The system participation requirement applies to any party who is the first to place retail and/or grouped packaging filled with goods that typically accumulates as waste with private final consumers after use (referred to as 'packaging subject to system participation' in the Act) onto the German market on a commercial basis (referred to as 'producers' in the Act).

A 'producer' in this context means:

• any party who fills and places onto the German market for the first time empty packaging that typically accumulates with private final consumers (initial distributor);
• any party who imports packaged goods into Germany that typically accumulate with private final consumers, and places them here onto the market for the first time (importer); this can be
  • any party located abroad that ships the goods to Germany;
  • any party located in Germany that orders the delivery.

As a general rule: the party who bears legal responsibility for the goods at the time they cross the border is the 'importer'.

• any party in the mail order company sector who fills and places onto the German market for the first time shipment packaging that typically accumulates with private final consumers (mail order companies or online retailers);
• in the case of service packaging, the final distributor of this packaging can also request, as an exception, that the manufacturer / initial distributor of the empty packaging bears the system participation requirement.

A producer is not required to register if they produce packaging and place it onto the German market as empty packaging.

The material meaning of the term 'producer' goes beyond the interpretation of that term found in practice, namely that only the party producing a product is the producer. There are many circumstances under which a retailer/distributor will be classified as a producer, for example:

• retail companies that have a contract manufacturer produce packaged goods, with the packaging bearing only the name of the retail company ( 'Who is considered to be the distributor in the case of own brands retail?');
• retail companies located outside Germany that export packaging filled with goods to Germany, and that are legally responsible for the goods at the time they cross the border (subject to system participation for primary and shipment packaging);
• retail companies located within Germany that import packaging filled with goods to Germany, and that are legally responsible for the goods at the time they cross the border (subject to system participation for primary and shipment packaging);
• foreign mail order companies that export packaging filled with goods to Germany, and that are legally responsible for the goods at the time they cross the border (subject to system participation for primary and shipment packaging);
• domestic mail order companies that import packaging filled with goods to Germany, and that are legally responsible for the goods at the time they cross the border (subject to system participation for primary and shipment packaging);
• a mail order companythat fills shipment packaging with goods and sends it to final consumers (subject to system participation for the shipment packaging).

In general, online retail is subject to the same provisions as mail order companies ('Examples of 'producers' / initial distributors subject to registration').

'Producers' subject to registration and system participation also include

• online shops located outside of Germany that deliver packaged goods directly to private final consumers in Germany, and
• online retailers located within Germany that take returned products, repair them and send them back to final consumers in their own packaging.

Commissioning fulfilment service providers
The amended version of the Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act – VerpackG), parts of which entered into force on 3 July 2021, contains specific provisions concerning the responsibility of distributors – including mail order companies and online retailers – regarding shipment packaging where fulfilment service providers are used. These provisions can be found in section 7 (7) and section 3 (14c) VerpackG:
In accordance with these provisions, fulfilment service providers who fill shipment packaging subject to system participation packaging with goods are not considered producers within the meaning of the Verpackungsgesetz. Instead, the producer of the shipment packaging is the distributor of the goods who has commissioned the fulfilment service provider. As such, it is the distributor who must register the shipment packaging and ensure its system participation.
The distributor under obligation pursuant to the Verpackungsgesetz will then have to request the information required for system participation – such as the shipment packaging volumes and material types – from their fulfilment service provider. Under section 3 (14c) VerpackG, a fulfilment service provider is anyone offering at least two of the following services for distributors in the course of their business activities: warehousing, packing, addressing and dispatching goods over which they have no ownership. Post, parcel delivery or other forwarding agents are not classified as fulfilment service providers.
Starting 1 July 2022, fulfilment service providers will only be able to provide their fulfilment services if the commissioning distributor has registered in the Packaging Register and the packaging (shipment and product packaging, as applicable) has participated with a system.
Where imports are concerned, special provisions may apply. Please see our subject-specific paper on imports for more information.

Since the registration and system participation requirements are predicated on filling packaging with goods, they do not apply to producers who place empty packaging onto the German market (with the exception of transport packaging and packaging for industrial and large commercial enterprises – see below).

Service packaging is subject to special arrangements. For service packaging, the party filling it and handing it over to final consumers for the first time can request that an upstream distributor undertake registration and participation in a waste management system for the service packaging (to 'What is service packaging?').

The return and recovery requirements for transport packaging and for retail and grouped packaging that typically accumulates as waste in industrial and large commercial enterprise settings after use also apply to the producers/distributors of empty packaging.

Any time a transfer to a third party in the course of business actually occurs, this is considered to be 'placing onto the German market' or 'distribution' within the meaning of the Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act). It is immaterial whether the transfer is in exchange for money or not. System participation is required, for example, for sample goods or giveaways or other complementary transfers of packaged goods, as long as this occurs as part of the practice or promotion of a commercial activity. This includes every transfer that occurs in the course of product distribution. The critical factor is that a third party takes possession of the packaging.

Anyone who has registered or has to register their self-employment as a business, or anyone who generates income from commercial activities, independent work or agriculture and forestry within the meaning of German income tax law, is operating commercially within the meaning of the Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act). Even an individual who claims losses against taxes owing to their activity or computes profit from agriculture and forestry on the basis of average rates (section 13a (6) EStG (Income Tax Act)) is operating commercially.

Further information can be found in our informational booklet on commercial placing onto the German market. FAQ: Commercial placing onto the German market​​​​​​​

In the case of own brands, the legal status of the initial distributor may differ from that of the party who is the first to actually fill the packaging with goods, if a so-called third party commissions the filling. An example for filling/packaging at the instruction of a third party is a retail company that has a contract packager / contract manufacturer fill/package the goods. If the packaging bears only the third party's name or brand, then this third party is the producer subject to registration and system participation. The precise information shown on the packaging is the deciding factor. It is only in cases where the contract packager cannot be ascertained from the packaging that the producer status is transferred to the ordering party (third party).

If the name of the contract packager appears with the phrase 'produced for [name/brand of retail company]', it is the contract packager who is the initial distributor / producer and therefore the party subject to registration and system participation.

Labelling (e.g. as may be required under food law) that does not indicate the name (identifying marker) does not constitute the naming of the contract packager; the third party therefore remains subject to registration and system participation.

Specifications without name attribution (identifying markers such as the approval number or health mark in accordance with Regulation (EC) 853/2004 for foodstuffs or even the registration number of the LUCID Packaging Register) are not considered name attribution within the meaning of section 3 (9) VerpackG. For this reason, identifying markers that refer to a company other than the one mentioned on the packaging cannot rule out application of section 3 (9) VerpackG on their own. Section 3 (9) VerpackG must be applied if the other requirements are met.

If sales packaging is placed onto the German market on behalf of a (retail) company using its (own) brand and/or name without naming the filling company on the packaging, it is the ordering party and not the filling party in that case that is to be classified as the producer / initial distributor if the packaged goods are also handed over to the ordering party. In such cases, the ordering party must undertake system participation and registration and is considered the producer within the meaning of the Verpackungsgesetz.

Identifying markers can often allow conclusions to be drawn through research about the company marked. They typically bear no relevance under packaging law. In any case, further steps are required with identifying markers to determine the company marked. For this reason, if the name of the other company is not indicated, identifying markers do not lead to non-applicability of section 3 (9) VerpackG. Identifying markers are required under food law for some foodstuffs in particular to indicate origin but they bear no relevance under packaging law.

Mandatory specification of names owing to other legal provisions that are not related to producer status under packaging law cannot on their own rule out application of section 3 (9) VerpackG. Section 3 (9) VerpackG must be applied if the other requirements are met.

For transparency reasons, however, the legal provision that requires additional names should be specified, e.g.: "Responsible person under the KosmetikV: [name]".

Additional names specified that differ from the producer under packaging law may be mandatory in part owing to legal provisions, e.g. under the Kosmetikverordnung (Cosmetics Ordinance – KosmetikV). They do not lead to non-applicability of section 3 (9) VerpackG if the additional name attribution bears no relevance under packaging law.

Any party who imports packaged goods that typically accumulate with private final consumers into Germany and places them onto the market here for the first time is subject to registration and system participation. This can be:

• any party located abroad that ships the goods to Germany;
• any party located in Germany that orders the delivery.

As a matter of principle, the party who bears legal responsibility for the goods at the time they cross the border is regarded as the 'importer'.

Further information can be found in our informational booklet on importers.

For printed/publishing products, the producer / initial distributor is generally the publisher or client of the printer where the printed products are produced according to their specifications in terms of both the packaging design (e.g. protective film, catalogue, direct mail packaging) and the design of the printed products. In these cases, it is the publisher or client of the printer who is subject to registration and system participation. It is important that registration and system participation take place before the printed products are placed onto the German market.

For information about when an item qualifies as packaging and which criteria will be applied when determining packaging status, please see our subject-specific paper 'Delineation between packaging and non-packaging'.

Packaging subject to system participation is retail or grouped packaging filled with goods that typically accumulates as waste with private final consumers after use.

Retail packaging is packaging that typically is filled with goods and offered to final consumers in this form. Service packaging and shipment packaging are also retail packaging.

Service packaging is packaging that is not filled with goods until it reaches the final distributor where it is handed over to the final consumer, e.g. sandwich bags at the bakery, takeaway containers at fast food restaurants, carrier bags, takeaway coffee cups.

Further examples include:

• cups for hot beverages, including lids;
• cups for cold beverages; 
• vending machine cups;
• cups for ice cream, milk shakes, spirits, etc.;
• containers and cups for foodstuffs, e.g. soups, smoothies, cereals, popcorn, etc.;
• plates and bowls for soups, combination plates, etc.;
• salad containers, combination meal containers, with or without lids;
• trays and bowls, e.g. for cakes, sausages, salads, chips, etc.;
• combination meal and snack boxes, e.g. lunch boxes, noodle boxes, pizza boxes;
• bags, wrapping, sheets, conical bags, e.g. sandwich bags, thermal bags, wraps, chip bags, etc.;
• produce roll bags, bags, conical bags and wrappings given out in the course of fruit and vegetable retail – in direct sales, weekly markets or in the fruit and vegetable areas of grocery stores;
• bags, sheets, wrappings given out at fresh food counters in stores, artisanal food production businesses or fine food retailers;
• carrier bags of all kinds;
• wrappings and bags given out by laundrettes and dry cleaners;
• netting, flower wrapping, flower foils, wrappings given out by florists, gardening centres or given out with Christmas trees;
• other packaging, including cake doilies, cake toppers, manchettes, carriers, etc.

No. Filling will also be considered to have taken place on the premises of the final distributor if the packaging was not filled directly at the point of sale, but in the nearby vicinity, e.g. in a separate production or work room adjacent to the sales area. The criterion of 'nearby vicinity' is fulfilled if the filling and handing over to the final consumer takes place at the same premises of the final distributor, or up to a few hundred metres from there. It is generally not fulfilled if the filled packaging was transported on a public road between the point of filling and the point of sale / point of handing over to the final consumer. As an example: where packaging is filled centrally and then transported to various branches, 'nearby vicinity' no longer applies. That is to say, the packaging is not classed as service packaging.

Further information about the 'nearby vicinity' criterion can be found in the following informational booklet. FAQ: on 'nearby vicinity' as applies to service packaging (English link coming soon.)

No. Packaging filling may also occur prior to the actual handover to a final consumer. Usually, however, the packaging will be filled at the same time that it is placed onto the German market (handover to the final consumer).

The final distributor can request that one of the upstream distributors of the service packaging (which the final distributor filled with goods) undertakes system participation with a dual system for the service packaging which the upstream distributor delivered unfilled to the final distributor. The registration requirement will then also shift to that upstream distributor. The final distributor of the service packaging is then no longer subject to any further registration or system participation in this regard. However, the final distributor should make sure that an upstream distributor has indeed fully complied with the registration requirement and the system participation requirement. It should also be noted that the final distributor's registration and system participation requirements for other service, retail or grouped packaging remain unaffected.

Ideally, system participation should be documented by the upstream distributor on the invoice / delivery note so that the final distributor always has comprehensive compliance documentation. Alternatively, the final distributor needs another form of appropriate documentation to provide evidence that the upstream distributor has participated the purchased service packaging with a system, in full.

No, that is not possible. The Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act) is intended in particular to be favourable to small artisanal food production businesses, small takeaway food providers and small distributors. They are able to shift the system participation requirement and require a wholesaler or manufacturer to undertake system participation. However, that party in turn does not have a right to shift the requirement onward. Rather, the wholesaler or manufacturer assumes the responsibilities of the 'producer' not only in terms of system participation, but also with regard to volume reporting to the Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister (Central Agency Packaging Register – ZSVR).

Shipment packaging enables or facilitates the shipment of goods to final consumers.

Any party who fills the shipment packaging with goods and places it onto the German market for the first time bears producer responsibility for it. Because the shipment packaging facilitates the delivery of the goods to final consumers, and therefore typically accumulates as waste with final consumers, it is always considered to be retail packaging. If it typically accumulates with private final consumers, the mail order company is subject to system participation.

Commissioning fulfilment service providers
The amended version of the Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act – VerpackG), parts of which entered into force on 3 July 2021, contains specific provisions concerning the responsibility of distributors – including mail order companies and online retailers – regarding shipment packaging where fulfilment service providers are used. These provisions can be found in section 7 (7) and section 3 (14c) VerpackG:
In accordance with these provisions, fulfilment service providers who fill shipment packaging subject to system participation packaging with goods are not considered producers within the meaning of the Verpackungsgesetz. Instead, the producer of the shipment packaging is the distributor of the goods who has commissioned the fulfilment service provider. As such, it is the distributor who must register the shipment packaging and ensure its system participation.
The distributor under obligation pursuant to the Verpackungsgesetz will then have to request the information required for system participation – such as the shipment packaging volumes and material types – from their fulfilment service provider. Under section 3 (14c) VerpackG, a fulfilment service provider is anyone offering at least two of the following services for distributors in the course of their business activities: warehousing, packing, addressing and dispatching goods over which they have no ownership. Post, parcel delivery or other forwarding agents are not classified as fulfilment service providers.
Starting 1 July 2022, fulfilment service providers will only be able to provide their fulfilment services if the commissioning distributor has registered in the Packaging Register and the packaging (shipment and product packaging, as applicable) has participated with a system.
Where imports are concerned, special provisions may apply. Please see our subject-specific paper on imports for more information.

All of the packaging material, including filler material, that is placed onto the German market in the process of sending or handing over goods to the final consumer (where it accumulates as waste) is considered shipment packaging and is subject to data reporting and system participation.

Grouped packaging serves to bundle one or more articles of retail packaging and is typically offered along with the retail units to final consumers or is used to stock retail shelves.

If the grouped packaging typically accumulates as waste with private final consumers, it is subject to system participation and therefore also registration. This is a clarification contained in the Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act) vis-à-vis the Verpackungsverordnung (Packaging Ordinance).

Transport packaging serves to facilitate the transportation of goods between individual distributors, and to prevent damage from occurring during transit. Transport packaging remains at retail shops and is not intended to be handed over along with goods to final consumers. Special return and recovery requirements apply for transport packaging. Registration and system participation requirements do not apply in this regard. If an article of packaging that is meant to facilitate the transportation of goods accumulates with a final consumer, then it is considered to be shipment packaging. This packaging requires the initial distributor to undertake registration and system participation if the packaging typically accumulates as waste with private final consumers.

A final consumer is someone who does not go on to sell the goods in the form delivered to them.

'Private final consumer' means private households and sources of waste generation comparable to them, in terms of the packaging that typically accumulates there.

Examples of comparable sources of waste generation include:

• restaurants, hotels, service stations, canteens;
• administrative offices, barracks, hospitals;
• educational institutions, charitable facilities, freelancer offices;
• cultural sources of waste generation such as cinemas, opera houses, museums;
• leisure sources of waste generation such as holiday facilities, leisure parks, sports stadiums;
• as well as agricultural holdings and craft enterprises where their packaging waste is collected at the rate that is normally associated with private households and in waste bins that do not exceed 1,100 litres each for plastics, metal and composite packaging or paper/paperboard/cardboard.

A list of 'comparable sources of waste generation' can be found in the following document. List of 'comparable sources of waste generation'

(cf. 'What is reusable packaging?', 'What defines non-reusable packaging subject to deposit? Which packaging components are not subject to system participation?')

The Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act) defines reusable packaging as follows:

'Packaging that is intended to be used multiple times for the same purpose and whose actual return and reuse is facilitated by suitable logistics, and encouraged by an appropriate incentive system, usually a deposit.'

All of these constituent elements must be satisfied cumulatively; even the appropriate incentive system is mandatory. Where a producer/distributor sells exclusively reusable packaging, the system participation, registration and recovery requirements do not apply to them.

Yoghurt jar example:

The jars are sold in a shop with a deposit (incentive system). The distributor accepts their return (actual return) and delivers them back to the filling party (reverse logistics). The filling party then cleans the jars, re-fills them with their product and again sells the filled jar to the distributor who offers the yoghurt jar for sale to consumers (reuse). In this situation, all of the elements are satisfied; the packaging is reusable packaging.

Single-use beverage packaging subject to deposit refers to sealed or largely sealed packaging (e.g. not coffee cups with a to-go lid) with a volume of between 0.1 and 3.0 litres that is reusable packaging (cf. 'What is reusable packaging?') and at the same time meets all other requirements set forth in section 31 VerpackG. These requirements are as follows:

(1) The packaging is not explicitly exempt from the deposit requirement due to its design. Exemptions from the deposit requirement insofar apply exhaustively to square, gable-top or cylindrical beverage cartons, or tubular bags for beverages made from polyethylene, or foil stand-up pouches.

(2) The packaging is not explicitly exempt from the deposit requirement due to its contents. Exemptions from the deposit requirement apply, for example, to only a few non-carbonated beverages, i.e. exclusively fruit juices / fruit nectars and vegetable juices / vegetable nectars. Exemptions further apply to milk and, to a limited extent, also to dairy drinks / dairy products as well as to beverages with a specific sparkling wine, wine or other alcoholic content. These exception rules must be interpreted very strictly, and must be verified specifically in individual cases. Beer, water, tea drinks, lemonades, cola drinks, energy drinks or carbonated beverages with fruit content are generally subject to deposit.

(3) The packaging is not an export packaging, i.e. it can be documented that its purpose is not solely to be handed over to final consumers abroad.

As an exception, single-use beverage packaging subject to deposit is not subject to system participation (section 12 VerpackG). This exemption from the system participation requirement applies to packaging aids for closing the single-use beverage packaging subject to deposit, such as screw caps, lids and crown caps. The exemption from the deposit requirement also applies to the labels of single-use beverage packaging subject to deposit, since they are considered to be product components of the beverage packaging.

However, grouped packaging and retail packaging with a bundling function may be subject to system participation, even if the single-use beverage packaging subject to deposit itself is not. This includes, for example, bundling foil, trays, cartons, and bottle crates / bottle carriers (cf. 'When is packaging considered to 'typically' accumulate as waste with private final consumers?'). However, such packaging itself may be defined as reusable packaging (e.g. bottle crates), provided it fulfils the respective requirements (cf. 'What is reusable packaging?').

Whether packaging 'typically' accumulates as waste with private final consumers depends on a forward-looking assumption (ex ante analysis). It does not depend on whether a specific item of packaging can be proven to have accumulated as waste with a private final consumer; a generalised assessment needs to be made.

If an article of packaging usually accumulates with private final consumers, this is considered to be 'typical'. Whether this is or is not the case should be assessed bearing in mind prevailing practice. To this end, objective criteria should be considered, such as the contents of the packaging (who tends to use/consume the goods), the design of the packaging (e.g. its size, closures, dosage aids) and other features (e.g. content volume, material, weight), as well as the typical distribution channel (e.g. retail stores, wholesalers).

However, it must be noted that not only private households are deemed to be private final consumers within the meaning of the Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act), but also sources of waste generation in commercial settings, in the leisure sector and at charitable facilities (cf. 'comparable sources of waste generation').

Examples:

• Flour is sold in a 15-kilogram bag to a small bakery. The bakery does not sell the flour in that form; it uses it to bake bread. The bakery is the final consumer of the flour, and the bag is therefore retail packaging.
• A convenience store sells ice lollies. They are delivered in large transport boxes (which in turn hold several smaller boxes containing the ice lollies). The convenience store sells the goods; however only the ice lolly in its immediate packaging is received by the final consumer. The transport box remains at the convenience store, and is therefore deemed transport packaging. The primary packaging around the ice lolly itself is, however, packaging subject to system participation.

The Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister (Central Agency Packaging Register – ZSVR) has published he 'system participation requirement catalogue' containing the classifications of different types of packaging, taking into consideration the criteria mentioned above. This catalogue is an administrative regulation.

It is possible to apply to the Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister (Central Agency Packaging Register – ZSVR) for a determination about the system participation requirement for a specific packaging. Individual applications will be decided in the form of an administrative act. Please note, however, that the system participation requirement catalogue will answer the most frequently asked classification questions. The catalogue is published as an administrative regulation, and therefore is material for determining the system participation requirement. If you are planning to make an application, please familiarise yourself with the fact sheet and the application forms to find out about the specific requirements. This facilitates processing and avoids delays (application procedure).

The registration requirement applies to packaging subject to system participation. The fact that 'used packaging' is being used does not address the issue of whether the packaging has participated in a system. If the packaging at issue is, for example, a carton that was previously transport packaging ('What is transport packaging?') or retail packaging that was used in an industrial or large commercial enterprise setting, it has not been subject to system participation. If this type of used packaging is then placed onto the German market for the first time, for typical use with private final consumers, then its initial distributor must register and participate the used packaging in a waste management system. Only where a distributor has definite evidence that the packaging they are using has already undergone system participation do the registration and system participation requirements fall away.

The option to use a sector-specific solution instead of system participation provided for in the Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act) is a very narrowly regulated exception to system participation. It only comes into consideration for packaging that accumulates as waste with comparable sources of waste generation. For packaging waste at private households it is not an option.

The key requirements are the following:

• The goods are delivered to a so-called 'comparable source of waste generation' (section 3 (11) VerpackG (Packaging Act)), such as restaurants, barracks, administrative offices.
• The sources of waste generation are supplied directly or via intermediary distributors, and documentation of this can be provided.
• Regular return of the packaging occurs at these sources of waste generation free of charge.
• There is written confirmation of all serviced sources of waste generation, showing their integration in the collection structure.
• A written certification from a registered expert shows that the serviced sources of waste generation are integrated in a free-of-charge collection structure and the returned packaging is recovered pursuant to the requirements of section 16 (1)-(3) VerpackG, in particular with regard to the recycling quotas stipulated.

Further requirements include:

• notifying the Zentrale Stelle Verpackungsregister (Central Agency Packaging Register – ZSVR) of the sector-specific solution before the sector-specific solution begins;
• notifying the ZSVR of all material changes to the sector-specific solution;
• providing a volume flow record annually that complies with the requirements of the Verpackungsgesetz, and a corresponding certification from a registered expert.

If these requirements of the Verpackungsgesetz are not met, the packaging continues to be fully subject to system participation. Non-compliance constitutes an administrative offence and the packaging will be subject to a distribution ban.

Where system participation has not occurred, the products with the relevant packaging are subject to a distribution ban, which also applies to each downstream distributor. In addition, a producer who has committed an administrative offence by failing to undertake system participation may be subject to a fine of up to EUR 200,000.

The provisions of the Verpackungsgesetz (Packaging Act) apply within the Federal Republic of Germany. When packaging is exported outside of its jurisdiction, the Act does not apply. The relevant laws will be the laws of the destination country, which must be observed. EU legal provisions from the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive mean that similar provisions apply throughout EU Member States.

For information about the admissibility of retrospective deductions undertaken by a retailer/redistributor for 'independent' and/or 'unplanned' exports, please see 8.8.