EU Moves to Ease Requirements for Authorised Representatives for Packaging
Since the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) became applicable on 12 August 2026, companies established in the EU have, as a general rule, been required to appoint an authorised representative in other Member States where they place packaging or packaged products on the market.
An authorised representative is a person or company appointed to fulfil a producer's obligations under extended producer responsibility (EPR) for packaging in the Member State concerned.
“For companies selling only limited quantities of packaging across borders, this requirement can result in significant administrative costs. The EU is therefore working on a temporary relaxation of the rules,” says Rikke Halkjær Kristensen, Head of Technical Affairs at Emballageretur.
Both the European Parliament and the Council of the EU want to reduce administrative burdens, but they propose different criteria for determining which companies should be exempt from the requirement.
On 20 October 2026, the European Parliament adopted its negotiating position. It proposes temporarily exempting micro and small enterprises established in the EU from the requirement to appoint authorised representatives in other Member States.
The following day, the Council adopted its position, which takes a different approach. It proposes allowing companies established in the EU to be exempt from the requirement if they place less than one tonne of packaging on the market per calendar year in the Member State concerned.
“The key difference is that the European Parliament focuses on company size, while the Council focuses on the quantity of packaging placed on the market in each Member State. The Council's approach could therefore also cover larger companies if they place less than one tonne of packaging on the market annually in a particular Member State,” says Rikke Halkjær Kristensen.
For members selling packaged products to other EU countries, the proposed changes could mean fewer administrative tasks and lower costs.
If the Council's approach is adopted, a Danish company that, for example, places 800 kg of packaging on the German market annually could be exempt from the requirement to appoint an authorised representative in Germany.
“It is important to emphasise that the exemption would not release companies from their extended producer responsibility obligations,” says Rikke Halkjær Kristensen, adding:
“They would still have to comply with the relevant requirements for registration, reporting packaging quantities and paying EPR fees in the countries where they place packaging on the market.”
The proposal could also affect companies established in other EU Member States that sell packaged products in Denmark. They could potentially be exempt from the requirement to appoint an authorised representative in Denmark, but would still have to fulfil their other EPR obligations.
The proposal forms part of the EU's Omnibus VIII package, which aims to reduce administrative burdens on businesses without weakening environmental protection.
The European Parliament and the Council must now negotiate a common position. The Council's proposal provides for the temporary exemption to remain in place until 2032, with the European Commission required to review its duration by 31 December 2030.
In the longer term, the forthcoming Circular Economy Act is expected to address extended producer responsibility rules more comprehensively.
Until any relaxation of the requirements has been adopted and entered into force, the current rules will continue to apply. However, the European Commission has encouraged Member States to take a pragmatic approach to enforcing the requirement to appoint authorised representatives and to refrain from imposing penalties on companies while the proposal is being considered.
This recommendation does not, in itself, change the rules currently in force.
For Emballageretur members, this means that their obligations remain unchanged for now, although companies engaged in cross-border sales may benefit from simpler administrative requirements in the future.
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