The PPWR legislation rolls out over fifteen years. One date is known — 12 August 2026 — and it overshadows the rest. That is a shame, because the dates that matter for your planning lie elsewhere.
Below is the full timeline, with the article that governs each milestone.
12 August 2026
- Algemene toepassingsdatum PPWR Source: Art. 71(3) PPWR
- Producent: Declaration of Conformity + technisch dossier Source: Art. 3 + Art. 15 PPWR
- Importeur: controleer de DoC van de fabrikant uit een derde landprovisional Source: Art. 18 PPWR
- Distributeur: controleer label- en identificatie-eisenprovisional Source: Art. 19 PPWR
- Fulfilment-dienstverlener: due-diligence op producent/importeurprovisional Source: Art. 45 PPWR
- EPR-vertegenwoordiger verplicht buiten je vestigingsland Source: Art. 45(2) PPWR; VerpackG §35
- Verpakkingsminimalisatie — minimaal gewicht/volume Source: Art. 10 + Annex IV(A) + Annex VII PPWR
- Horeca on-site: alle dranken in herbruikbare/refillbare verpakking Source: Art. 29(5) PPWR
- Verplichte EPR-registratie per lidstaat (NL: Verpact, DE: LUCID) Source: Art. 44 + Art. 45 PPWR
- PFAS-verbod in food-contact verpakking Source: Art. 5(1)(a) + Annex II §2 PPWR
- Som zware metalen (lood + cadmium + kwik + Cr VI) ≤100 mg/kg Source: Art. 5(2) + Annex II §1 PPWR
- Géén algemene PPWR-vrijstelling voor MKB Source: PPWR (diverse artikelen)
12 February 2028
- Take-away: reusable-optie verplicht aanbieden Source: Art. 33 PPWR
12 August 2028
- Geharmoniseerd materiaal-/sorteer-label op alle verpakking Source: Art. 12(1)-(4) PPWR
- Verbod op misleidende of botsende nationale labels (bv. Triman) Source: Art. 12(8) PPWR
1 January 2029
- Verplichte DRS voor PET-flessen en metalen blikjes ≤3 L Source: Art. 50 PPWR
- Verplichte eco-modulatie van EPR-tarieven op recyclability-grade Source: Art. 45(6) jo. Art. 6 PPWR
12 February 2029
- Reusable-label + QR-code op herbruikbare verpakking Source: Art. 12(5) PPWR
1 January 2030
- Min. grade C vanaf 2030 (≥70% recyclebaar per gewicht)provisional Source: Art. 6(1)-(2) + Annex II PPWR
- Min. 30% recyclaat — PET food-contact — 2030 Source: Art. 7(1)(a) PPWR
- Min. 10% recyclaat — non-PET food-contact — 2030 Source: Art. 7(1)(b) PPWR
- Min. 30% recyclaat — single-use drankflessen — 2030 Source: Art. 7(1)(c) PPWR
- Min. 35% recyclaat — overige kunststof (non-contact) — 2030 Source: Art. 7(1)(d) PPWR
- Lege-ruimte-ratio max. 50% (groep-, transport-, e-commerce-verpakking) Source: Art. 24(1)-(3) PPWR
- Annex V #1 — verbod SUP groeperingsverpakking (krimpfolie) Source: Art. 25(1) + Annex V #1 PPWR
- Annex V #2 — verbod SUP-verpakking verse groente/fruit <1,5 kg Source: Art. 25(1) + Annex V #2 PPWR
- Annex V #3 — verbod SUP-verpakking voor on-site food & drank Source: Art. 25(1) + Annex V #3 PPWR
- Annex V #4 — verbod SUP-porties kruiden/saus/suiker/melk in horeca Source: Art. 25(1) + Annex V #4 PPWR
- Annex V #5 — verbod single-use miniaturen cosmetica/toilet in hotels Source: Art. 25(1) + Annex V #5 PPWR
- Annex V #6 — verbod zeer lichte plastic draagtassen <15 micron Source: Art. 25(1) + Annex V #6 PPWR
- Drankverpakking: 10% herbruikbaar in 2030, 40% in 2040 Source: Art. 29(1)-(3) PPWR
- Transportverpakking (pallets, kratten, IBC): 40% (2030) / 70% (2040) Source: Art. 29(6)-(7) PPWR
- E-commerce verzendverpakking: 40% (2030) / 70% (2040)provisional Source: Art. 29 PPWR
1 January 2035
- "Recyclable at scale" vanaf 2035provisional Source: Art. 6(6) PPWR
1 January 2038
- Min. grade B vanaf 2038; grade C verbodenprovisional Source: Art. 6(5) PPWR
1 January 2040
- Min. 50% recyclaat — PET food-contact — 2040 Source: Art. 7(2)(a) PPWR
- Min. 25% recyclaat — non-PET food-contact — 2040 Source: Art. 7(2)(b) PPWR
- Min. 65% recyclaat — single-use drankflessen — 2040 Source: Art. 7(2)(c) PPWR
- Min. 65% recyclaat — overige kunststof — 2040 Source: Art. 7(2)(d) PPWR
Three kinds of dates
Anyone who reads through the timeline sees three different things mixed together.
Obligations that take effect. 12 August 2026, 1 January 2030, 1 January 2038. These are the dates on which you must be able to demonstrate something or something may no longer be placed on the market.
Dates on which the EU fills in the details. By 31 December 2026 at the latest comes the methodology for recycled content. By 1 January 2028 at the latest, the criteria and measurement method for recyclability. By 12 February 2028 at the latest, the methodology for the empty-space ratio. By 12 February 2027 at the latest, the guidance on the banned formats.
These are the most important dates in the whole table, and they appear in no marketing summary whatsoever. Until they appear, you cannot definitively finalise a redesign: you do not know what you will be tested against. Once they appear, everyone knows at the same time and the entire market turns up at the same suppliers at once.
National milestones that persist alongside the PPWR. The German EWKFondsG, the Dutch deposit on cans, the SUP litter levy. The PPWR does not replace them. See the Netherlands and Germany.
Not sure whether this applies to your packaging? The PPWR Check walks through your role, market and material in eight questions and shows per pillar what applies to you. Take the PPWR Check →
What this means for your planning
The heavy obligations sit in 2030. The decisions that make them possible, you take in 2026 and 2027.
A material switch from laminate to mono-material easily takes eighteen months from first conversation to first production run: finding a supplier, sample, shelf-life test, line test, print form, selling off old stock. Anyone starting in 2029 with packaging that does not reach class C is too late — not because of the law, but because of the lead time.
The same sum applies to print forms. Between 2026 and 2029 what has to appear on your packaging changes three times: manufacturer details and identification number in 2026, the harmonised label in 2028, the reusable QR code in 2029. See labelling.
Three print-form changes, or one, depending on how far ahead you look.
Where the timeline can still shift
The regulation itself is fixed. What can move:
- The delegated acts have deadlines, not guaranteed dates. They may come later than the regulation prescribes. The obligation attached to them does not automatically shift with them.
- Member states may be stricter and grant exemptions on certain points. For the banned formats there is an exemption option on grounds of hygiene, food safety or the environment.
- The Commission published guidance and an extensive FAQ on 30 March 2026. These do not change the regulation, but they do change the interpretation of definitions and obligations. At that moment they were formally not yet adopted; publication in the Official Journal was expected shortly. Take the regulation text as your starting point and use the guidance to test your interpretation — not the other way around.