EPR (extended producer responsibility): meaning for brand owners
If you put packaged goods on a market, you are probably an EPR producer there, even without a factory.
Definition
EPR (extended producer responsibility)Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is a policy approach under which producers bear financial, or financial and organisational, responsibility for the waste stage of their products’ life cycle. In practice it means registering with national schemes, reporting quantities of packaging or products placed on the market and paying fees that fund collection and recycling.
How EPR applies to a product brand
EPR schemes are set at national level for specific streams: packaging, electrical and electronic equipment, batteries and, increasingly, textiles. The producer is usually the business that first places the packaged product on that national market, which can be the brand owner, the importer or a foreign seller selling directly to consumers. Each country runs its own register, reporting and fees.
In the EU, the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (EU) 2025/40 has applied since 12 August 2026 and requires producers not established in a member state to appoint an authorised representative for EPR there. The Commission has proposed easing this for small businesses; the proposal was still under discussion when this was written. A 2025 revision of the Waste Framework Directive requires member states to set up EPR schemes for textiles and footwear.
Outside the EU, the UK has packaging EPR with thresholds based on turnover and tonnage, and India runs EPR for plastic packaging through a central portal that covers producers, importers and brand owners, with micro and small brand owners exempted. Marketplaces in several countries ask sellers for EPR registration numbers before listing. The usual mistake is to discover EPR only when a listing is blocked.
This is general information and national rules change; we verify obligations per country with a licensed specialist. See the EU market page, UK market page and our compliance stage.
Related terms
GPSR
EU Regulation 2023/988 setting safety duties for consumer products, applicable since 13 December 2024.
CE marking
The manufacturer’s mark that a product meets the EU harmonised rules that require it.
EU responsible person
The EU-based operator answerable to authorities for a product’s compliance.
Dieline
The flat template of a package showing cut, fold, glue and bleed lines for print.
Frequently asked questions
Am I an EPR producer if a factory abroad makes my products?
Often yes. EPR usually targets the business that places the packaged product on the national market, which can be the brand owner or importer rather than the factory. Definitions differ by country and stream.
Is EPR the same in every EU country?
No. EU law sets the framework, but each member state runs its own registers, reporting and fees, so a brand selling in several countries usually registers in each.
Have a product idea? Check it before you buy stock.
Send a short brief. We tell you what we think, including when we think you should not do it.