EPR under the PPWR: Extended producer responsibility, modulated fees, and registration in the LUCID Register

With the applicability of the PPWR (Regulation (EU) 2025/40) from 12 August 2026, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for packaging will also be fundamentally restructured. For German companies, this means: the existing Packaging Act (VerpackG) will be fully replaced by the Packaging Law Implementation Act (VerpackDG), the Central Packaging Register Authority (ZSVR) will receive expanded competences, and EPR will be extended to packaging that was previously not subject to system participation requirements.

Additionally, the PPWR introduces eco-modulated EPR fees, multi-country registration - where applicable through Authorized Representatives - and new obligations for online marketplaces. This article explains how EPR is structured under the PPWR, what changes for Producers on the German market under the VerpackDG, how eco-modulation will apply from 2028 and 2029, and which steps companies with complex supply chains should now prioritize.

What is EPR under the PPWR?

Extended Producer Responsibility is the financial and organizational counterpart to the product-related obligations of the PPWR. While conformity assessment, technical documentation and declaration of conformity govern how packaging must be constituted, EPR governs who bears the cost of its end-of-life - collection, sorting, recycling, and a proportionate share of awareness-raising measures and the labelling of collection containers.

The PPWR anchors EPR in Articles 40 to 45, drawing on the general minimum requirements already laid down in Article 8a of the Waste Framework Directive (Directive 2008/98/EC). Three elements are new under the PPWR: the mandatory maintenance of national producer registers based on harmonized criteria (Article 44), mandatory eco-modulation of EPR fees (Article 45(6) in conjunction with the recyclability performance classes in Article 6), and the extension to all types of packaging - including those previously outside the scope of system participation requirements.

Under the PPWR, EPR obligations fall on the Producer within the meaning of Article 3(15) - the economic operator who first makes a packaging item or packaged product available on the market in a given Member State. This is not necessarily the company that physically produces the packaging; it is the company that places the packaging on the market for the first time in a country. This distinction between Manufacturer (Article 3(13)) and Producer (Article 3(15)) is decisive for EPR.

From VerpackG to VerpackDG: the German legal framework from 12 August 2026

With the PPWR entering into force, the existing Packaging Act (VerpackG) will be repealed and replaced by the Packaging Law Implementation Act (VerpackDG), the draft of which was adopted by the Federal Cabinet on 11 February 2026 and which is scheduled to enter into force on 12 August 2026, in parallel with the PPWR. The VerpackDG is an implementing act that regulates national infrastructure, responsibilities, and enforcement mechanisms for the PPWR.

What remains from the VerpackG

The established German structures are carried forward: the dual systems, the LUCID Register as the central database, the deposit obligation for single-use beverage packaging, and the ZSVR as the national supervisory and registration authority. Licensing with a dual system (currently including Der Grüne Punkt, Interseroh+, Reclay, Zentek, Landbell, Noventiz, Veolia) also remains mandatory for packaging subject to system participation requirements.

What changes substantially

Three developments are particularly relevant for companies:

First: Authorization requirement for all Producers and organisations. Previously, German packaging law only knew authorisation procedures for dual systems. The VerpackDG extends this requirement to all organizations that discharge EPR obligations on behalf of multiple Producers - and to Producers that do not join such an organisation and therefore require individual authorization. The procedure with the ZSVR is intended to be automated and low-bureaucracy, but represents a new, standalone obligation category.

Second: EPR extension to packaging not previously subject to system participation requirements. Transport packaging, industrial packaging, and certain commercial packaging - including, for example, silicone cartridges, barrels, buckets, and industrial films - were previously not covered by the VerpackG's system participation obligations. The VerpackDG extends EPR obligations and fees to this packaging. Producers of packaging not subject to system participation requirements may choose between two take-back options: either establish an individual Producer take-back solution or join a Producer Responsibility Organisation (OfH) set up specifically for these packaging streams. For Producers in these categories, the authorization requirement for individual take-back solutions begins in 2028; the OfH itself must have completed its authorisation procedure with the packaging register by 1 November 2027 at the latest.

Third: Expanded competences of the ZSVR. The VerpackDG empowers the ZSVR to conduct automated data matching with the dual systems and tax authorities in order to systematically identify free-riders. The existing competences of the foundation are supplemented by audit, authorization, and supervisory functions for the new organizational forms. The financing of the ZSVR - previously borne exclusively by the dual systems and operators of sector solutions - is correspondingly extended to contributions from the new actors.

The transitional provisions ensure an orderly changeover: existing system participation contracts of a Producer registered under both the VerpackG and the PPWR continue until 31 December 2026. A mid-year renewal on 12 August 2026 is not required.

Who is a producer for EPR purposes?

The attribution of Producer status follows the PPWR definition and must be assessed per Member State. In Germany, the following qualify as Producers for EPR purposes:

• Companies that first place packaging on the market in Germany - typically the Manufacturer based in Germany,
• Companies that first bring packaging from a third country onto the German market,
• Companies that modify already-placed packaging such that they become the Manufacturer under Article 21,
• Companies that sell directly to end consumers in Germany without having an establishment there (particularly in cross-border e-commerce).

There is always only one Producer per packaging item in Germany. However, the same actor may simultaneously be a Producer in multiple Member States - with corresponding registration and reporting obligations in each country where it first places packaging on the market.

For companies already registered in the LUCID Register: the existing registration remains broadly intact but will be extended under the VerpackDG to include the new obligation categories, in particular for transport and industrial packaging previously outside the system participation scope.

Registration in the LUCID Register and system participation

Operational EPR compliance in Germany continues to be structured in three steps, which the VerpackDG clarifies and substantively extends:

1. Registration with the ZSVR in the LUCID Register. Every Producer must register before placing packaging on the market for the first time. Registration covers name and contact details, packaging types and materials, and - new under the VerpackDG - the assignment to the chosen take-back form (dual system, individual take-back, OfH) and the authorization number.

2. System participation for household-proximate packaging. For sales, secondary, and service packaging typically generated by end consumers (plastic packaging, paper, cardboard, glass, aluminium, tinplate, composites), entering into a licence contract with one of the authorised dual systems remains mandatory. Packaging volumes are reported per material and year; license fees are calculated in tiers by material.

3. Data reporting and record-keeping. Producers report their annual volumes placed on the market per material, demonstrate licensing, and are subject to public LUCID transparency (entries are publicly visible). Data reporting will increasingly be automated and validated through the new ZSVR data matching with the dual systems and tax authorities.

New obligations for online marketplaces are added under Article 45 of the PPWR: platform operators enabling sellers to conclude contracts with consumers must verify, before activating a seller, whether that seller is registered in the relevant national register and fulfilling their EPR obligations (a "best efforts" check). This applies in particular to non-European sellers on German marketplaces who have often previously been beyond the reach of the authorities.

Modulated EPR fees: the core of ecological governance

One of the PPWR's central governance instruments is eco-modulated EPR fees: companies pay less for more recyclable and environmentally friendly packaging, and correspondingly more for problematic packaging. Article 45(6) makes modulation mandatory; the reference system is the recyclability performance classes A to E under Article 6.

Eco-modulation timeline

The phasing matters and is frequently compressed in current debate:

• ‍From 1 January 2030: Binding market access only for packaging in classes A, B, or C. The minimum recycled content quotas under Article 7 apply simultaneously.‍
• From 2038: Phase-out of class C. Only A and B may be placed on the market.

EU-wide mandatory modulation of EPR fees on the basis of harmonized criteria is expected to become legally binding from summer 2029 - depending on the publication of the delegated act. Until then, Member States may introduce their own modulation models but are not required to harmonize.

The German approach to eco-modulation

Germany already has de facto approaches to eco-modulated licensing fees - for example at Reclay, Der Grüne Punkt, or Interseroh+, which license more recyclable packaging at lower rates. However, these approaches are not legally binding or harmonised. In its position on the VerpackDG in March 2026, the Bundesrat explicitly called for a concrete eco-modulation model for packaging licenses to be enshrined in law - aligned with the PPWR recyclability performance classes and factoring in post-consumer recyclate as an additional criterion. The final design will be determined in the further legislative process.

Modulation criteria in overview

The PPWR provides for one mandatory criterion and optional additional criteria for modulation:

• ‍Mandatory: Recyclability performance class (A, B, C): The higher the class, the lower the fee. The specific spread is determined at national level but must be sufficiently pronounced to be effective as a governance instrument.‍
• Optional: Recycled content: Member States may additionally reward the share of post-consumer recyclate. Germany is moving in this direction.‍
• Optional: Reusability: Reusable packaging generally receives preferential treatment, reflected in reduced or different fee structures.

Financial impact for companies

For companies with large packaging portfolios and heterogeneous material mixes, eco-modulation can have substantial effects. Early indications from countries with established eco-modulation (France, Italy, the Netherlands) show fee spreads of 20 to 60 per cent between non-recyclable and recyclable packaging in the same material category. For industrial companies with high proportions of transport packaging, the extension of EPR to packaging not previously subject to system participation requirements represents an as-yet-uncalculated cost block that will become visible from 2027/2028.

Multi-country registration: the Authorized Representative as a new obligation

Article 17 of the PPWR requires Producers operating in a Member State without an establishment there to appoint a written Authorized Representative (AR). The AR assumes EPR obligations - registration, volume reporting, fee payment - on their behalf and is personally accountable to the national authorities.

In Germany, the appointment of an Authorized Representative by non-German Producers has long been established practice under the VerpackG, but is extended by the VerpackDG and the PPWR to further scenarios - in particular direct sales to German end consumers by companies from third countries and on online marketplaces.

For internationally active industrial companies with EU-wide distribution, this means: in every Member State where they qualify as a Producer and where they have no establishment, they require an Authorised Representative. With 15 to 27 relevant countries, that amounts to 15 to 27 separate contractual relationships with corresponding operational and contractual interfaces. Service providers such as Lizenzero, Take-e-way, Ecologistik, or Reclay offer their Authorized Representative function as a service; for larger companies, establishing their own EU legal entity may be the more economically rational option.

The EU is currently discussing, however, whether to temporarily suspend the obligation to appoint an Authorized Representative for EU-based Producers (until the end of 2034); the obligation remains in place for companies without an EU establishment.

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Timeline: What applies from 2026, 2027, 2028, and 2029

The EPR-related milestones can be divided into four phases:

12 August 2026 (PPWR applicability, VerpackDG entry into force): LUCID registration for all Producers remains mandatory. Online marketplaces must have their seller verification processes activated. Authorised Representatives for non-EU Producers are mandatory. Existing system participation contracts continue until year-end.

1 January 2027: New quota calculation of the dual systems applies. New EPR categories (packaging not previously subject to system participation requirements) must be structurally prepared.

1 November 2027: Authorization procedures for Producer Responsibility Organizations (OfH) must be completed.

Summer 2029 (expected): EU-wide mandatory harmonized eco-modulation of EPR fees under Article 45(6) PPWR.

1 January 2030: Market access only for classes A, B, C. Minimum recycled content quotas under Article 7 apply.

What industrial companies should do now

For manufacturing companies with their own packaging use, EU-wide distribution, and previously only partial system participation, a structured approach is recommended:

1. Role determination per Member State. In which EU countries is the company a Producer within the meaning of the PPWR? This matrix - SKU x target market x role - is the basis for all further EPR measures.

2. Capture packaging not previously subject to system participation requirements. Transport packaging (pallet stretch wrap, outer cartons, IBCs, barrels) and industrial packaging fall within the EPR scope of the VerpackDG. Volumes, materials, and supply chains for this packaging must be systematically captured - many companies currently have no structured data for this.

3. Decision on take-back form. For packaging not subject to system participation requirements, a decision must be made on whether to set up an individual take-back solution or join an OfH. Both routes require ZSVR authorization with different lead times.

4. Review Authorised Representative structures. For every EU country with direct sales to end consumers without a local establishment, an Authorized Representative must be appointed. Service providers currently have lead times of several months, as demand will increase substantially in 2026. As noted above, however, the EU is currently discussing whether to temporarily suspend the obligation for EU-based Producers (until the end of 2034); the obligation remains in place for companies without an EU establishment.

5. Fee simulation using recyclability performance classes. From 2028 at the latest, realistically from 2029/2030, actual EPR fees will depend heavily on the recyclability performance of a company's own packaging. An early baseline assessment - which packaging falls into which class, which design adjustments are economically sensible - creates room for maneuver before modulation takes effect.

With the PPWR, EPR loses its character as a purely financial settlement mechanism and becomes the connecting link between packaging design, the circular economy, and market access. Companies that set up LUCID registration, system participation, Authorized Representatives, and eco-modulation as an integrated process will handle PPWR compliance with significantly less operational effort and better cost outcomes.