Digital product passports: what EU sellers need to know
Over the next few years, many physical products sold in the European Union will carry a digital product passport: a scannable code linking to a record of what the product is made of, where it came from, how to repair it and how to recycle it. The first hard deadline is close, the infrastructure has just gone live, and UK businesses that sell into the EU are not exempt.
What a product passport is
A passport is structured product information, held digitally and reached through a data carrier on the product or its packaging — usually a QR code. Depending on the product it can include materials and their origin, carbon footprint, repair and spare-part information, substances of concern, and end-of-life instructions. Different people see different layers: a customer sees what helps them use and repair the product; a recycler or regulator sees more.
The legal basis is the EU's Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), in force since July 2024, together with specific rules for batteries.
The dates that matter
- 20 July 2026: the European Commission's central DPP Registry became operational, alongside the technical standards passports must follow.
- 18 February 2027: battery passports become mandatory for electric-vehicle batteries, batteries for light means of transport such as e-bikes and e-scooters, and industrial batteries over 2 kWh.
- From 2027 onwards: other product groups follow as the Commission adopts rules for each. Textiles, steel, aluminium, tyres, furniture and electronics are among the groups named, with each getting its own requirements and timeline.
A related ESPR rule has already started: since July 2026, large companies may not destroy unsold clothing and footwear. Small and micro businesses are exempt, and medium-sized ones have until 2030.
Does it apply to a UK business?
It applies to products placed on the EU market, wherever the seller is based. If you ship goods to EU customers in one of the covered categories, the product will need a passport once that category's rules take effect, and the responsibility generally sits with whoever places it on the EU market. The detail depends on your role — manufacturer, importer, distributor, or online seller shipping direct — so take specific advice before a deadline that affects you.
For most small UK sellers today, the honest position is: not yet, but probably eventually, depending on what you sell.
What to do now, whatever you sell
The regulation is new; the underlying discipline is not. A passport is simply accurate, structured product data — and that is worth having for reasons that have nothing to do with Brussels.
- Get your product data in order. Materials, dimensions, weights, care and repair information, supplier and origin — in one structured place, not scattered across supplier PDFs and your memory.
- Ask your suppliers what they can give you. Much of the passport data originates upstream. Suppliers who can already provide it will be the easy ones to work with.
- Watch your category. Rules arrive product group by product group. Know which group you are in and when its rules are expected.
- If you sell e-bikes, scooters or their batteries, February 2027 is your date, and it is close. Talk to your battery supplier now.
Why this is more than paperwork
Structured, trustworthy product data is becoming the currency of online selling. The same information feeds search results, shopping feeds, AI shopping agents and now regulators. A seller who can answer “what is this made of and how do I repair it” with a scan will also be the seller a careful customer chooses.
Selling into Europe raises other obligations too — the European Accessibility Act being the other one UK sellers most often miss — and international SEO covers being found there in the first place. If you want your product data structured properly on your store, book a free call.
Sources
Researched, written and published by Aftab Ahmad, owner of Seven Layers.