On October 12, 2026, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Environment published an extended producer responsibility guide for small businesses under the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR, Regulation (EU) 2025/40). The guide states that small producers producing less than 10 tonnes of packaging per calendar year must continue to comply with existing national registration rules in the country where that packaging is likely to become waste, and that the appointment of an authorised representative for selling packaged products in other Member States applies since August 2026.
Those small producers must keep national EPR registration and fee reporting where the packaging is likely to become waste, and must keep the authorised representative for sales in Member States where they are not established, because the proposed suspension is not adopted. December 31, 2026 is the next PPWR applicability marker, when the Commission reports on substances of concern and adopts implementing acts on the recycled-content calculation; that date does not start the representative duty. A missing registration or authorised representative can be sanctioned under the Member State packaging regime. The Commission's call to abstain from sanctioning operators while the European Council and the European Parliament examine the proposal does not adopt the suspension and does not remove the duty.
Who must keep an authorised representative under the PPWR?
The guide addresses small producers producing less than 10 tonnes of packaging per calendar year, including those who must appoint an authorised representative to sell packaged products in Member States where they are not established. In some countries that appointment was already required under national legislation before the PPWR. Since August 2026 the requirement applies in all Member States.
Flexibilities under the 10-tonne threshold cover fees, procedures and record-keeping: Member States may exempt registration fees and set flat EPR fees, and they and producer responsibility organisations may fast-track procedures, cut documentation and minimise inspections. None of that removes national registration where the packaging is likely to become waste, or the authorised representative for sales in another Member State.
What must small producers do, and by when?
Small producers must continue to comply with existing national registration rules for extended producer responsibility in the country where the packaging they place on the market is likely to become waste, and they must report the fees that regime requires. Many Member States already had packaging registers before the PPWR. The Commission's PPWR implementation page lists the national competent authorities and national EPR schemes; conditions in a given country may be more favourable, so each market of sale has to be checked on its own terms.
The Commission will set uniform EU rules for registration and reporting. Member States then have 18 months to adapt their registers or to set one up. Once those registers exist, a producer must give a national registration number to an online platform before using it. Until then, platforms are not required to ask for an EPR number. The representative appointment is separate: the guide treats it as applying since August 2026.
| Obligation | What the guide says for small producers (under 10 tonnes a year) |
|---|---|
| National EPR registration | Continue to comply where the packaging is likely to become waste |
| EPR fees | Member States may exempt registration fees and set flat EPR fees |
| Authorised representative | Applies since August 2026 for sales in other Member States; suspension proposed, not adopted |
| Uniform EU registration rules | Forthcoming; Member States then have 18 months to adapt or set up registers |
| Platform EPR-number check | Not required until the harmonised national registers are in place |
Why the proposed suspension does not remove the duty
The guide says the Commission has proposed to suspend the authorised-representative requirement for small businesses. While the European Council and the European Parliament examine that proposal, the Commission has called on Member States to enforce the obligation in a constructive and pragmatic way and to abstain from sanctioning operators. That call does not adopt the suspension and does not remove the duty. A producer who drops the representative because a proposal is under examination remains under an obligation the guide treats as already applying.
December 31, 2026 is the next dated PPWR marker: the Commission report on substances of concern in packaging, and implementing acts on the recycled-content calculation. It does not start the representative appointment, and it is not the date the proposed suspension takes effect.
What happens without a registration or representative?
The guide does not publish a fine schedule. It says producers must continue to comply with national registration rules, and that the request to abstain from sanctioning operators is a call to Member States while the proposal is examined, not an adopted exemption. A missing registration or authorised representative can still be sanctioned under the Member State packaging regime. Continuous, per-jurisdiction monitoring surfaces a Commission guidance update the moment it publishes.
Confirm the under-10-tonne threshold on each Member State market, keep the national EPR registration and fee reporting where the packaging is likely to become waste, and keep the authorised representative in every Member State of sale where the producer is not established. The Commission's call does not adopt the suspension. December 31, 2026 is the next marker for the substances-of-concern report and the recycled-content implementing acts, not a pause of the representative duty.
