EU sustainability regulations for products: an overview

Published on 2 November 2026

EU sustainability regulations for products now reach far beyond the factory gate. Your EU customer asks for emissions data, a battery passport, proof of where your raw materials come from or a statement on substances. If you sell into the EU through a Dutch importer, distributor or the port of Rotterdam, this page shows which rule applies, from when, and who must act.

Part of our overview of EU product law for companies selling into the Netherlands.

Which EU sustainability regulations apply to your products?

Six EU rules matter most for manufacturers: the ESPR, the Batteries Regulation, CBAM, the PPWR, the EUDR and REACH. Each regulates a different object and places the duty on a different link in the chain.

The ESPR regulates product design and unsold stock, the Batteries Regulation the battery, CBAM imported goods, the PPWR packaging, the EUDR raw materials and REACH chemical substances. For a manufacturer outside the EU, most duties sit with whoever places the product on the EU market or imports it; your customer passes the request on to you. For ESG reporting and sustainability claims, other rules apply.

How do the six rules compare?

Read your row by object and addressee. Together they tell you whether a duty is yours or reaches you through your customer’s contract, and when it starts.

Rule	What it is about	Who must comply	Applies from	Read more
ESPR, Regulation (EU) 2024/1781	Product design, product passport, destruction ban for unsold consumer apparel and footwear	Manufacturer, importer; ban: large companies (medium-sized from 19 July 2030)	Destruction ban: 19 July 2026. Design rules: only per delegated act	ESPR and ecodesign requirements
Batteries Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2023/1542	Battery passport for LMT, EV and large industrial batteries	Economic operator placing the battery on the market	Passport: 18 February 2027	the battery passport under the EU Batteries Regulation
CBAM, Regulation (EU) 2023/956	Imported cement, electricity, fertilisers, iron and steel, aluminium, hydrogen	Importer, as authorised CBAM declarant	Definitive period: 1 January 2026	CBAM for importers and non-EU producers
PPWR, Regulation (EU) 2025/40	Packaging	Manufacturer, including own-brand; producer	12 August 2026, some requirements later	packaging rules and the PPWR
EUDR, Regulation (EU) 2023/1115	Cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya, wood and listed products	Operator; trader	30 December 2026	the EUDR and its date of application
REACH, Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006	Substances, mixtures, substances in articles	Manufacturer or importer; supplier of articles	Applies now	REACH registration requirements

More background: the EU Batteries Regulation in general and chemical laws in the Netherlands.

What does the ESPR mean for your product design and unsold stock?

Under the ESPR, nothing is binding yet for product design: ecodesign requirements and the digital product passport only apply through a delegated act per product group. The ban on destroying unsold apparel and footwear already applies to large companies.

The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) is a framework. Requirements and the passport follow only from a delegated act per product group (Articles 4(1) and 9(1)); as at 31 October 2026, none with requirements had been adopted. Such an act applies, as a rule, no earlier than 18 months after its entry into force, except in duly justified cases (Article 4(4)). The Commission’s indicative working plan names iron and steel for adoption in 2026 and textiles in 2027.

Since 19 July 2026, the destruction of unsold consumer products listed in Annex VII, namely apparel, clothing accessories and footwear, is prohibited (Article 25(1)), subject to limited derogations set by the Commission in a delegated act (Article 25(5)). Micro and small enterprises are exempt; medium-sized enterprises follow from 19 July 2030. Goods a consumer returned under the right of withdrawal count as unsold (Article 2 point 37).

Once a delegated act covers a product, an importer or distributor that places that product on the market under its own name or trademark, or modifies it in a way that affects compliance, is treated as the manufacturer (Article 34). More in ESPR and ecodesign requirements.

When do you need a battery passport?

From 18 February 2027, for LMT batteries, industrial batteries above 2 kWh and electric vehicle batteries placed on the market or put into service. The duty sits with the economic operator that places the battery on the market.

The passport requirement is in Article 77(1); an e-bike battery is, as a rule, an LMT battery. Batteries built into or added to a product are covered too (Article 1(3)). Other batteries need no passport; from the same date, all batteries carry a QR code (Article 13(6)).

Responsibility lies with that operator (Article 77(4)), which may authorise another operator in writing. If you ship through an importer, that importer will, as a rule, be the one placing the battery on the market, and it needs your data. Details: the battery passport under the EU Batteries Regulation.

Who carries the CBAM duties on imported steel, aluminium and other goods?

Usually your EU customer, as importer: the person in whose name and on whose behalf the customs declaration is lodged. Since 1 January 2026, only an authorised CBAM declarant may import CBAM goods above the threshold. You supply emissions data; any duty to do so comes from your contract.

The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) covers cement, electricity, fertilisers, iron and steel, aluminium and hydrogen (Annex I); steel screws and bolts fall under iron and steel.

An importer is exempt up to a cumulative net mass of 50 tonnes per calendar year, except for electricity and hydrogen (Article 2a). Exceed it, and all imports of that year are caught.
Above the threshold, only an authorised CBAM declarant may import (Articles 4 and 25(1)). An importer that applied by 31 March 2026 may continue to import until the authority decides on its application (Article 17(7a)).
The importer is the person who lodges the customs declaration in its own name and on its own behalf or, where an indirect customs representative lodges it, the person on whose behalf it is lodged (Article 3 point 15).
If you clear the goods yourself through an indirect customs representative, you are the importer. As you are not established in a Member State, that representative must be an authorised CBAM declarant, even below 50 tonnes, and takes on the importer’s obligations for those goods (Article 5(2) and (2a)).
The first annual CBAM declaration, covering 2026, is due by 30 September 2027 (Article 6(1)). Certificates go on sale from 1 February 2027 (Article 20(1)).
The authorisation comes from the competent authority of the Member State of establishment (Article 17(1)); in the Netherlands the Nederlandse Emissieautoriteit (NEa, Dutch Emissions Authority).

As the operator of an installation outside the EU, you may provide your emissions data (Article 10(7)). The regulation does not oblige you towards the importer, so your Dutch customer asks for it in the contract. More: CBAM for importers and non-EU producers.

Is your EU customer asking for emissions data, a battery passport and supplier statements at once? Send me what you sell and to whom, and I will tell you which duties are yours. Contact Martin Krüger, product law partner in the Netherlands.

What does the PPWR change for your packaging?

The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation has applied since 12 August 2026. Not every requirement applies yet: some take effect years later. Whoever has packaging made under its own name or trademark is, as a rule, the manufacturer.

Regulation (EU) 2025/40 has applied since 12 August 2026 (Article 71, second paragraph) and largely replaces Directive 94/62/EC. Its requirements are phased. For example, the requirement that packaging is designed for material recycling applies from 1 January 2030 or 24 months after the relevant delegated act enters into force, whichever is later (Article 6(2)). The “recycled at scale” condition follows from 2035 or later.

A “manufacturer” is also the person that has packaging or a packaged product designed or manufactured under its own name or trademark (Article 3 point 13(a)); point (b) makes an exception for micro-enterprises whose packaging supplier is in the same Member State. A Dutch distributor selling your goods under its private label can therefore be the manufacturer of that packaging. A “producer” can be a manufacturer, importer or distributor (Article 3 point 15). Read more about packaging rules and the PPWR.

Does the EUDR apply to coffee, cocoa, wood and other raw materials you supply?

Yes, from 30 December 2026, and from 30 June 2027 for micro and small operators established as such by 31 December 2024. The products must be deforestation-free, legally produced and covered by a due diligence statement or simplified declaration. The EU operator files it; you supply the data.

The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) covers cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya and wood (Article 2 point 1) and the products listed in Annex I. They may not be placed or made available on the market or exported unless they are deforestation-free, produced in accordance with the relevant legislation of the country of production, and covered by a due diligence statement or a simplified declaration (Article 3).

An “operator” places relevant products on the market or exports them; a “downstream operator” does so with products made using relevant products that are all covered by a due diligence statement or simplified declaration; a “trader” is any other person in the supply chain who makes them available on the market (Article 2). The core provisions apply from 30 December 2026; for operators that are natural persons or micro or small undertakings established as such by 31 December 2024, from 30 June 2027, except for products under the old Timber Regulation (Article 38(2) and (3)). More: the EUDR and its date of application.

What does REACH ask of you as a non-EU supplier?

REACH applies now. Substances on their own or in mixtures need registration from 1 tonne a year; your EU importer or your only representative handles it. If your articles contain a candidate-list substance above 0.1 percent, the supplier must pass on information.

The principle is “no data, no market”: substances on their own, in mixtures or in articles may not be manufactured or placed on the market without registration where it is required (Article 5). The manufacturer or importer of a substance, on its own or in mixtures, registers from 1 tonne per year (Article 6(1)).

A manufacturer outside the EU may appoint an only representative in the EU to fulfil the registration obligations of importers (Article 8(1)).
A supplier of an article containing a substance of very high concern from the candidate list (Articles 57 and 59(1)) above 0.1 percent weight by weight gives the recipient enough information for safe use, at least the name of the substance (Article 33). A consumer receives it on request, free of charge, within 45 days.

Your Dutch customer can only meet that duty if you tell it what is in your product. Read more about REACH registration requirements.

What do you arrange first?

First map your chain: which products go to the EU, who places them on the market and who files the customs declaration. Then check per rule who carries the legal duty, and put your data commitments in the contract.

As a Dutch lawyer at MAAK Advocaten in Amsterdam: when an EU customer asks for emissions data, a passport and statements on raw materials at once, I start with a map of your chain: which products go to the EU, who places them on the market there, and who files the customs declaration. Only then do we look, rule by rule, at who carries the legal duty. Often your customer carries it and your job is to deliver data. Then that belongs in the contract, with clear terms on what you deliver, when and in which format.

A practical order of work:

Map products, customers and roles: who is manufacturer, importer, economic operator or declarant? A private label can change the answer.
Build one file per product: materials, origin, substances, emissions, battery and packaging data. The same supplier data come back under CBAM, the EUDR, REACH and, from 2027, the battery passport; one source avoids contradictory statements.
Make data delivery, accuracy and cooperation with verification a contract duty of your suppliers, backed by an indemnity.
Comply with what applies now, then prepare for the EUDR on 30 December 2026 and the battery passport on 18 February 2027.

Example: a Turkish manufacturer shipping fasteners and e-bike batteries through Rotterdam

Suppose you make steel fasteners in Turkey and assemble battery packs for e-bikes. A Dutch importer clears both through Rotterdam and sells the fasteners in boxes under its own brand.

CBAM. Your importer files the customs declaration, so above 50 tonnes a year it must be an authorised CBAM declarant. It asks you for emissions data; your obligation to provide them comes from the contract.
Batteries. From 18 February 2027 each e-bike battery placed on the market needs a passport. Your importer will, as a rule, be responsible and needs your data.
PPWR. The boxes carry the importer’s brand, so the importer will, as a rule, be the manufacturer of that packaging.
REACH. If the battery packs contain a candidate-list substance above 0.1 percent weight by weight, your importer must give its customers enough information for safe use, at least the substance name, without waiting to be asked; consumers get it on request. It needs your information to do so.
ESPR. Iron and steel is on the indicative working plan; no requirements had been adopted as at 31 October 2026.

When do you need a Dutch lawyer?

Before you accept liability for your customer’s compliance, when your role in the chain is unclear, and before you sell under your own brand.

Bring in a lawyer when a customer sends contract terms that make you liable for its compliance, when you are unsure who in your chain is the importer or declarant, and before you sell under your own brand. One conversation beforehand costs less than a blocked shipment or a launch you have to reverse.

What we do for manufacturers outside the EU:

review data and indemnity clauses in agreements with Dutch importers and customers;
determine your role, and your customer’s, under each rule;
check a launch, private-label deal or new import route in advance.

Send me the contract or a short description of your products and customers, and I will tell you what to do first. Contact Martin Krüger, product law partner in the Netherlands.

Frequently asked questions about EU sustainability regulations

Does this apply to me if I am based outside the EU?

Mostly through your EU customer. Duties under CBAM, the battery passport, the EUDR and REACH registration usually sit with whoever imports or places the product on the EU market. You deliver data under your contract.

Do my products need a digital product passport today?

No. Under the ESPR, the passport duty only follows from a delegated act per product group, and as at 31 October 2026 none had been adopted. The battery passport is separate and applies from 18 February 2027.

Am I obliged under CBAM to give my EU importer emissions data?

Not under the regulation itself: as operator outside the EU you may provide data. Your importer will usually want them, so it will often require them by contract.

What should I arrange now?

Record the roles in your chain, agree with suppliers which data they deliver, and comply with the rules that already apply to you: CBAM above the 50-tonne threshold, REACH, the PPWR provisions already in force and, for large companies selling consumer apparel or footwear, the destruction ban.

When should I involve a Dutch lawyer?

When a customer’s contract makes you liable for its compliance, when your role or your customer’s role is unclear, and before you start selling under your own brand.

Primary sources

Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 (ESPR): Articles 2 point 37, 4(1) and (4), 9(1), 25(1) and (5), 34 and Annex VII.
Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 (Batteries Regulation), consolidated text of 13 August 2026: Articles 1(3), 13(6) and 77(1) and (4).
Regulation (EU) 2023/956 (CBAM), consolidated text of 20 October 2025: Articles 2a, 3 point 15, 4, 5(2) and (2a), 6(1), 10(7), 17(1) and (7a), 20(1), 25(1) and Annex I.
List of the competent authorities designated by Member States under Article 11 of Regulation (EU) 2023/956, Official Journal C, C/2026/4231 of 31 July 2026.
Regulation (EU) 2025/40 (PPWR): Articles 3 points 13 and 15, 6(2) and 71.
Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 (EUDR), consolidated text of 18 September 2026: Articles 2, 3 and 38(2) and (3).
Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (REACH): Articles 5, 6(1), 8(1) and 33.

Last checked on 2 November 2026 · next relevant date: 30 December 2026 (EUDR applies), then 1 February 2027 (CBAM certificates on sale) and 18 February 2027 (battery passport)