What Article 7 requires
Plastic packaging components — and only plastic ones — must contain a minimum percentage of post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic from 1 Jan 2030, or three years after the Article 7(8) implementing act enters into force, whichever is later. The thresholds sit in the article itself, at 7(1) for 2030 and 7(2) for 2040; the 2040 figures are not confirmed on primary sources. Compliance is measured as an average per manufacturing plant and per year, not per unit. Plastic parts under 5% of the unit weight are exempt (Art. 7(5)).
When Article 7 applies
One line per dated paragraph. Applies — the date has passed. Firm — written in the regulation, nothing in the pipeline can push it back. Conditional — a floor: the obligation starts on that date, or a set number of months after the act it waits on enters into force, whichever is later.
| Paragraph | Date | What starts | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art. 7 | Minimum recycled content in plastic packaging | Conditionalor 36 months after the Article 7(8) implementing act enters into force — whichever is later — Act not adopted (2026-09-02) |
Related articles
Read the text
Article 7 on EUR-Lex · Regulation (EU) 2025/40, full text
Legal review of 2026-09-02
Each date above is a literal read from the regulation or the Commission guidance, never derived by arithmetic from entry into force. A date present in the reference with no entry in the catalogue fails our build.