The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) is the EU law that decides how sustainable a product has to be before it can be sold in the EU. It covers almost every physical product, not just energy-using ones, and lets the European Commission set rules on durability, repairability, recycled content, substances of concern, energy use and carbon footprint.
ESPR itself is a framework. It does not tell a furniture maker or a clothing brand what to do tomorrow. Instead, the Commission adopts a delegated act for each product group, and that act sets the actual requirements and the date they apply. The best-known requirement ESPR introduces is the Digital Product Passport.
What ESPR can require
Each delegated act picks from two types of requirement:
- Performance requirements: minimum or maximum levels, such as a minimum lifetime, a share of recycled content, a cap on a substance or a limit on energy use.
- Information requirements: what the brand must tell customers and authorities, such as a repairability score, the materials used, substances of concern or the product's carbon footprint.
Most information requirements are delivered through the Digital Product Passport, which is reached through a data carrier on the product. ESPR also supports the wider right to repair agenda through spare-parts, repair-information and design-for-disassembly requirements.
Beyond product rules, ESPR contains two obligations that apply directly:
- Destruction ban: from 19 July 2026, large companies may not destroy unsold apparel, clothing accessories and footwear. Medium-sized companies follow from 19 July 2030. Micro and small companies are exempt. A delegated act adopted in February 2026 sets out the permitted exceptions.
- Disclosure: companies that discard unsold consumer products must publish, each year, how many they discarded, why, and what happened to them.
How the Digital Product Passport fits in
ESPR Articles 9 to 15 set the passport rules. Each passport must be linked through a data carrier to a persistent unique product identifier, use open and interoperable standards, and stay available for at least the expected lifetime of the product. The economic operator placing the product on the market must keep a back-up copy with a DPP service provider and upload the identifiers to the EU DPP registry, which went live on 20 July 2026. The CEN-CENELEC EN 18216 series gives the technical standards.
Timeline and product groups
- 18 July 2024: ESPR enters into force and replaces the Ecodesign Directive 2009/125/EC.
- 16 April 2025: the first working plan prioritizes iron and steel, aluminium, textiles (focused on apparel), furniture, tyres, mattresses, horizontal repairability and recycled-content rules for electronics, and a set of energy-related products.
- 19 July 2026: the destruction ban applies to large companies.
- 20 July 2026: the DPP registry goes live.
- From late 2026: the Commission's indicative timeline lists the iron and steel act first, then textiles, aluminium and tyres (2027), furniture (2028), and mattresses and ICT products (2029).
Each delegated act normally applies at the earliest 18 months after it enters into force, so brands get a transition period once their group's act is adopted. Products covered by ESPR delegated acts also follow the usual conformity route, including an EU declaration of conformity and the CE marking.
What ESPR means for your products
ESPR changes product compliance from a one-off certificate into ongoing product data. Brands will need to know, per product, which materials and substances it contains, where it was made, how long it lasts and how it can be repaired. Much of that data sits with suppliers, so collecting it early matters more than any single deadline.
How to prepare
- Map your products to ESPR groups and follow the preparatory studies and consultations for each one.
- Start collecting supplier data now, especially material composition and substances of concern.
- Assign identifiers at the level your group is likely to need: model, batch or item.
- Choose where passports are hosted and how a back-up copy is kept with a service provider.
- Check the destruction ban if you sell apparel, accessories or footwear and are a large company.
How Veribl helps
Veribl checks each product against the EU rules that apply to it, including the ESPR product groups as their requirements are set, and shows a readiness checklist of the fields still missing. Passports are hosted free on every plan, stay online for at least 10 years and are published with their own GS1 Digital Link QR code.
See Digital Product Passports in VeriblOfficial sources
Frequently asked questions
When does ESPR apply to my products?
ESPR has been in force since 18 July 2024, but its product requirements apply only once the European Commission adopts a delegated act for your product group. Each delegated act sets its own date of application, which as a rule is at least 18 months after the act enters into force. The ban on destroying unsold apparel and footwear is the exception: it is written into ESPR itself and applies to large companies from 19 July 2026.
Which products are covered by ESPR first?
The 2025 to 2030 working plan, adopted on 16 April 2025, prioritizes iron and steel, aluminium, textiles (with a focus on apparel), furniture, tyres and mattresses, plus horizontal measures on repairability and recycled content for electrical and electronic equipment and a list of energy-related products. The Commission's indicative timeline puts the iron and steel act first, followed by textiles, aluminium and tyres.
What is the difference between ESPR and the old Ecodesign Directive?
The Ecodesign Directive 2009/125/EC covered only energy-related products and focused mainly on energy efficiency. ESPR replaced it on 18 July 2024 and extends ecodesign to almost all physical goods. It adds requirements on durability, repairability, recycled content, substances of concern and the Digital Product Passport. Existing measures under the old directive stay in force until they are replaced.
Does ESPR ban the destruction of unsold products?
Yes, for unsold apparel, clothing accessories and footwear. Large companies may not destroy them from 19 July 2026, and medium-sized companies from 19 July 2030. A Commission delegated act adopted in February 2026 lists the cases where destruction is still allowed, such as safety or damage. Companies that discard unsold consumer products also have to disclose how many they discard and why.
Who has to comply with ESPR?
The economic operators that place products on the EU market or make them available: manufacturers, authorized representatives, importers, distributors, dealers and fulfilment service providers. Importers must check that a Digital Product Passport and its back-up copy exist before placing a covered product on the market.
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