What are the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) obligations in Germany and what do I need to do?

The German government has enforced new versions of the German Packaging Act (VerpackungsG), the Electric and Electronic Equipment Act (ElektroG) as well as the Batteries Act (BattG) and set up a mandatory compliance system that operates as follows: 

Each platform - in this instance, Zalando - is required to provide for, or contribute to, the prevention and management of waste. To comply with this provision, Zalando must be able to prove that its partners who sell in the German market via Zalando have each been registered with respective recycling schemes regarding packaging, Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and batteries.

Partners are responsible for registering with the relevant bodies as well as the appropriate recycling schemes  and ensuring that you are compliant to be able to continue selling on Zalando. More information follows below.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a concept where manufacturers, importers or distributors of products (such as Zalando and its partners) will bear a significant degree of responsibility for the environmental impacts of their products throughout the product life-cycle. 

Up until now, this has primarily meant that the distributor (in this case, our partners) has to make sure that their products are part of a recycling program. Typically, partners delegate this responsibility to a third party, a so-called Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO) or a “Recycling System”, which is paid to look after used-product management. 

In order to ensure that their products are part of a recycling program, partners therefore register with a PRO/Recycling System, report the quantity of products sold, and pay the respective fee to the PRO/Recycling System. 

A producer refers to "any natural or legal person who develops, manufactures, handles, processes, sells or imports waste-generating products or the elements and materials used to manufacture them”. Please note that a producer is not the equivalent of a manufacturer.

With regards to WEEE and batteries, you are considered a producer:

• If you manufacture a product subject to EPR requirements in Germany and sell domestically; 

and / or

• If you import a product subject to EPR requirements into Germany

And / or

• If you sell a product subject to EPR requirements in Germany and you do not have a registered company address in Germany.

In the case of a company selling its products directly to German end-users, it is the distant seller i.e. the company selling online. For Zalando and our partners, this therefore refers to partner brands as well as most retailers. 

However, if a retailer works with an upstream supplier who is considered a producer in Germany as defined above (e.g. an importer or a manufacturer), the retailer is not considered a producer. 

Please be aware of the following requirements specific to packaging: 

• For packaging you are accountable for your primary packaging and / or the secondary packaging added by you, such as delivery packaging, i.e. if you place an article within the packaging, you are therefore also considered a producer.

• Important

  If you are a Zalando Fulfillment Solutions (ZFS) partner, you are still considered the producer with regard to the secondary (shipping) packaging under German law. Moreover, you will be considered a producer with regard to the product packaging (primary packaging).

Please reach out to the relevant body that you are registered with, or from the list below, if  the classification between producer / non-producer raises questions.

Since 1 July 2022, manufacturers and distributors of packaging in Germany have needed to prove their participation in a “dual system” (authorised recycling system) to online platforms / marketplaces and fulfilment service providers. This can be provided through first registering in the LUCID portal (see below), and then using the EPR number generated by that to obtain a packaging license. The registration number(s) then need to be provided to the relevant platform. If producers of the packaging are not registered, platforms cannot allow their product assortment to be made available. 

Since  1 July 2023, partners must provide Zalando with their registration number(s) issued by the EAR Foundation (referred to as WEEE Reg. No. DE, or Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE) for WEEE and batteries. 

What steps do I need to take?

• Any party who is responsible for primary or secondary packaging being in the German market (producer / initial distributor) must register with the Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister (Central Agency Packaging Register – ZSVR) in the LUCID Packaging Register. Once you have registered, you will receive an EPR registration number for your packaging by email.

• You need to obtain a Packaging License to comply with the law. Partners can only license their packaging with a German “dual system” (authorised recycling system). For that, please provide your LUCID registration number to your authorised recycling dual system to enter into a system participation agreement. 

• For Electrical and Electronic Equipment as well as batteries, partners need to register with the EAR Foundation to obtain an EPR registration number for your WEEE / batteries. 

• Once you have received the EPR registration number(s) and the Packaging License, you will need to provide the EPR registration number(s) and additional details to Zalando. 

• Zalando will validate the EPR registration number(s). Please ensure that your number is correctly displayed in the publicly accessible LUCID register for packaging, and the EAR Foundation register for WEEE and batteries if applicable. 

• Important

  The registration number starts with “DE'' followed by thirteen digits, for example: DE1234567891011.

• Once you are registered accordingly and you are part of an authorized recycling dual system you will need to report the quantities sold in Germany and pay the fees accordingly. Please note that Zalando may request further proof such as the corresponding confirmation of system participation (Bestätigung der Systembeteiligung bei einem dualen System) at any time.

Please see here for more information:

• Packaging:

• LUCID Registration at a glance - EN  

• LUCID Registration at a glance - DE

• WEEE and Batteries:

•  Registration

If you do not produce or import Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE), but buy them from a retailer (upstream supplier) within Germany, your retailer should already have registered with the EAR Foundation. In this case you do not have to provide us with an EPR number for EEE or batteries.

For packaging please register with the Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister (Central Agency Packaging Register – ZSVR) in the LUCID Packaging Register. Once you have registered, you will receive an EPR registration number for your packaging by email. You then need to obtain a Packaging License to comply with the law. Partners can only license their packaging with a German “dual system” (authorised recycling system). For that, please provide your LUCID registration number to your authorised recycling dual system to enter into a system participation agreement. 

For WEEE and Batteries, please register with the EAR Foundation to obtain an EPR registration number for your EEE / batteries (these registration numbers are referred to as WEEE Reg. No. DE and Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE).

The EPR schemes in Germany are applicable to products that belong to any of the following categories:

Yes. For partners selling in the German market you must register for every EPR product category that applies to your assortment on Zalando. All partners should have a packaging EPR number. If you sell Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) you should as well have the WEEE-Reg.-Nr.DE, and if the EEE product contains a battery, the Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE too.

Yes. Both ZFS partners and partners using self-fulfilment are responsible for their primary packaging (product packaging). Since 1 July 2022 all partners have also been responsible for their secondary packaging (e.g. shipping boxes / bags used to protect the product during transport to the customer, filling material to protect the product etc.) This means that you must register with the relevant PRO and pay the required fees.

If you are a ZFS partner, since 1 July 2022, you have been responsible for both the primary and secondary packaging. ZFS is no longer responsible for the secondary packaging.

Partners can request this data through our support form. Please select the topic: ZEOS Logistics General Questions, and request type: General question.

In order to obtain your EPR registration number(s), and also to comply with all other obligations or to receive appropriate information, we strongly recommend that you seek professional advice or contact a qualified disposal company for EEE and/or contact your authorised recycling provider (dual system) for packaging. 

We recommend the following contact:

Reclay Systems GmbH

Theodora Pangaribuan

Phone: +49 2772 5759-113

E-Mail:  t.pangaribuan@reclay-group.com

Partners must provide the following information upon request: 

• Legal name: the registered name of your company shown on your Zalando contract;

• VAT/taxpayer reference number (e.g. DE260543044)

• The respective EPR numbers

  • Packaging: Registrierungsnummer (e.g. DE5157138845851)

  • EEE: WEEE-Reg.-Nr.DE (e.g. 72754189)

  • Batteries: Batt-Reg.-Nr. DE (e.g. 10554530)

Please submit your EPR information via your Business profile in zDirect. You can find a step-by-step guide for how to do so here. Please note this is a regulatory requirement as outlined in Zalando’s Platform rules.

Not all companies have registered with PRO/Recycling System. As a result, German regulators have begun to place increased responsibility onto marketplaces to better control whether the sellers on the marketplace in question are registered or not.

Yes; the process outlined above is specifically for the German market and applies to partners selling in Germany. 

For EPR schemes in other markets that you sell in, for example, France, Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands and Spain, you will need to register with them separately.

Failure to provide Zalando with your EPR number will suspend you from selling in Germany from 1 July, 2022 for packaging, and from 1 July, 2023 for EEE and batteries. It is a mandatory requirement of selling on our platform as outlined in the Platform rules.