EU Parliament and Council propose PPWR relief for small cross-border packaging producers
The European Parliament backed a temporary suspension of the PPWR local-representative requirement for EU-based micro and small businesses in October, while the Council proposed relief for producers placing less than one tonne of packaging a year in each destination member state. No suspension has yet become law, and the Commission has asked member states not to impose sanctions over the requirement while talks continue. Estonian online retailer Luregod says representation and recycling fees in each market create a costly barrier for small cross-border sellers.
Why this mattersAn enacted carve-out would spare small cross-border sellers the cost of a representative in each destination market, a fixed burden critics say favours large producers.
- The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation generally started applying in August 2026.
- In October 2026 the European Parliament backed a temporary suspension of the representative requirement for EU-based micro and small businesses.
- The Council separately proposed relief for producers placing under one tonne of packaging per year in each destination member state.
- The European Commission has asked member states to apply the representative requirement pragmatically and to refrain from sanctions over it while talks continue.
- EFTTA, the European Fishing Tackle Trade Association, says minimum recycled-content requirements for plastic packaging begin to apply from 2030 and tighten towards 2040.
- Estonian online retailer Luregod says it can cost thousands of euros to become compliant in each EU market.