

8. The competent authority responsible for the register:

(a)shall receive applications for the registration of producers referred to in paragraph 2 via an electronic data-processing system, the details of which shall be made available on the competent authorities’ website;

(b)shall grant registrations and provide a registration number within a maximum period of twelve weeks from the moment that all the information laid down in paragraphs 5 and 6 is provided;

(c)may lay down modalities with respect to the requirements and process of registration without adding substantive requirements to the ones laid down in paragraphs 5 and 6;

(d)may charge cost-based and proportionate fees to producers for the processing of applications referred to in paragraph 2;

(e)shall receive and monitor the reporting referred to in paragraph 7.

9. The producer, or, where applicable, the producer’s appointed representative for the extended producer responsibility or the producer responsibility organisation shall without undue delay notify the competent authority of any changes to the information contained in the registration and of any permanent cessation of the making available on the market within the territory of the Member State of the packaging referred to in the registration. A producer shall be excluded from the register if the producer has ceased to exist.

10. Where the information in the register of producers is not publicly accessible, Member States shall ensure that providers of online platforms allowing consumers to conclude distance contracts with producers are granted access, free of charge, to the information in the register. 

11. The Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing the format for registration in, and reporting to, the register and specifying the granularity of data to be reported and the packaging types and material categories to be covered by the reporting. 

Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

Article 40 - Extended Producer Responsibility

1. Producers of packaging shall have extended producer responsibility under the schemes established in accordance with Articles 8 and 8a of Directive 2008/98/EC and with this Section for the packaging that they make available on the market for the first time within the territory of a Member State. 

2. A producer shall appoint, by written mandate, an appointed representative for the extended producer responsibility in each Member State other than the Member State where it is established where it makes packaging available for the first time.

3. Providers of online platforms, falling within the scope of Section 4 of Chapter 3 of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065, allowing consumers to conclude distance contracts with producers shall obtain the following information from producers offering packaging to consumers located in the Union:

(a)information on the registration of the producers referred to in Article 39 in the Member State where the consumer is located and the registration number(s) of the producer in that register;

(b)a self-certification by the producer committing to only offer packaging with regard to which the extended producer responsibility requirements referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this article are complied with in the Member State where the consumer is located.

Article 41 - Producer Responsibility Organisation

1. Producers may entrust a producer responsibility organisation authorised in accordance with Article 42 to carry out the extended producer responsibility obligations on their behalf. Member States may adopt measures to make the entrustment of a producer responsibility organisation mandatory.

2. Where, in the territory of a Member State, multiple producer responsibility organisations are authorised to fulfil extended producer responsibility obligations on behalf of producers, the Member State shall ensure that the producer responsibility organisations, when taken together, cover the whole territory of the Member State as regards the activities in accordance with Articles 42(3), 43 and 44. Member States shall entrust the competent authority, or appoint an independent third party, to oversee that producer responsibility organisations fulfil their obligations in a coordinated manner.

3. Producer responsibility organisations shall ensure the confidentiality of the data in its possession as regards proprietary information or information directly attributable to individual producers or their appointed representatives.

4. In addition to the information referred to in Article 8a(3), point (e), of Directive 2008/98/EC, producer responsibility organisations shall publish on their websites, at least every year and subject to commercial and industrial confidentiality, information on the amount of packaging made available on the market for the first time in the territory of a Member State and on the levels of recovered and recycled materials in relation to the amount of packaging for which they have been performing producer responsibility obligations.

Article 42 - Authorisation on fulfilment of extended producer responsibility

1. A producer, in the case of individual fulfilment of extended producer responsibility obligations, or the appointed producer responsibility organisations in the case of collective fulfilment of extended producer responsibility obligations, shall apply for an authorisation from the competent authority.

2. The Member State shall in its measures laying down administrative and procedural rules referred to in Article 35, establish the requirements and details of the authorisation procedure, which can be different for either individual or collective fulfilment of the extended producer responsibility, and the modalities for verifying compliance, including the information to be provided by producers or producers responsibility organisations to that end. The authorisation procedure shall include requirements on the verification of the arrangements put in place to ensure compliance with the requirements laid down in paragraph 3, and timeframes for this verification, which shall not exceed twelve weeks from the submission of a complete application dossier. This verification shall be done by an independent expert who shall issue a verification report on its result. The independent expert shall be independent of the competent authority and of the producer responsibility organisations or the producers authorised for individual fulfilment.

3. The measures to be established by Member States in accordance with paragraph 2 shall include measures ensuring that:

(a)the requirements laid down in of Article 8a(3), points (a) to (d), of Directive 2008/98/EC are complied with;

(b)the measures put in place by the producer or producer responsibility organisation are sufficient to allow for the return or collection in accordance with Article 43(1) and (2) and Article 44, free of charge, with a frequency proportionate to the area and volume covered, of packaging waste with regard to the amount and types of packaging made available on the market for the first time within the territory of a Member State by that producer or producers on whose behalf the producer responsibility organisation acts;

(c)the necessary arrangements, including preliminary arrangements, to that end are in place with distributors, public authorities or third parties carrying out waste management on their behalf;

(d)the necessary sorting and recycling capacity is available to ensure that packaging waste collected is subsequently subject to preliminary treatment and recycling;

(e)the requirement laid down in paragraph 6 is complied with;

4. The producer or the producer responsibility organisations shall notify the competent authority without undue delay of any changes to the information contained in the application for an authorisation, of any changes that concern the terms of the authorisation or of the permanent cessation of operations.

5. The competent authority may decide to revoke the relevant authorisation in particular if the producer or producer responsibility organisation no longer fulfils the requirements with regard to the organisation of the treatment of packaging waste or fails in relation to reporting to the competent authority or in relation to the notification of any changes that concern the terms of the authorisation, or has ceased operations.

6. A producer, in the case of individual fulfilment of extended producer responsibility obligations, and producer responsibility organisations appointed in the case of collective fulfilment of extended producer responsibility, shall provide an adequate guarantee intended to cover the costs related to waste management operations due by the producer, or the producer responsibility organisation, in case of non compliance with the extended producer responsibility obligations, including in case of permanent cessation of its operations or insolvency. That guarantee may take the form of a recycling insurance or a blocked bank account or participation by the prodcuer in the producer responsibility organisation. Member States may specify additional requirements on this guarantee.

SECTION 4 - Return, collection, deposit return systems


Article 43 - Return and collection systems

1. Member States shall ensure that systems are set up to provide for the return and separate collection of all packaging waste from the end users in order to ensure that it is treated in accordance with Articles 4 and 13 of Directive 2008/98/EC, and to facilitate its preparation for re-use and high quality recycling.

2. Member States may allow derogations from paragraph 1 provided that collecting packaging or fractions of packaging waste together or together with other waste does not affect the potential of such packaging or fractions of packaging waste to undergo preparing for re-use, recycling or other recovery operations in accordance with Articles 4 and 13 of Directive 2008/98/EC and generates output from those operations which is of comparable quality to that achieved through separate collection. 

3. The systems referred to in paragraph 1 shall: 

(a)be open to the participation of the economic operators of the sectors concerned, the competent public authorities and third parties carrying out waste management on their behalf; 

(b)cover the whole territory of the Member State and all packaging waste from all types of packaging and activities, and take into account population size, expected volume and composition of packaging waste, as well as accessibility and vicinity to end users. They shall include the separate collection in public spaces, business premises and residential areas;

(c)be open to imported products under non-discriminatory conditions with regard to the detailed arrangements and any tariffs imposed for access to the systems and any other conditions, and be designed so as to avoid barriers to trade or distortions of competition in conformity with the Treaty.

4. Member States shall take measures to promote recycling of packaging waste which meets the quality standards for the use of recycled materials in the relevant sectors.

5. By way of derogation from the separate waste collection obligation in paragraph 3, certain types of packaging waste may be collected together where such collection does not affect their potential to undergo recycling operations and results in output from those operations which is of comparable quality to that achieved through separate collection.

Article 44 - Deposit and return systems

1. By 1 January 2029, Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that deposit and return systems are set up for:

(a)single use plastic beverage bottles with the capacity of up to three litres; and

(b)single use metal beverage containers with a capacity of up to three litres.

2. The obligation laid down in paragraph 1 does not apply to packaging for:

(a)wine, aromatised wine products, and spirit drinks;

(b)milk and milk products listed in Part XVI of Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013.

3. Without prejudice to paragraph 1 of this Article, a Member State will be exempted from the obligation under paragraph 1 under the following conditions:

(a)the rate of separate collection as required under Article 43(3) and (4) of the respective packaging format as reported to the Commission under Article 50(1) point (c) is above 90 % by weight of such packaging placed on the market on the territory of that Member State in the calendar years 2026 and 2027. Where such reporting has not yet been submitted to the Commission, the Member State shall provide a reasoned justification, based on validated national data, and description of the implemented measures, that the conditions for the exemption set out in this paragraph are fulfilled;

(b)at the latest 24 months before the deadline laid down in paragraph 1 of this Article, the Member State notifies the Commission of its request for exemption and submits an implementation plan showing a strategy with concrete actions, including timeline that ensure the achievement of the 90 % separate collection rate by weight of the packaging referred to in paragraph 1.

4. Within three months of receipt of the implementation plan submitted pursuant to paragraph 3, point (b), the Commission may request a Member State to revise that plan, if it considers that it does not comply with the requirements set out in point (c) of that paragraph. The Member State concerned shall submit a revised plan within 3 months of receipt of the Commission’s request.

5. If the separate collection rate of the packaging referred to in paragraph 1 in a Member State concerned decreases and remains below 90 % by weight of a given packaging format placed on the market for three consecutive calendar years, the Commission shall notify the Member State concerned that the exemption no longer applies. The deposit and return system shall be established by 1 January in the second calendar year following the year in which the Commission notified the Member State concerned that the exemption no longer applies.

6. Member States shall endeavour to establish and maintain deposit and return systems in particular for single use glass beverage bottles, beverage cartons and for reusable packaging. Member States shall endeavour to ensure that deposit and return systems for single-use packaging formats, in particular for single use glass beverage bottles, are equally available for reusable packaging where technically and economically feasible. 

7. A Member State may, while observing the general rules laid down in the Treaty and complying with the provisions set out in this Regulation, adopt provisions which go beyond the minimum requirements set out in this Article.

8. Member States shall ensure that return points and opportunities for reusable packaging with a similar purpose and format to those established under paragraph 1 are not less convenient for end users than opportunities to return single-use packaging to a deposit and return system.

9. By 1 January 2028, Member States shall ensure that all deposit and return systems, including those established under paragraph 5, meet the minimum criteria listed in Annex X.

SECTION 5 - Re-use and refill


Article 45 - Re-use and refill

1. Member States shall take measures to encourage the set-up of systems for re-use of packaging and systems for refill in an environmentally sound manner. Those systems shall comply with the requirements laid down in Articles 24 and 25 and Annex VI of this Regulation and shall not compromise food hygiene or the safety of consumers.

2. The measures referred to in paragraph 1 may include:

(a)the use of deposit and return systems compliant with minimum requirements in Annex X for reusable packaging and for other packaging formats that those referred to in Article 44(1),

(b)the use of economic incentives, including requirements to final distributors, to charge the use of single-use packaging or to inform consumers about the cost of such packaging at the point of sale,

(c)requirements on final distributors to make available in reusable packaging within a system for re-use or through refill a certain percentage of other products than those covered by targets laid down in Article 26 on the condition that this does not lead to distortions on the internal market or trade barriers for products from other Member States.

SECTION 6 - Recycling targets and promotion of recycling


Article 46 - Recycling targets and promotion of recycling

1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to attain the following recycling targets covering the whole of their territory:

(a)by 31 December 2025, a minimum of 65 % by weight of all packaging waste generated;

(b)by 31 December 2025, the following minimum percentages by weight of the following specific materials contained in packaging waste generated:

(i)50 % of plastic;

(ii)25 % of wood;

(iii)70 % of ferrous metals;

(iv)50 % of aluminium;

(v)70 % of glass;

(vi)75 % of paper and cardboard;

(c)by 31 December 2030, a minimum of 70 % by weight of all packaging waste generated;

(d)by 31 December 2030, the following minimum percentages by weight of the following specific materials contained in packaging waste generated:

(i)55 % of plastic;

(ii)30 % of wood;

(iii)80 % of ferrous metals;

(iv)60 % of aluminium;

(v)75 % of glass;

(vi)85 % of paper and cardboard.

2. Without prejudice to paragraph 1, point (a), a Member State may postpone the deadlines set out in paragraph 1, points (b)(i) to (vi), by up to 5 years, under the following conditions:

(a)the derogation from the targets in the period of postponement is limited to a maximum of 15 percentage points from a single target or divided between two targets,

(b)as a result of the derogation from the targets in the period of postponement, the recycling rate for a single target is not reduced below 30 %,

(c)as a result of the derogation from the targets in the period of postponement, the recycling rate for a single target referred to in paragraph 1, points (b)(v) or (vi) of paragraph 1 is not reduced below 60 %, and

(d)at the latest 24 months before the respective deadline laid down in paragraph 1, point (b), of this Article, the Member State notifies the Commission of its intention to postpone the deadline and submits to the Commission an implementation plan in accordance with Annex XI to this Regulation, which may be combined with an implementation plan submitted pursuant to Article 11(3), point (b), of Directive 2008/98/EC.

3. Within three months of receipt of the implementation plan submitted pursuant to paragraph 2, point (d), the Commission may request a Member State to revise that plan if the Commission considers that the plan does not comply with the requirements set out in Annex XI. The Member State concerned shall submit a revised plan within 3 months of receipt of the Commission’s request.

4. By [OP: Please insert the date = 8 years after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], the Commission shall review the targets laid down in paragraph 1, points (c) and (d), of with a view to increasing them or setting further targets. To that end, the Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament and to the Council, accompanied, if the Commission finds it appropriate, by a legislative proposal.

5. Member States shall, where appropriate, encourage the use of materials obtained from recycled packaging waste for the manufacturing of packaging and other products by:

(a)improving market conditions for such materials;

(b)reviewing existing rules preventing the use of such materials.

6. A Member State may, while observing the general rules laid down in the Treaty and complying with the provisions set out in this Regulation, adopt provisions which go beyond the minimum requirements set out in this Article.

Article 47 - Rules on the calculation of the attainment of the recycling targets

1. The calculation whether the targets laid down in Article 46(1) have been attained shall be carried out in accordance with the rules laid down in this Article.

2. Member States shall calculate the weight of packaging waste generated in a given calendar year. The calculation of packaging waste generated in a Member State must be exhaustive. 

3. Member States shall calculate the weight of packaging waste recycled in a given calendar year. The weight of packaging waste recycled shall be calculated as the weight of packaging that has become waste which, having undergone all necessary checking, sorting and other preliminary operations to remove waste materials that are not targeted by the subsequent reprocessing and to ensure high-quality recycling, enters the recycling operation whereby waste materials are actually reprocessed into products, materials or substances.

4. Composite packaging and other packaging composed of more than one material shall be calculated and reported per material contained in the packaging. Member States may derogate from this requirement where a given material constitutes an insignificant part of the packaging unit, and in no case more than 5 % of the total mass of the packaging unit.

5. Packaging waste exported out of the Union shall be calculated as recycled by the Member State in which it was collected only if, in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006, the exporter can prove that the shipment of waste complies with the requirements of this Regulation and that the recycling of packaging waste outside the Union took place under conditions that are broadly equivalent to those prescribed by the relevant Union legislation.

6. For the purposes of paragraph 3, the weight of packaging waste recycled shall be measured when the waste enters the recycling operation.

By way of derogation from the first sub-paragraph of this Article, the weight of the packaging waste recycled may be measured at the output of any sorting operation provided that:

(a)such output waste is subsequently recycled;

(b)the weight of materials or substances that are removed by further operations preceding the recycling operation and are not subsequently recycled is not included in the weight of waste reported as recycled.

7. Member States shall establish an effective system of quality control and traceability of the packaging waste to ensure that the conditions laid down in paragraphs 2 and to 7 are met. That system may consist of electronic registries set up pursuant to Article 35(4) of Directive 2008/98/EC or technical specifications for the quality requirements of sorted waste. It may also consist of average loss rates for sorted waste for various waste types and waste management practices respectively, provided that reliable data cannot be otherwise obtained. Average loss rates shall be calculated on the basis of the calculation rules established in the delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 11a(10) of Directive 2008/98/EC.

8. The amount of biodegradable packaging waste that enters aerobic or anaerobic treatment may be counted as recycled where that treatment generates compost, digestate, or other output with a similar quantity of recycled content in relation to input, which is to be used as a recycled product, material or substance. Where the output is used on land, Member States may count it as recycled only if this use results in benefits to agriculture or ecological improvement.

9. The amount of packaging waste materials that have ceased to be waste as a result of a preparatory operation before being reprocessed may be counted as recycled provided that such materials are destined for subsequent reprocessing into products, materials or substances to be used for the original or other purposes. However, end-of-waste materials to be used as fuels or other means to generate energy, or to be incinerated, backfilled or landfilled, shall not be counted as recycled.

10. Member States may take into account the recycling of metals separated after incineration of waste in proportion to the share of the packaging waste incinerated provided that the recycled metals meet certain quality criteria laid down in Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/1004.

11. Packaging waste sent to another Member State for the purposes of recycling in that other Member State may only be counted as recycled by the Member State in which that packaging waste was collected.

12. Packaging waste exported from the Union shall be counted as recycled by the Member State in which it was collected only if the requirements set out in paragraph 3 are met and if, in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006, the exporter can prove that the shipment of waste complies with the requirements of that Regulation, including that the treatment of packaging waste outside the Union took place under conditions that are broadly equivalent to the requirements of the relevant Union environmental law.

Article 48 - Rules on the calculation of the attainment of the recycling targets by including re-use

1. A Member State may decide to attain an adjusted level of the targets referred to Article 46(1) for a given year by taking into account the average share, in the preceding three years, of reusable sales packaging placed on the market for the first time and re-used as part of a system for re-use of packaging.

The adjusted level shall be calculated by subtracting:

(a)from the targets laid down in Article 46(1), points (a) and (c), the share of the reusable sales packaging referred to in the first subparagraph in all sales packaging placed on the market, and

(b)from the targets laid down in Article 46(1), points (b) and (d), the share of the reusable sales packaging referred to in the first subparagraph, composed of the respective packaging material, in all sales packaging composed of that material placed on the market.

No more than five percentage points of the average share of reusable sales packaging shall be taken into account for the calculation of the respective adjusted target level.

2. A Member State may take into account the amounts of wooden packaging that is repaired for re-use in the calculation of the targets laid down in Article 46(1), point (a), Article 46(1), point (b)(ii), Article 46(1), point (c), and Article 46(1), point (d)(ii). 

SECTION 7 - Information and reporting


Article 49 - Information on prevention and management of packaging waste

1. In addition to the information referred to in Article 8a(2) of Directive 2008/98/EC and in Article 11 of this Regulation, producers or, where appointed in accordance with Article 41(1), producer responsibility organisations shall make available to end-users, in particular consumers, the following information regarding the prevention and management of packaging waste with respect to the packaging that the producers supply within the territory of a Member State:

(a)the role of end-users in contributing to waste prevention, including any best practices;

(b)re-use arrangements available for packaging;

(c)the role of end-users in contributing to the separate collection of packaging waste materials, including handling of packaging containing hazardous products or waste;

(d)the meaning of the labels and symbols affixed, marked or printed on packaging in accordance with Article 11 or present in the documents accompanying the packaged product;

(e)the impact on the environment and on human health or safety of persons of inappropriate discarding of packaging waste, such as littering or discarding in mixed municipal waste, and the adverse environmental impact of single-use packaging, in particular plastic carrier bags;

(f)the composting properties and appropriate waste management options for compostable packaging.

2. The information referred to in paragraph 1 shall be up to date and provided by means of:

(a)a website or other means of electronic communication;

(b)public information;

(c)education programmes and campaigns;

(d)signposting in a language, or languages, which can be easily understood by users and consumers.

3. Where information is provided publicly, the confidentiality of commercially sensitive information in conformity with the relevant Union and national law shall be preserved.

Article 50 - Reporting to the Commission

1. Member States shall report to the Commission for each calendar year the following data:

(a)data on the implementation of Article 46(1), points (a) to (d), and on reusable packaging,

(b)the annual consumption of very lightweight plastic carrier bags, lightweight plastic carrier bags and thick plastic carrier bags per person, separately for each category; 

(c)the separate collection rate of packaging covered by the obligation to establish deposit and return systems set out in Article 44(1),

Member States may provide data on the annual consumption of very thick plastic carrier bags per person.

2. Member States shall report for each packaging material and type as listed in Table 1 of Annex IX for each calendar year data on:

(a)the amounts of packaging placed on the market for each packaging type and material as listed in Table 1 of Annex IX;

(b)amounts of separately collected packaging waste for each packaging material as listed in Table 1 in the Annex IX;

(c)the recycling rates;

(d)installed capacities for sorting and recycling for each packaging type and material as listed in Table 1 of Annex II.

3. The first reporting period shall concern: 

(a)with respect to obligations laid down in paragraph 1, points a and b, and paragraph 2, the first full calendar year after the entry into force of the implementing act that establishes the format for reporting to the Commission, in accordance with paragraph 7;

(b)with respect to obligation laid down in paragraph 1, point c, the calendar year starting from 1 January 2028.

4. Member States shall make the data referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 available electronically within 19 months after the end of the reporting year for which the data are collected. They shall report the data electronically within 19 months of the end of the reporting year for which the data are collected in the format established by the Commission in accordance with paragraph 7.

5. The data made available by Member States in accordance with this Article shall be accompanied by a quality check report. That quality check report shall be presented in the format established by the Commission in accordance with paragraph 7.

6. The data made available by Member States in accordance with this Article shall be accompanied by a report on the measures taken pursuant to Article 47(5) and (8), including detailed information about the average loss rates where applicable.

7. The Commission shall, by [OP: Please insert the date = 24 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], adopt implementing acts establishing:

(a)rules for the calculation, verification and reporting of data in accordance with paragraphs 1, points (a) and (c), and 2, including the methodology for determining packaging waste generated, and the format for the reporting; 

(b)the methodology for the calculation of the annual consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags per person referred to in paragraph 1, point (b), and the format for their reporting;

Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

8. Member States shall require that all economic operators making packaging available in the Member States provide competent authorities with accurate and reliable data allowing Member States to fulfil their reporting obligations under this Article, taking into account, where relevant, particular problems facing small and medium-sized enterprises with regard to the provision of detailed data.

Article 51 - Packaging databases

1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that databases on packaging and packaging waste are established, where not already in place, on a harmonised basis.

2. The databases referred to in paragraph 1 shall include the following:

(a)information on the magnitude, characteristics and evolution of the packaging and packaging waste flows at the level of individual Member States;

(b)information on the toxicity or danger of packaging materials and components used for their manufacture;

(c)the data listed in Annex XII. 


Chapter VIII
Safeguard procedures

Article 52 - Procedure for dealing with packaging presenting a risk at national level

1. Without prejudice to Article 19 of the Regulation (EU) 2019/1020, where the market surveillance authorities of one Member State have sufficient reason to believe that packaging covered by this Regulation presents a risk to the environment or human health, they shall carry out an evaluation in relation to the packaging concerned covering all requirements laid down in this Regulation that are relvant to the risk. The relevant economic operators shall cooperate as necessary with the market surveillance authorities.

Where, in the course of that evaluation, the market surveillance authorities find that the packaging does not comply with the requirements laid down in this Regulation, they shall without delay require the relevant economic operator to take appropriate and proportionate corrective measures, within a reasonable period prescribed by the market surveillance authorities which is commensurate with the nature and, where relevant the degree of the non-compliance, to bring the packaging in compliance with those requirements.

2. By derogation from paragraph 1, in case of risk to human health concerns relating to contact sensitive packaging subject to specific legislation aimed at protecting human health, the surveillance authorities shall not evaluate a risk to human or animal health originating from the packaging material, if transferred to the packaged content of the packaging material, but alert the authorities competent for controlling those risks. These authorities shall be the competent authorities referred to in Regulation (EU) 2017/625, Regulation (EU) 2017/745, Regulation (EU) 2017/746, Directive 2001/83/EC or Regulation (EU) 2019/6. 

3. Where the market surveillance authorities consider that non-compliance is not restricted to their national territory, they shall inform the Commission and the other Member States of the results of the evaluation and of the actions which they have required the economic operator to take.

4. The economic operator shall ensure that all appropriate corrective measures is taken in respect of all the concerned packaging that the economic operator has made available on the market throughout the Union.

5. Where the relevant economic operator does not take adequate corrective measures within the period referred to in paragraph1, second subparagraph, or the non-compliance persists, the market surveillance authorities shall take all appropriate provisional measures to prohibit the making available of the packaging on their national market, to withdraw the packaging from that market or to recall it.

The market surveillance authorities shall inform the Commission and the other Member States, without delay, of those measures.

6. The information to the Commission and the other Member States referred to in paragraph 4 shall be communicated through the information and communication system referred to in Article 34 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and shall include all available details, in particular the data necessary for the identification of the non-compliant packaging, the origin of the packaging, the nature of the non-compliance alleged and the risk involved, the nature and duration of the national measures taken and the arguments put forward by the relevant economic operator and, where applicable, the information referred to in Article 54(1). The market surveillance authorities shall also indicate whether the non-compliance is due to either of the following:

(a)failure of the packaging to meet the sustainability requirements set out in Articles 5 to 10 of this Regulation;

(b)shortcomings in the harmonised standards or common specifications referred to in Articles 31 and 32 of this Regulation.

7. Member States other than the Member State initiating the procedure shall without delay inform the Commission and the other Member States of any measures adopted and of any additional information at their disposal relating to the non-compliance of the packaging concerned, and, in the event of disagreement with the adopted national measure, of their objections.

8. Where, within three months of receipt of the information referred to in paragraph 4, no objection has been raised by either a Member State or the Commission in respect of a provisional measure taken by a Member State, that measure shall be deemed justified.

Provisional measures may provide for a period longer or shorter than three months in order to take account of the specificities of the requirements concerned.

9. Member States shall ensure that the packaging is withdrawn from their market or that other appropriate restrictive measures are taken without delay in respect of the packaging or the manufacturer concerned.

Article 53 - Union safeguard procedure

1. Where, on completion of the procedure set out in Article 52(3) and (4), objections are raised against a measure taken by a Member State, or where the Commission considers a national measure to be contrary to Union legislation, the Commission shall without delay enter into consultation with the Member States and the relevant economic operator or operators and shall evaluate the national measure. On the basis of the results of that evaluation, the Commission shall decide by means of an implementing act whether the national measure is justified or not.

That implementing act shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

2. The Commission shall address its decision to all Member States and shall without delay communicate it to them and the relevant economic operator or operators.

If the national measure is considered justified, all Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that the non-compliant packaging is withdrawn from their market, and shall inform the Commission accordingly.

If the national measure is considered unjustified, the Member State concerned shall withdraw that measure.

3. Where the national measure is considered justified and the non-compliance of the packaging is attributed to shortcomings in the harmonised standards referred to in Article 31 of this Regulation, the Commission shall apply the procedure provided for in Article 11 of Regulation (EU) No 1025/2012.

4. Where the national measure is considered justified and the non-compliance of the packaging is attributed to shortcomings in the common technical specifications referred to in Article 32, the Commission shall, without delay, amend or repeal the common technical specifications concerned.

Article 54 - Compliant packaging which presents a risk

1. Where, having carried out an evaluation under Article 52, a Member State finds that although packaging is in compliance with the applicable requirements set out in Articles 5 to 11, it presents a risk to the environment or human health, it shall without delay require the relevant economic operator to take all appropriate measures, within a reasonable period prescribed by the market surveillance authorities and commensurate with the nature and, where relevant, the degree of risk, to ensure that the packaging concerned, when placed on the market, no longer presents that risk, to withdraw the packaging from the market or to recall it.

2. By derogation from paragraph 1, in case of risk to human health concerns relating to contact sensitive packaging subject to specific legislation aimed at protecting human health, the surveillance authorities shall not evaluate a risk to human or animal health originating from the packaging material, if transferred to the packaged content of the packaging material, but alert the authorities competent for controlling those risks. These authorities shall be the competent authorities referred to in Regulation (EU) 2017/625, Regulation (EU) 2017/745, Regulation (EU) 2017/746, Directive 2001/83/EC or Regulation (EU) 2019/6.

3. The economic operator shall ensure that corrective measures are taken in respect of all the concerned packaging that the economic operator has made available on the market throughout the Union.

4. The Member State shall immediately inform the Commission and the other Member States of its findings and subsequent actions pursuant to paragraph 1. That information shall include all available details, in particular the data necessary for the identification of the packaging concerned, the origin and the supply chain of the packaging, the nature of the risk involved and the nature and duration of the national measures taken.

5. The Commission shall without delay enter into consultation with the Member States and the relevant economic operator or operators and shall evaluate the national measures taken. On the basis of the results of that evaluation, the Commission shall decide whether the national measure is justified or not and, where necessary, propose appropriate measures.

That implementing act shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 59(3).

On duly justified imperative grounds of urgency relating to the protection of the environment or human health, the Commission shall adopt an immediately applicable implementing act in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 58(4).

The Commission shall address its decision to all Member States and shall immediately communicate it to them and the relevant economic operator or operators.

Article 55 - Controls on packaging entering the Union market

1. Market surveillance authorities shall communicate without delay to the authorities designated pursuant to Article 25(1) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 the measures referred to in Article 52(4) of this Regulation where the non-compliance is not restricted to their national territory. This communication shall include all relevant information, in particular the details necessary for the identification of the non- compliant packaging to which the measures apply and, in case of packaged product, the product itself.

2. The communication of information referred to in paragraph 1 shall take place through entering the information in the relevant customs risk management environment.

3. The Commission shall develop an interconnection to automate the communication referred to in paragraph 1 from the information and communication system referred to in Article 52(5) to the environment referred to in paragraph 3. That interconnection shall start operating no later than two years from the date of the adoption of the implementing act referred to in paragraph 5.

4. The Commission is empowered to adopt implementing acts specifying the procedural rules and the details of the implementation arrangements for paragraph 4, including the functionalities, data elements and data processing, as well as the rules on the processing of personal data, confidentiality and controllership for the interconnection referred to in paragraph 4. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure pursuant to Article 59(3).

Article 56 - Formal non-compliance

1. Where a Member State makes one of the following findings, it shall require the relevant economic operator to put an end to the non-compliance concerned:

(a)the EU declaration of conformity has not been drawn up

(b)the EU declaration of conformity has not been drawn up correctly;

(c)the QR code or data carrier referred to in Article 11 do not provide access to the required information in accordance with that Article;

(d)the technical documentation referred to in Annex VII is not available, is not complete or contains errors;

(e)the information referred to in Article 13(6) or Article 16(3) is absent, false or incomplete;

(f)any other administrative requirement set out in Article 13 or Article 16 is not fulfilled;

(g)the requirements on restrictions on uses of certain packaging formats and on excessive packaging set out in Articles 21 and 22 are not complied with;

(h)in relation to reusable packaging, the requirements on the establishment, operation and participation in a system for re-use referred to in Article 24 are not fulfilled;

(i)in relation to refill, the information requirements set out in Article 25(1) and (2) are not fulfilled;

(j)the requirements on the refill stations set out in Article 25(3) are not fulfilled;

(k)the re-use and refill targets in Article 26 are not achieved.

2. Where the non-compliance referred to in paragraph 1, points (a) to (f), persists, the Member State concerned shall take all appropriate measures to prohibit the packaging being made available on the market or ensure that it is recalled or withdrawn from the market.

3. Where the non-compliance referred to in paragraph 1, points (g) to (k), persists, Member States shall apply the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of this Regulation which are laid down by the Member States in accordance with Article 62.

Chapter IX
Green public procurement

Article 57 - Green public procurement

1. Contracting authorities, as defined in Article 2(1) of Directive 2014/24/EU or Article 3(1) of Directive 2014/25/EU, or contracting entities, as defined in Article 4(1) of Directive 2014/25/EU, shall, when awarding any public contracts for packaging or packaged products or for services using packaging or packaged products in situations covered by those Directives, apply the green public procurement criteria to be developed in delegated acts adopted pursuant to paragraph 3.

2. The obligation set out in paragraph 1 shall apply to any procedure for procurement by contracting authorities or contracting entities for the awarding of public contracts for packaging or packaged products or for services using packaging or packaged products, which is initiated 12 months or later after the entry into force of the respective delegated act to be adopted pursuant to paragraph 3. 

3. The Commission shall, by [OP: please insert the date = 60 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 58 supplementing this Regulation by establishing minimum mandatory green public procurement criteria based on the requirements set out in Article 5 to 10 and on the following elements:

(a)the value and volume of public contracts awarded for packaging or packaged products or for the services or works using packaging or packaged products;

(b)the need to ensure sufficient demand for more environmentally sustainable packaging or packaged products;

(c)the economic feasibility for contracting authorities or contracting entities to buy more environmentally sustainable packaging or packaged products, without entailing disproportionate costs.

Those green public procurement criteria shall be developed in accordance with the principles contained in Directive 2014/24/EU and in Directive 2014/25/EU and with the principle that the packaging to be chosen on the basis of those criteria facilitates the achievement of the objectives of this Regulation.

Chapter X
Delegated powers and committee procedure

Article 58 - Exercise of the delegation

1. The power to adopt delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to the conditions laid down in this Article.

2. The power to adopt delegated acts referred to in Article 5(5), Article 6(4), Article 6(6), Article 7(9), Article 7(10), Article 7(11), Article 8(5), Article 22(4), Article 26(16) and Article 57(3) shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of ten years from date of entry into force of this Regulation. The Commission shall draw up a report in respect of the delegation of power no later than nine months before the end of the five-year period. The delegation of power shall be tacitly extended for periods of an identical duration, unless the European Parliament or the Council opposes such extension no later than 3 months before the end of each period.

3. The delegation of power referred to in Article 5(5), Article 6(4), Article 6(6), Article 7(9), Article 7(10), Article 7(11), Article 8(5), Article 22(4), Article 26(16) and Article 57(3) may be revoked at any time by the European Parliament or by the Council. A decision to revoke shall put an end to the delegation of the power specified in that decision. It shall take effect the day following the publication of the decision in the Official Journal of the European Union or at a later date specified therein. It shall not affect the validity of any delegated acts already in force.

4. Before adopting a delegated act, the Commission shall consult experts designated by each Member State in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making.

5. As soon as it adopts a delegated act, the Commission shall notify it simultaneously to the European Parliament and to the Council.

6. A delegated act adopted pursuant to Article 5(5), Article 6(4), Article 6(6), Article 7(9), Article 7(10), Article 7(11), Article 8(5), Article 22(4), Article 26(16) and Article 57(3) shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the European Parliament or the Council within a period of two months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council or if, before the expiry of that period, the European Parliament and the Council have both informed the Commission that they will not object. That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the European Parliament or of the Council.

Article 59 - Committee procedure

1. The Commission shall be assisted by the committee referred to in Article 39 of Directive 2008/98/EC. That committee shall be a committee within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011.

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

Where the committee delivers no opinion, the Commission shall not adopt the draft implementing act in respect of the implementing powers referred to in Article 72, and Article 5(4), third subparagraph, of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply.

4. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 8 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011, in conjunction with Article 5 of that Regulation, shall apply.

Chapter XI
Amendments

Article 60 - Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 

Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 is amended as follows:

(a)Annex I is amended as follows:

(i)point 9 is deleted;

(ii)the following points are added:

’X [OP Please insert the next consecutive number] Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parelimant and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment (OJ L 155, 12.6.2019, p.1);

‘X [OP Please insert the next consecutive number] Regulation (EU)…/… on packaging and packaging waste, amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and repealing Direcitve 94/62/EC [for the Publications Office to fill in the OJ publication details].

(b) in Annex II, point 8 is deleted.

Article 61 - Amendments to Directive (EU) 2019/904

Directive (EU) 2019/904 is amended as follows:

(a)in Article 6(5), point (b), is deleted;

(b)in Article 13(1), point (e), is deleted;

(c)Article 13(3) is be replaced by ‘3. The Commission shall review the data and information reported in accordance with this Article and publish a report on the results of its review. The report shall assess the organisation of the collection of the data and information, the sources of data and information and the methodology used in Member States as well as the completeness, reliability, timeliness and consistency of that data and information. The assessment may include specific recommendations for improvement. The report shall be drawn up after the first reporting of the data and information by the Member States and every four years thereafter.’


Chapter XII
Final provisions

Article 62 - Penalties

1. By [OP: Please insert the date = 24 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of this Regulation and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. Failure to comply with the requirements of Articles 21 to 26 shall be sanctioned by an administrative fine imposed on the relevant economic operator.

2. Where the legal system of the Member State does not provide for administrative fines, the first paragraph may be applied in such a manner that the fining procedure is initiated by the relevant authority and imposed by competent national courts, while ensuring that those legal remedies are effective and have equivalent effect to the administrative fines referred to in that paragraph. In any event, the fines imposed shall also be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.

3. Member States shall, by [OP: please insert the date = 1 year after the date of entry into force of this Regulation], notify the Commission of those rules and of those measures and shall notify it, without delay, of any subsequent amendment affecting them.

Article 63 - Evaluation

By [OP: Please insert the date = 8 years after the date of application of this Regulation], the Commission shall carry out an evaluation of this Regulation and of its contribution to the functioning of the internal market and the improvement of the environmental sustainability of packaging. The Commission shall present a report on the main findings of that evaluation to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee, and the Committee of the Regions. Member States shall provide the Commission with the information necessary for the preparation of that report.

Article 64 - Repeal and transitional provisions

Directive 94/62/EC is repealed with effect from [OP: Please insert the date = 12 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation].

However, the following transitional provisions shall apply:

(a)Article 8(2) of Directive 94/62/EC shall continue to apply until [OP: Please insert the date = 42 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation];

(b)Article 5(2) and (3), Article 6(1), points (d) and (e), and Article 6a of Directive 94/62/EC shall continue to apply until [OP: Please insert the date = the last day of the calendar year following 36 months after the data entry into force of this Regulation];

(c)Articles 12(3a), (3b), (3c) and (4) of Directive 94/62/EC shall continue to apply until [OP: Please insert the date = the last day of the calendar year following 36 months after the date entry into force of this Regulation], except as regards the transmission of data to the Commission which shall continue to apply until [OP: Please insert the date = the last day of the calendar year following 54 months after the date entry into force of this Regulation].

References to the repealed Directive shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in Annex XIII.

Article 65 - Entry into force and application

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

It shall apply from [OP: Please insert the date = 12 months after the date of entry into force of this Regulation].

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.