Abfall: Verpackungen - Rücknahme und Entsorgungspflicht; Vollständigkeitserklärung abgeben

If you, as a manufacturer, importer or distributor, also as a mail order or Internet retailer, place packaging filled with goods on the market for the first time, which is typically produced by private end consumers, this packaging must be licensed under dual systems. The dual systems then organise the collection of the corresponding packaging waste from the private end consumer and its recycling for your packaging placed on the market. Packaging may only be placed on the market once dealers or distributors have participated in one (or more) dual systems. Alternatively, under certain conditions, you can also take back the sales packaging as part of an industry solution in accordance with § 8 of the Packaging Act.

Sales packaging is packaging made of any materials, which is offered together with the product as a sales unit and accrues to the end consumer. Sales packaging is also packaging for trade, gastronomy and other services that enable or support the transfer of goods to the end consumer (service packaging) as well as disposable tableware.

In addition to households/private households, the following sources of origin are also considered to be private end consumers:

• Restaurants and hotels
• Canteens
• Administrations
• Barracks
• Hospitals
• Educational and charitable institutions
• Freelancer
• accumulation points of the cultural and leisure sector (e.g. cinemas, operas, museums, holiday resorts, amusement parks, sports stadiums, service areas) and
• Craft businesses and agricultural businesses whose packaging quantities (paper, cardboard, cardboard and lightweight packaging) can be disposed of per substance group via a waste container with a maximum volume of 1,100 litres.

According to § 11 of the Packaging Act, there is also an obligation to file a declaration of completeness electronically with the Central Packaging Register by 15 May of each year for all sales packaging that was placed on the market for the first time in the previous calendar year if the quantities defined in § 11 (4) of the Packaging Act are exceeded. The declaration of completeness must be deposited by the "Erst-In-Verkehr-Bringer". These are companies that are the first in Germany to bring packaged goods into the retail market, i.e. a manufacturer or distributor, but also an importer. Before filing, the declaration of completeness must be validated by a registered auditor, tax advisor, sworn accountant or registered expert via a qualified digital signature.

The declaration of completeness includes information for sales packaging, broken down by material types: glass, paper, cardboard, cardboard, aluminium, tinplate, plastics, composite materials. According to § 10 Abs. 4 a declaration of completeness must be submitted by establishments which, per annum,

• more than 80 tonnes of glass or
• more than 50 tonnes of paper/cardboard/cardboard or
• more than 30 tons of aluminum/tinplate/plastic/composite packaging

on the market. For quantities below this tonnage, no declaration of completeness must be deposited with the Central Packaging Register.

According to § 11 sec. 4 sentence 2 of the Packaging Act, the competent authority may also require companies that do not overwrite these quantities to submit a declaration of completeness in individual cases.

You must register with the central platform of the Central Packaging Register.

Participation in a dual system for your sales packaging must have taken place before it is placed on the market. The declaration of completeness must be submitted by 15 May of a calendar year for the sales packaging placed on the market in the previous calendar year.

Anyone who does not participate in a take-back system or does not operate an industry solution in the above-mentioned sense violates the provisions of the Packaging Act. Non-participation in a take-back system and the supply of sales packaging without participation in a take-back system constitute administrative offences punishable by a fine. The same applies in the event that a declaration of completeness is not submitted, not completely or not in time.