This FAQ was created for informational purposes only, and does not, nor is intended to, constitute or be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. Should merchants require assistance or have any questions concerning these regulations, their independent obligations/duties, or related to the subject matter or information in this FAQ, please reach out to EU legal counsel.
A. France
Currently, merchants selling applicable categories of products into France on Wish must comply with Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program requirements by ensuring they have valid EPR registration number(s) (also known as Unique Identification Numbers (UINs)) for applicable product categories. Merchants are also currently required to provide these EPR registration number(s) to Wish for applicable France-bound products to comply with Merchant Policy 13. In-scope product categories include Packaging, Batteries, Electronic and Electronic Equipment (EEE), and more.
Additionally, please note that merchants shipping applicable France-bound products are required to include the Triman Logo on these products (with related, dedicated information on the modalities of sorting the waste) to comply with France EPR program requirements and Merchant Policy 13. See here for more information on Triman Logo requirements.
B. Germany
Merchants selling applicable categories of products into Germany on Wish must take action due to upcoming Germany EPR program requirements. Specifically, to comply with Merchant Policy 13, merchants must do the following:
-
Provide an EPR registration number and relevant Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) information to Wish by July 1, 2022 for applicable Germany-bound products within the Packaging product category.
-
Provide EPR registration numbers to Wish for applicable Germany-bound products within the Electronic and Electronic Equipment (EEE) January 1, 2023.
Please note that per current Germany EPR program requirements, there is no deadline for submitting EPR registration numbers for products within the Batteries category. However, merchants are strongly encouraged to procure EPR registration numbers for the Batteries product category as soon as possible and submit these to Wish.
C. Other Countries:
Additional countries, including Belgium, Portugal, and the United Kingdom, may be subject to EPR program requirements later in 2022. Please stay tuned for follow-up announcements with more details on these obligations.
See below for more information on EPR program requirements, including how to obtain EPR registration numbers.
1. What is EPR?
EPR is an environmental scheme that makes a producer (see definition below) responsible for the entire life cycle of the products that they introduce on the market, from their production and design through waste management and disposal, and enables EU Member States to set up EPR schemes for determining producer responsibility. Overall, EPR program requirements aim to improve the quality of the environment by preventing and reducing the impact of packaging and packaging waste, electronic products, batteries, and other types of products on the environment.
2. How do I know if I am considered a producer, according to EPR program requirements?
Producers are considered to be the party that first places a product subject to EPR program requirements within the applicable country, either by manufacturing this product domestically or importing products. Please note that being a producer is not directly equivalent to being a manufacturer.
For the Packaging product category, merchants are considered producers if they first place packaging products that are filled with goods and typically accumulate as waste with private final consumers on the relevant local market on a commercial basis. Therefore, if merchants’ products contain any type of packaging (including secondary packaging for shipment to the final customer), they are considered producers.
For other applicable product categories, merchants are considered producers if:
- A product that they manufacture is subject to EPR program requirements within the country they are selling to; OR
- They import a product subject to EPR program requirements into the country they are selling to; OR
- They sell a product subject to EPR program requirements in a country and they are not established in that country
France and Germany have implemented laws for producers to comply with EU Regulations and their EPR program requirements. Producers subject to EPR program requirements in France (currently) and Germany (starting July 1, 2022) are required to register with the relevant Producer Responsibility Organizations (PROs - also known as Producer Compliance Schemes or eco-organizations) and/or agencies for each applicable in-scope product type or category to be granted an EPR registration number.
A. France
If merchants are unsure if they are considered to be a producer in France, please refer to the definitions as set out in the French Environmental Code, art. L. 541-10, R. 543-54, R543-125 and R543-174 (more information here).
B. Germany
If merchants are unsure if they are considered to be a producer in Germany, please refer to the definitions as set out in the below links:
- Packaging:
- EEE:
- Batteries:
3. How do I comply with EPR program requirements?
To be compliant with EPR program requirements, applicable merchants shipping relevant France-bound products (currently) and Germany-bound products (starting July 1, 2022) will be required to take certain actions. See below:
Step 1: Registration
A. France
If merchants are considered to be a producer of applicable France-bound products, they must register for an EPR registration number(s) directly with the French administrative authority (i.e. “Ademe”) or indirectly through the relevant PROs (see Question 6 below) for applicable product categories now to comply with EPR program requirements for France. They must also provide their EPR registration number for applicable product categories to Wish. See Question 4 below for details on providing this number to Wish.
If merchants are NOT considered to be a producer of applicable France-bound products and they do NOT have an EPR registration number, they must obtain the EPR registration number from their direct supplier, the importer into France, and/or a locally registered producer from within their supply chain in France. Merchants must also provide the EPR registration number for applicable product categories to Wish. See Question 4 below for details on providing this number to Wish.
B. Germany
For Packaging, merchants considered to be producers of applicable Germany-bound products are required to register with both the Central Agency Packaging Register (ZSVR) and a PRO to comply with EPR program requirements. Merchants may first register with the ZSVR via the LUCID Packaging Register to obtain their Packaging EPR registration number. For a step-by-step walkthrough of how to register with LUCID, please see the document attached at the end of this article titled "How to guide_Registration in LUCID.pdf". After, merchants must register with a PRO (using their Packaging EPR registration number). Wish has partnered with the LandBell Group, a PRO, to assist merchants in complying with associated EPR program requirements. Wish merchants are strongly encouraged to register with the Landbell Group as their Packaging PRO here, as they will receive a discount on Landbell Group’s services.
For EEE and Batteries, merchants considered to be a producer of applicable Germany-bound products are only required to register through the Stiftung EAR agency to comply with EPR program requirements. However, we strongly recommend merchants utilize an Authorized Representative (AR) to register, as ARs offer significant support to merchants throughout the process. We strongly encourage merchants to utilize the Landbell Group as their AR to register, as Wish merchants will receive a discount on Landbell Group’s services. Merchants can initiate the registration process by filling out the downloadable template attached at the end of this article titled "EPR Compliance Onboarding Form_WEEE_Batt_Wish.xlsx" and sending it to wish-weeebatt-germany@landbellgroup.com. Merchants may reach out to the Landbell Group directly for more information on their fees and registration process. After successfully registering, merchants will receive their EEE and/or Batteries EPR registration number.
After successfully obtaining an EPR registration number for relevant product categories, merchants can proceed with submitting this information to Wish via our Merchant Dashboard intake portal or API, when this portal launches prior to July 1, 2022.
Step 2: Declaration & Reporting
Regardless of producer status, if you are shipping applicable France or Germany-bound products, you are required to declare your sales of applicable products covered by the various EPR categories to the respective PROs for the applicable reporting period.
Step 3: Payment
Regardless of producer status, if you are shipping applicable France or Germany-bound products, you are required to pay eco-contributions to the relevant PROs. The PRO will define eco-contributions based on the EPR product category and device type (e.g., refrigerator, chair, TV, etc), product attributes (e.g., packaging material), and number and/or weight of units sold.
Please reach out to associated PROs for more information on the above actions and EPR program requirements, including deadlines and potential consequences for not being in compliance.
4. How do I provide my EPR registration number(s) to Wish?
A. France
Wish launched an official intake channel to receive France EPR registration numbers via Merchant Dashboard and API on February 22, 2022. See this guide for more information on how to submit EPR registration numbers via these channels.
B. Germany
Wish will be launching an official intake channel to receive Germany EPR registration numbers via Merchant Dashboard and API prior to July 1, 2022. Please stay tuned for a follow-up announcement closer to this launch date.
5. What happens if I don’t provide my EPR registration number(s) to Wish?
A. France
Currently, merchants selling applicable France-bound products who fail to provide relevant EPR registration number(s) to Wish will be considered to be in violation of Merchant Policy 13. Merchants in violation may be blocked from selling products into France, and may be subject to other consequences, until they provide relevant EPR registration number(s) to Wish. Additionally, merchants may face infractions imposed by the French regulatory authorities if they currently do not have EPR registration number(s) for applicable France-bound products.
Newly joining Wish merchants will be automatically blocked from selling in-scope products (within applicable categories) into France, unless they provide relevant EPR registration number(s) to Wish via Merchant Dashboard or API (see this guide for more information).
B. Germany
Merchants who do not submit their Germany EPR registration numbers to Wish for Packaging by July 1, 2022, and for EEE by January 1, 2023, will be in violation of Merchant Policy 13. These merchants may be blocked from selling in-scope products into Germany, based on these deadlines, until they provide an EPR registration number to Wish. Additionally, merchants may face infractions imposed by the German regulatory authorities if they do not have an EPR registration number(s) for these product categories by these deadlines.
6. What product categories are covered by EPR program requirements and require an EPR registration number?
Product categories covered by EPR program requirements are notably:
France
- Packaging (including Primary packaging (products’ own packaging), and Secondary packaging (shipping packaging))
- Domestic Packaging Waste
- Batteries*
- Waste portable batteries and accumulators
- Automotive batteries and accumulators
- Industrial batteries and accumulators
- Electric and Electronic Equipment (EEE)
- Domestic waste EEE
- Professional waste EEE
- Furniture
- Tires
- Paper
- Textiles
*If merchants sell an EEE product containing a battery, they may need to register for both EEE and Battery EPR registration numbers.
Germany
Required starting July 1, 2022:
- Packaging (including Primary packaging (products’ own packaging), and Secondary packaging (shipping packaging))
Required starting January 1, 2023:
- Electric and Electronic Equipment (EEE)
Currently not required:
- Batteries*
*If merchants sell an EEE product containing a battery, they may need to register for both EEE and Battery EPR registration numbers.
7. Which PROs can I register with to obtain my EPR registration number for applicable product categories?
Wish has partnered with the LandBell Group, a PRO, to assist merchants in complying with associated EPR program requirements. See the below link for more information:
For a list of relevant PROs and agencies per EPR Product Category for France and Germany that merchants may register with to obtain an EPR registration number(s), see the below tables.
France:
|
EPR Product Category |
Producer Responsibility Organization |
|
Electric and Electronic Equipment (EEE) |
|
|
Batteries* |
|
|
Packaging |
|
|
Paper |
|
|
Furniture |
|
|
Textiles |
|
|
Tires |
*If merchants sell an EEE product containing a battery, they may need to register for both EEE and Battery EPR registration numbers.
Germany:
|
EPR Product Categories |
German Government Agency |
Producer Responsibility Organization |
|
Packaging |
https://lucid.verpackungsregister.org/ | |
| Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) | https://www.ear-system.de/ear-portal/#no-back |
|
|
Batteries* |
*If merchants sell an EEE product containing a battery, they may need to register for both EEE and Battery EPR registration numbers.
8. Where can I find more information on EPR compliance?
For more information on EPR compliance for France, refer to the following websites:
- https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jorf/id/JORFTEXT000041553759/
- https://www.ecologie.gouv.fr/cadre-general-des-filieres-responsabilite-elargie-des-producteurs
- https://www.ademe.fr/expertises/dechets/elements-contexte/filieres-a-responsabilite-elargie-producteurs-rep
For more information on EPR compliance for Germany, we encourage merchants to get familiar with the respective laws (ElektroG and VerPackG) and refer to the following websites:
- https://www.verpackungsregister.org/en/lucid-packaging-register/about-the-packaging-register/registration-at-a-glance
- https://www.stiftung-ear.de/en/topics/elektrog/producers-ar/registration
- https://www.stiftung-ear.de/en/topics/elektrog/producers-ar/faqs-producers-ar
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