Packaging rule · Germany · EPR
Germany Single-Use Plastics Fund Act (EWKFondsG)
Extended producer responsibility (EPR) rule covering single-use plastic in Germany, set by Bundestag / Umweltbundesamt. Applies since 1 January 2024.
The rule
Recorded from the official source named below. Rates and dates are as the source states them on the date it was consulted.
- Jurisdiction
- Germany
- Authority
- Bundestag / Umweltbundesamt
- Rule type
- EPR
- Materials
- Single-use plastic
- Status
- In force Enacted
- Adopted or published
- 15 May 2023
- Applies from
- 1 January 2024
From the source“Wer die Tätigkeit bereits vor dem 1. Januar 2024 aufgenommen hat, muss sich bis zum 31. Dezember 2024 registrieren.”
Official source Umweltbundesamt: press release 45/2023Official (government or regulator) · consulted 13 October 2026
Key dates
Adopted or published 3 years and 4 months ago
Applies from 2 years and 9 months ago
Source consulted by the SPI team today
What it means
SPI analysis Our reading of the official source above. Not legal advice; always rely on the official text.
SPI summary
Producers of certain single-use plastic products, including to-go food containers, beverage containers and cups, bag and foil packaging, lightweight carrier bags, tobacco filters and balloons, pay an annual single-use plastics levy into a federal fund managed by the Umweltbundesamt via the DIVID platform. The first payment was due in spring 2025.
In practice
Under the Einwegkunststofffondsgesetz, producers placing certain single-use plastic products on the German market pay an annual levy into a fund run by the Umweltbundesamt, which reimburses municipalities for collection, cleaning and disposal. Covered items include to-go food containers, beverage containers and cups, bag and foil packaging and lightweight carrier bags. Producers register on the DIVID platform, report the previous year's mass by 15 May, and receive a levy notice; the first levy was due in spring 2025 on 2024 quantities.
Who is in scope
- Producers established in Germany that first place covered products on the market as manufacturer, filler, seller or importer
- Producers established abroad selling covered products directly to German users by distance selling
- Products in Annex 1: to-go food containers, beverage containers and cups, bag and foil packaging, lightweight carrier bags, tobacco products with plastic filters, balloons, and fireworks with plastic parts from 2027
Who is not
- No exemptions or small-quantity thresholds were stated on the official pages consulted
What to do and by when
- NowCheck which products sold in Germany fall within the Annex 1 product types and who in the chain is the producer.
- 15 May each yearPrepare the report of the previous year's mass placed on the market for DIVID.
- NowBudget for the levy, calculated as reported mass times the product-specific rate in the EWKFondsV.
- NowWatch for revised levy rates following the review of rates due by the end of 2026.
Related rules
- PR-DE-001 Germany Packaging Law Implementation Act (VerpackDG) replaces VerpackG
Same jurisdiction: packaging EPR under the VerpackDG, a separate obligation for the same packaging. - PR-EU-014 SUP Directive: ban on single-use plastic cutlery, plates, straws and EPS containers
EU SUP Directive covers overlapping single-use plastic items, such as food containers, cups and lightweight bags. - PR-GB-001 UK Plastic Packaging Tax
Same type elsewhere: a UK per-tonne charge on plastic packaging, with a different basis. - PR-ES-001 Spain special tax on non-reusable plastic packaging
Same type elsewhere: Spain's plastic packaging tax per kg.
Where the record is unclear
- Per-kg levy rates are set in the EWKFondsV and were not shown on the pages consulted; the record gives no value.
- The EUR 430 million per year figure is a 2023 UBA estimate, not a confirmed outturn.
- BMUKN says rates were to be reviewed by the end of 2026; the outcome was not found.
Sources for this note
- Umweltbundesamt: press release 45/2023, Onlineplattform DIVID des Einwegkunststofffonds Consulted 13 October 2026
- BMUKN: Fragen und Antworten zum Einwegkunststofffondsgesetz Consulted 13 October 2026
Note written by the SPI team on 13 October 2026.
Where it sits in the tracker
- One of 2 packaging rules we track in Germany, of which 2 are EPR rules.
- In all, 25 EPR rules are tracked across 15 jurisdictions. Compare them below
Company profiles that map to this rule
Companies whose SPI profile lists this rule in its regulatory exposure, based on where they report selling. Not company-reported.
Change history
Sourced: an SPI analyst recorded the facts above from the official source. A second SPI team member has not re-checked it yet. Every change is logged here.
Changed: SPI summary, rate note
Verified by a second SPI team member
Added to the tracker
Spotted an error? Write to sales@strategicpackaginginsights.com quoting PR-DE-002 and the source. Corrections are logged in this history.
EPR rules elsewhere
The same type of rule for the same materials in other jurisdictions, by the date it applies.
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- Q2
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