PPWR: Why we stop shipping to the EU effective immediately

The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) applies from 12 August 2026. Shipping to end users in other EU member states triggers obligations that, taken together, are not viable for us as a retailer. We are therefore pausing shipping to other EU countries with immediate effect. Shipping within Germany and to European countries outside the EU continues as normal.

What changes on 12 August 2026

On 12 August 2026, the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), together with the German Packaging Law Implementation Act, replaces the previous German Packaging Act. It applies directly in all 27 member states.

The core obligations stay the same: registration, system participation and data reporting. What changes is who has to meet them, and where.

Why this affects cross-border shipping

The PPWR distinguishes between the manufacturer of a packaging unit, who is responsible for its conformity, and the producer, who carries extended producer responsibility in the member state where the packaging becomes waste. The destination country is what counts: if you ship from abroad directly to end users, you are the producer there.

For us that means every parcel to France, Spain, Italy or Poland makes us a foreign company without an establishment in that country. Three obligations follow from that, and not once for the EU, but separately for every single country we ship to.

First, registration. Every member state runs its own national packaging register, comparable to LUCID in Germany. We have to register in each destination country. This registration cannot be delegated. It stays our own responsibility.

Second, system participation and volume reporting. In each destination country we also have to sign a contract with a licensed system operator, report the packaging volumes we place on that market and pay the recycling costs for them. That is 26 registrations, 26 contracts and 26 volume reports, every single year.

Third, the authorised representative. Any company without an establishment in a member state that ships directly to end users there must appoint an authorised representative. What used to be voluntary becomes mandatory on 12 August. This role is taken on by specialised service providers, and they charge an annual fee per country. The authorised representative is therefore not a formality but another recurring cost that multiplies with every additional destination country.

Why we are pausing EU shipping now

The deciding factor is cost. Registrations, system participation fees, reporting and authorised representatives add up to several thousand euros a year across the EU, plus the ongoing administrative work. Set against our shipping volume to other EU countries, that is out of all proportion.

On top of that comes how unsettled the implementation is. The PPWR leaves member states national discretion in several areas. As a result, the registers, the procedures for appointing an authorised representative and the concrete requirements are not in the same state everywhere on the day the regulation starts to apply.

And failing to meet these obligations carries real penalties. The PPWR itself sets no fines, it leaves that to the member states. Every destination country therefore has its own sanctions regime, and in Germany fines run into six figures. On top of that, without valid registration and system participation, distribution can be prohibited outright. From 12 August, online platforms and fulfilment service providers are required to verify their retailers' registration and to stop working with them if the evidence is missing.

We are a small, specialist retailer. We cannot run 26 parallel fee-based procedures whose requirements are still taking shape while carrying a fine risk in every single country. So we pause instead of shipping on a hope.

What this means for you

  • Delivery address in Germany: Nothing changes.
  • Delivery address in another EU country: We cannot ship to you until further notice. These destinations are blocked at checkout.
  • Delivery address in Europe outside the EU: Not affected. We continue to ship to Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Norway and the other non-EU countries as before.
  • Orders to EU destinations placed before 12 August 2026: We will still fulfil these in full. You do not need to do anything.

 

If you live in the EU and still want to order: What you need is a delivery address in Germany. That is exactly what ProxyHub is for, a mail receiving, forwarding and digitisation service operated by Hodlmayr GmbH. You get a receiving address in Germany and enter it as your delivery address when ordering. ProxyHub accepts your shipment and holds parcels for at least 7 days. You instruct the forwarding to your address at home or abroad yourself, which is a separate shipment sent in your name. It also protects your home address: it does not end up in the database of every shop you order from. You will find all details, rates and requirements at proxyhub.space.

What happens next

What is notable is that criticism of this rule comes from within the EU itself. In late 2025, as part of the "Omnibus VIII" simplification package, the European Commission proposed temporarily suspending the requirement to appoint national authorised representatives for companies established in the EU. In June 2026 the Council of the European Union discontinued its deliberations on the proposal, because a large majority of member states had come out against it. A broader review of extended producer responsibility has been announced for autumn 2026. Whether that will turn into concrete relief for cross-border online retail is an open question.

We are following developments in the individual member states and checking for which destination countries registration, system participation and authorised representation can be handled at a sensible cost. We cannot give a credible date for resuming shipping today. 

Questions about a specific order? Email us at [email protected].

Please note: This post reflects our understanding as of 11 August 2026 and describes a business decision taken by our company. It is not legal advice and not an interpretation of the PPWR for other businesses. The regulation itself and the requirements of the competent bodies in each member state are what count.

Sources and further reading

 

Delivery address in Germany? Our range of hardware wallets remains available from stock.