Is There a PPWR Grace Period? What Enforcement Looks Like Six Weeks After 12 August 2026
Is There a Grace Period Under the PPWR?
No. Regulation (EU) 2025/40 contains no general grace period for economic operators. Under Article 71, the Regulation applies from 12 August 2026, with only Article 67(5) applying later, from 12 February 2029. The transitional provisions of Article 70 keep parts of Directive 94/62/EC and certain Decisions in force, without deferring the obligations of economic operators.
Six weeks after 12 August 2026, retailers are asking for one. Our article on what changed on 12 August 2026 covered that day, the Commission FAQ and existing stock. This one covers what has happened since, for retailers, distributors, own-brand owners, importers, brands and converters.
Key Facts
- Regulation (EU) 2025/40 applies from 12 August 2026, under Article 71.
- Under Article 6(1), all packaging placed on the market shall be recyclable, an obligation that has applied since 12 August 2026, transport packaging included.
- By 12 February 2027, Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of Regulation (EU) 2025/40, under Article 68(1).
- Under Article 15(9), the obligation to bring into conformity, withdraw or recall packaging believed not to be in conformity with Articles 5 to 12 does not apply to reusable packaging placed on the market before 11 February 2025.
- Article 39(2) provides that the EU declaration of conformity has the model structure set out in Annex VIII, contains the elements specified in the module in Annex VII, and is continuously updated.
- Our dated PPWR referential (baseline reviewed 15 September 2026) confirms the second and fifth lines; the others are read on the linked text.
What Are Retailers Asking For, and Has Anyone Answered?
Two retail trade associations have asked for a PPWR grace period. EuroCommerce asked on 24 June 2026 for a minimum 12-month grace period. The German retail federation HDE asked on 16 September 2026 for an EU-wide grace period until 1 January 2028. We found no published answer from the Commission or a Member State government by 23 September 2026.
The HDE release calls the period a Schonfrist and an Übergangsfrist. The HDE asks that enforcement backed by sanctions be suspended, with no fines, sales bans, withdrawals or other burdensome measures, for companies that can show they have started implementing. The HDE's reason is that essential technical specifications, assessment methods, standards and guidelines are not yet complete. A grace period is a clearly delimited period in which certain legal consequences do not yet occur although an original deadline has passed, according to the release.
EuroCommerce, writing for retailers and wholesalers, wanted its 12 months focused on guidance and support rather than enforcement and punitive action. At the Environment Council of 25 June 2026, eight Member States highlighted implementation challenges, according to the Council. Six of them, in Council document ST 10712/26, asked the Commission for a consolidated timeline of delegated and implementing acts and a common approach to compliance and enforcement, without using the words grace period or postponement.
On 11 August 2026, the Commission wrote that it is advancing its work swiftly to put forward the necessary secondary legislation in time. Our articles on which obligations wait on a delegated act and on two petitions and the Commission's reply cover the pending acts and an earlier exchange about fines.
What Does the Regulation Say About Packaging Made or Stocked Before 12 August 2026?
Under Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) 2025/40, only compliant packaging may be placed on the market. Recital 14 states that packaging already placed on the Union market before the date of application of relevant requirements and in the stocks of distributors, including retailers and wholesalers, should not need to meet the sustainability and labelling requirements.
Placing on the market is the first making available of packaging, whether empty or with a product, on the Union market, under Article 3(1)(10). The Commission FAQ, second edition, published on 3 August 2026, adds in section X, question 5, that packaging placed on the market before 12 August 2026 can remain on the market, even if it is non-compliant with PPWR. The FAQ is guidance.
Article 15(9), set out in the Key Facts, is the one exception in the operative text tied to the date of placing on the market, and 11 February 2025 is the date of entry into force. Article 10(2)(a) and Annex VI refer to that date for other purposes, and neither is a grace period.
Article 70 repeals Directive 94/62/EC with effect from 12 August 2026, with the exceptions and dates below, and none of them suspends an obligation that Regulation (EU) 2025/40 places on economic operators.
| Provision | What stays in force, or ends | Until |
|---|---|---|
| Article 70(1)(a) | Article 8(2) of Directive 94/62/EC | 30 months from the entry into force of the Article 12(6) implementing act |
| Article 70(1)(b) | Article 9(1) and (2) of the Directive, for the essential requirements of point 1, first indent, of its Annex II | 31 December 2029 |
| Article 70(1)(c) | Articles 5(2) and (3), 6(1)(d) and (e) and 6a of the Directive | 31 December 2028 |
| Article 70(1)(d) | Article 12(3a) to (4) of the Directive | 31 December 2028, and 31 December 2029 for data sent to the Commission |
| Article 70(2) | Decision 97/129/EC | Repealed from 12 August 2028 |
| Article 70(3) | Decisions 2001/171/EC and 2009/292/EC on derogations for glass packaging and plastic crates and pallets | Until repealed by delegated acts under Article 5(8) |
| Article 70(4) | National restrictions on the formats and uses in points 2 and 3 of Annex V | 1 January 2030, where maintained |
Who Enforces the PPWR Today, and How?
Market surveillance authorities and other national authorities enforce Regulation (EU) 2025/40. Article 58 governs packaging presenting a risk, and Article 62 governs formal non-compliance, such as a missing EU declaration of conformity. Both articles first require the economic operator to correct the non-compliance, with further measures where it persists, but serious risks can call for rapid intervention.
Article 66 adds Regulation (EU) 2025/40 to Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 on market surveillance, which recital 168 calls a horizontal framework. Packaging presenting a risk is packaging that, by not complying with a requirement other than those listed in Article 62(1), could adversely affect the environment, health or other public interests, under Article 3(1)(68). Formal non-compliance, the heading of Article 62, covers the fourteen cases of its paragraph 1.
| Procedure | First step | If the non-compliance persists |
|---|---|---|
| Article 58, packaging presenting a risk | Evaluation, then corrective measures within a reasonable period | Provisional measures to prohibit making available, withdraw or recall, under Article 58(5) |
| Article 62(1)(a) to (f): declaration, data carrier, technical documentation, contact details, other administrative requirements of Articles 15 and 18 | Order to put an end to the non-compliance | Prohibition of making available, recall or withdrawal, under Article 62(2) |
| Article 62(1)(g) to (n): Articles 6, 7, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 32 and 33 | Order to put an end to the non-compliance | National rules on penalties under Article 68, as Article 62(3) provides |
Article 58(1) applies without prejudice to Article 19 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020. Under Article 3(1)(69), packaging presenting a serious risk is packaging whose non-compliance or harm is considered to require rapid intervention. Under Article 39(5), competent authorities endeavour to control the accuracy of at least part of the declarations of conformity per year, on a risk-based approach.
When Do National Penalties Apply?
National penalty rules for Regulation (EU) 2025/40 are due by 12 February 2027, the date by which Article 68 requires Member States to lay down and notify them. Under Article 68(1), the penalties must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. Under Article 68(2), the penalties for failure to comply with Articles 24 to 29 include administrative fines.
12 February 2027 is a deadline for Member States, not the start of the obligations: the Regulation has applied since 12 August 2026, under Article 71. Under Article 62(3), a persistent formal non-compliance under points (g) to (n) leads to the rules on penalties laid down under Article 68. The measures of Articles 58 and 62(2), which concern the packaging itself, are written without reference to Article 68.
The table records the status of two national texts, read on official pages on 23 September 2026, and quotes no penalty amount.
| Member State | Official text | Status read on 23 September 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Germany | Act adapting packaging law to Regulation (EU) 2025/40, presented by the federal environment ministry as the VerpackDG | Adopted by the Bundestag on 11 June 2026; published in the Federal Law Gazette on 17 July 2026, BGBl. 2026 I No 207; in effect with the PPWR since 12 August 2026, according to the ministry |
| Poland | Draft act on packaging and packaging waste, UC100, Ministry of Climate and Environment | Adoption by the Council of Ministers planned for the third quarter of 2026 in the government work plan, entry updated on 17 August 2026 |
What Should a Company Be Able to Show an Inspector Now?
The documents a company should hold depend on its role under Regulation (EU) 2025/40. A manufacturer holds the EU declaration of conformity and the Annex VII technical documentation. An importer holds a copy of the declaration and access to the documentation. A distributor can show the checks of Article 19(2). A producer can show its registration under Article 44.
| Role | What to be able to show | Provision |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer, including a retailer or importer selling under its own name or trademark | Declaration of conformity and Annex VII technical documentation, kept 5 years, or 10 years for reusable packaging, supplied within 10 days of a reasoned request | Articles 15, 21 and 39 |
| Importer | Its checks on the conformity assessment and technical documentation, and a copy of the declaration, kept 5 years, or 10 years for reusable packaging | Article 18 |
| Distributor, retailer or wholesaler | Its checks that the producer is registered and that manufacturer and importer identification and contact details are present | Article 19(2) and (6) |
| Supplier of packaging or packaging materials, often the converter | Information and documentation the manufacturer needs to demonstrate conformity | Article 16(1) |
| Producer under extended producer responsibility | Registration in each Member State where it first makes packaging available | Articles 44 and 45 |
| Every economic operator | Who supplied it and whom it supplied, on request of market surveillance authorities | Article 22 |
The HDE proposal would protect companies that can show they have started implementing; the documents in the table are the ones Regulation (EU) 2025/40 names. Our guides to the Annex VII technical documentation and to producer registration across EU markets describe both files.
What Does the Referential Not Confirm?
Our dated PPWR referential (baseline reviewed 15 September 2026) confirms Key Facts two and five. Its claim check found no match for the points below, read on the Official Journal text or the official page cited.
- Article 71 and its dates; entry into force on 11 February 2025; Articles 3(1)(10), (68) and (69), 4(1), 10(2)(a), 15, 16(1), 18, 19, 21, 22, 39(5), 44, 45, 58, 62, 66, 68 and 70; recitals 14 and 168; Annex VI, Part A, point 1.
- Four readings: the Regulation contains no general grace period; no row of Article 70 suspends an operator obligation; Article 15(9) is the one exception tied to the date of placing on the market; Articles 58 and 62(2) are written without reference to Article 68.
- Statements about the HDE, EuroCommerce, the Council, the Commission FAQ and news item, Germany and Poland, read on 23 September 2026; each may change, and nothing here is legal advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Commission FAQ create a grace period?
No. The Commission FAQ on the PPWR describes itself as intended to assist economic operators, national authorities and citizens. Article 71 of Regulation (EU) 2025/40 sets 12 August 2026 as the date of application.
Is 12 February 2027 the real start of enforcement?
No. 12 February 2027 is the deadline for national penalty rules under Article 68 of Regulation (EU) 2025/40. The orders to correct under Articles 58 and 62 do not refer to that date.
What if the supplier of packaging made before 12 August 2026 no longer exists?
The Commission FAQ, section X, question 6, says that the manufacturer must make best efforts to provide missing or insufficient information for packaging manufactured before 12 August 2026, for example by requesting it from the former supplier.
How PPWR Connect Helps
PPWR Connect is software: it is not a market surveillance authority, a notified body, a producer responsibility organisation or a legal adviser. A supplier PDF such as a test report, a certificate or a datasheet is read by the platform and filed as evidence against the SKU for the Declaration of Conformity. Since 24 August 2026, each recorded value keeps where it came from: manual entry, import or supplier document. Since 13 September 2026, the Impact screen lists the declarations of conformity touched by a data change, and each EPR declaration records the inputs it was computed from. The PPWR Connect Academy includes a course titled Audit Preparation & Enforcement. To find packaging that still lacks a declaration of conformity or its evidence, start with our PPWR compliance software or the PPWR readiness assessment.
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Rutherford (rutherford.fr) develops production control software for offset printers and converters, including ColorLoop. Veoria (veoria.com) develops inline colour measurement for label and packaging presses, including DeltaOne.