EPR registration Amazon

From 2022, Amazon and other marketplaces are required by law to check the EPR registration number of their sellers for France and Germany. Further EU member states are expected to follow. What is the so-called Extended Producer Responsibility, and how can you obtain an EPR registration number for Amazon? Here’s how.

Extended Producer Responsibility: What is an EPR registration number?

Any business that produces, imports, or sells (packaged) products in the EU, is obligated to pay for the recycling of its packaging or products. This is the principle of “Extended Producer Responsibility” (EPR). It is deeply grounded in the EU packaging waste directive, WEEE directive, or other waste legislation of the EU. The result is that the responsibility for the waste of a product lies within the party that sells it.

The problem: In spite of the EU single market, each country has different laws and EPR schemes for waste handling. Therefore, Amazon FBA sellers or other e-commerce businesses that sell internationally also need to get EPR compliant in each market.

You need to obtain an EPR registration number for many countries. ecosistant offers tailored guides on how you can get compliant across Europe.

Since a lot of e-commerce and Amazon sellers have ignored their EPR obligations so far, the French and German governments decided to make it an obligation for Amazon and other marketplaces to control whether their sellers are EPR-compliant.

This is how to obtain the EPR registration number for Amazon

Amazon has announced it will delete listings of their sellers for Germany and France if they cannot prove their EPR-compliance starting from 2022. As a proof of compliance, Amazon requires the sellers’ EPR registration number. You can obtain this number by registering with EPR schemes that will handle the recycling of your packaging and products in these countries.

What if one does not produce or import products, but buys them from a retailer within the same country? In this case, the retailer should already have been registered. Amazon then requests the EPR number of your upstream supplier as proof of compliance. Should you not be able to get this proof, however, you still need to register with an EPR scheme yourself.

How to register and get an EPR registration number in each country is what our digital compliance guides will teach you in detail.

EPR registration number for Germany

Packaging, electronics (EEE), and batteries are subject to EPR registration in Germany. Otherwise, Amazon will ban your listings from their marketplace from July 2022. The required EPR number is the registration number in the German packaging waste register LUCID. The number for electronics and batteries is the respective registration number from the German Stiftung Ear (WEEE-Reg.-Nr.DE and Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE).

With our digital compliance consulting service, you will get a free manual  for Germany on how to perform these registrations:

EPR Consulting-Service

Amazon has already started cancelling listings on the German marketplace since 15 June 2022 for sellers who do not have a valid LUCID number. Are you affected? Our free digital EPR consulting service for Germany offers easy-to-follow step-by-step guides that will let you complete ALL EPR obligations for packaging in Germany in just a few minutes. All you need is a forecast of your packaging amount (in kilogram) for the current calendar year . On top, our free service includes a 10% discount on the packaging license you need to purchase annually from a Dual System.

From July 2023, Amazon and other marketplaces will also delete listings without valid WEEE-registration-number. Do you sell electronics in Germany? Don’t lose time, because unlike the LUCID-number which you can get on the same day, sellers often wait several weeks for their WEEE-reg.-number. Better start your registration now and be ahead of your competitors! Our digital consulting service also includes a step-by-step guide for WEEE EPR in Germany.

EPR registration number for France

On top of packaging, EEE, and batteries, sellers in France also need to register with recycling schemes for furniture, mattresses, textile products, and footwear. You will obtain the respective EPR registration number from the specific recycling schemes where you register.

Do you sell affected products to end-consumers in France? No problem, our service has you covered with tailored step-by-step guides for each waste stream:

Get EPR-compliant in France*

*Our digital consulting service for 19.99 EUR will give you step-by-step guides for packaging, electronics & batteries, textile & shoes, and furniture EPR in France. After following our guides, you will receive your UIN aka EPR-number from the French recycling schemes. Additional costs (recycling fees) may apply. Information about these costs are also included in our service. If you’d rather have us do the registrations and data declarations for you, please select our Premium-Service instead.

At least due to packaging, every Amazon seller that sells to France has EPR obligations to fulfill. The French packaging waste law requires a registration from the first sale.

Additionally, there is a specific recycling symbol for packaging in France. Find more information in this blog article:

The Triman Logo: Obligations for e-commerce in France

EPR registration number for Austria

Austria will likely be the next country that requires Amazon to check the compliance of its sellers. Such a paragraph made it into the draft of Austria’s new waste law. Similar to Germany, Austria has EPR laws for packaging waste, electronics, and battery waste.

The law also demands non-Austrian firms to appoint an “authorized representative” for packaging waste, which may lead to additional cost. Our digital consulting service keeps you up-to-date on any changes regarding EPR for your online shop.

Digital consulting service for EPR in Europe

However, Amazon not checking the sellers’ EPR compliance (yet) does not mean that there are no obligations. In fact, it is already illegal to sell cross-border to Austria and other members of the EU via Amazon or other platforms, unless your company is also registered with the respective EPR recycling schemes. On the other hand, you may be exempt from EPR laws in some countries depending on certain factors.

Use our Europe-Service to check your EPR compliance obligations in each European country:

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