Skip to content
Guide

PPWR in the Netherlands: What Online Sellers Must Do

By Compliance Editorial Team Updated July 5, 2026 4 min read

PPWR

The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2025/40 (PPWR), is the EU-wide framework that replaces the older packaging directive with directly applicable rules. It generally applies from 12 August 2026, though many of its heavier obligations, such as recyclability performance grades and minimum recycled-content targets, phase in later on an indicative timeline that in several cases begins around 2030. If you run a PrestaShop store and ship parcels to Dutch customers, PPWR sets the baseline and the Netherlands adds its own producer-responsibility layer on top.

This guide explains what PPWR asks of a distance seller, how it interacts with the Dutch Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system run through Afvalfonds Verpakkingen, and the practical steps to take before the regulation bites. For the full cross-border picture, see our complete PPWR guide and the PPWR law hub.

Two layers: EU rules and Dutch EPR

Selling packaged goods into the Netherlands means operating under two connected regimes. The first is the EU layer set by PPWR, which harmonises how packaging must be designed, minimised and reported across all 27 Member States. The second is the Dutch national layer: packaging placed on the Dutch market is subject to EPR administered through Afvalfonds Verpakkingen, the packaging waste fund, which collects contributions that finance collection, sorting and recycling.

The important point for a cross-border merchant is that PPWR does not remove the national EPR obligation; it sits alongside it. You still register and report packaging to the Dutch system, and PPWR increasingly shapes what that packaging is allowed to look like.

Packaging minimisation and empty space

One of the most e-commerce-relevant parts of PPWR is packaging minimisation. The regulation targets unnecessary packaging weight, volume and layers, and it introduces a limit on excessive empty space in grouped, transport and e-commerce packaging. In plain terms, shipping a small item in a needlessly large box, padded out with void fill, is precisely the practice the rules are designed to discourage.

For a PrestaShop merchant fulfilling orders from the Netherlands or shipping into it, the practical response is to review your box range so that carton sizes match your typical order profiles, reduce reliance on oversized outer packaging, and document why the packaging you use is necessary for protection, hygiene or safety. The empty-space ratio is measured against the goods and any legitimate protective material, so right-sizing your cartons is the single most effective step.

Registration and reporting through Afvalfonds Verpakkingen

Businesses that place packaged goods onto the Dutch market may need to register with the Dutch packaging EPR system and report the quantity and type of packaging they put on the market each year. Distance sellers shipping into the Netherlands should not assume EPR is a domestic-only concern: the obligation typically follows the placing of packaging on the market, which cross-border sales can trigger.

  • Check whether your annual packaging volumes placed on the Dutch market cross the thresholds that trigger registration and reporting.
  • Keep records of the weight and material type of sales, grouped and transport packaging, broken down by material.
  • Consider whether an authorised representative is needed where you have no establishment in the Netherlands.
  • Treat other EPR streams, such as electronics and batteries, as separate schemes with their own registrations.

Design obligations that phase in later

Beyond minimisation, PPWR sets design-for-recycling requirements and, over time, minimum recycled-content thresholds for certain plastic packaging. These are among the obligations that phase in after the general application date, on an indicative timeline that for several categories begins around 2030. The direction of travel is clear: packaging will need to be recyclable at scale and, increasingly, made with recycled material.

Because the exact dates and category-by-category thresholds are staggered and subject to implementing measures, treat any specific year as indicative and confirm against the current legal text before you rely on it. For most merchants the sensible planning assumption is that the minimisation and reporting duties come first, with the design and recycled-content duties following.

A practical checklist for Dutch sales

  • Right-size your cartons and cut void fill to meet the empty-space limits.
  • Confirm whether you must register and report packaging through Afvalfonds Verpakkingen.
  • Record packaging weights and materials so annual reporting is straightforward.
  • Plan a move towards recyclable, recycled-content packaging ahead of the later phase-in dates.
  • Review the separate EPR duties for any electronics or batteries you ship.

Related and next steps

This guide is a general explanation, not legal advice. PPWR timelines and Dutch EPR thresholds can change, so confirm the current requirements with the official regulation text and Afvalfonds Verpakkingen before you rely on them.

Related reading