Tax status does not exempt you from packaging obligations
No, as a small business (Kleinunternehmer) you are not exempt from the packaging licence. The small business scheme under § 19 UStG (German VAT Act) only applies in VAT law. German packaging law does not know this threshold. It is tied to the commercial making available of packaging in Germany, not to the level of your turnover. For registration and system participation, the same requirements apply in principle as for larger mail-order retailers. For the ongoing data reports, however, there are simplifications for small quantities of packaging.
Since 12 August 2026, the PPWR and the Packaging Law Implementation Act (VerpackDG) have applied in Germany[1]. The law defines the first placer on the market (Erstinverkehrbringer) as any person who makes packaging available commercially in Germany for the first time, § 3(17) VerpackDG. It says nothing about a turnover threshold, a quantity limit or a de minimis threshold. The directly applicable EU Regulation (EU) 2025/40 (PPWR) does not change this either; how the EU regulation and German packaging law interlock is covered in a separate article.
| Check | Tax law (small business scheme) | Packaging law (VerpackDG) |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger | Turnover in the calendar year | Commercial making available of packaging in Germany |
| Threshold for exemption | Turnover limits of § 19 UStG | No turnover or quantity threshold for registration and system participation |
| Consequence when exceeded | Switch to standard taxation | Registration, system participation and reports remain mandatory as before |
Do not confuse Kleinunternehmer with micro-enterprises
A small business for tax purposes under § 19 UStG is not the same as a micro-enterprise under the PPWR. Micro-enterprises are companies with fewer than ten employees and an annual turnover or balance sheet total of no more than 2 million euros. For such companies, the PPWR contains a special rule for certain own-brand constellations: if the supplier of the packaging or of the packaged product is established in the same Member State, that supplier can be regarded as the manufacturer of the packaging[2]. This is not a general exemption for small webshops and, in particular, does not change the fact that your own shipping packaging has to be checked separately.
What matters, then, is not your tax status but your role under packaging law and the type of packaging you use. This distinction carries the rest of the article. If your situation differs from the standard case, for example through own brands, goods from outside the EU or fulfilment, it can no longer be answered across the board.
Your own shipping packaging versus supplied product packaging
The first question is not how much turnover you make, but which packaging triggers obligations at all and whose packaging it is. Three typical constellations help:
- Your own shipping packaging: you fill the box, the padding or the mailing bag yourself and pass the goods on to your customers. For this packaging you are in any case the responsible producer within the meaning of the law. A missing logo or a standard box from a wholesaler does not change that.
- Your supplier's product packaging: your supplier produced the sales packaging and delivered it to you filled. In the supply chain, the supplier can be the producer obliged to register. Check whether it has registered and joined a compliance scheme, and have this confirmed before you rely on it.
- Packaging under your own brand: if you have products developed or manufactured under your name or brand, you can be regarded as the producer yourself. The role follows from the constellation, not from the print alone. For micro-enterprises, however, the PPWR special rule described above can apply if the supplier of the packaging or of the packaged product is established in the same Member State. For own brands, you should therefore not infer EPR responsibility from the brand print alone.
Two distinctions deserve a clear sentence. First: an invoice to a business is not an exception. Packaging is also subject to system participation if it accumulates at comparable points of generation such as offices, canteens or trade businesses, § 3(6) and (7) VerpackDG[1]. Second: a reseller role in one product area does not automatically relieve you of obligations for the shipping packaging you use in addition.
Register in LUCID yourself and complete system participation
For your own shipping packaging, there is no shortcut around two steps. Both are your own responsibility, however small your shop is. Keep registration, the entry in the LUCID register at the Central Agency Packaging Register (ZSVR), separate from system participation, the contract with a dual system. In everyday language, system participation is often called the packaging licence; there is no separate register for it.
- Register your company in LUCID before you first make packaging available, § 6 VerpackDG. The registration must be carried out by the company itself and cannot be delegated to an external service provider[3]. Registration takes place via the ZSVR's electronic system, which notifies you of a registration number.
- Before your first shipment, conclude a contract with one or more dual systems and enrol your shipping packaging with material type and mass, § 7(1) VerpackDG. According to the ZSVR, shipping packaging and service packaging are subject to system participation without exception[4].
- Have the system confirm your participation in writing or electronically and keep these records. In case of dispute, they prove that you acted before making packaging available.
- Keep reporting the licensed quantities; more on this in the next section.
The law backs up these obligations. Anyone who is not registered, or not properly registered, may not make packaging available in Germany; the same applies to missing system participation, § 13 VerpackDG[1]. Distributors may not offer packaging from producers who are not properly registered. Online platforms must check the corresponding proof, and fulfilment service providers may not provide certain services for producers who are not properly registered.
System participation is not a one-off process. You report on an ongoing basis which quantities you have licensed for which type of packaging. Under § 9(1) VerpackDG, you send the ZSVR, without delay after each report to the system, your registration number, material type and mass, the name of the system and the period[5]. For smaller quantities there is a real simplification, but it concerns reporting only and is not an exemption from registration and system participation.
| Obligation | Standard route | Simplification below the threshold |
|---|---|---|
| Data reports (§ 9) | To the ZSVR without delay after each report to the system | Below 10 tonnes of packaging subject to system participation in the previous year, a single annual report by 1 June of the following year is sufficient[5] |
| Declaration of completeness (Vollständigkeitserklärung, § 10) | Annually by 15 May, audited by a registered expert or auditor | Exempt are previous-year quantities below 80 tonnes of glass, below 50 tonnes of paper, paperboard and cardboard and below 30 tonnes of other material types[1] |
A typical small business webshop, with a few hundred kilograms of shipping packaging, is far below both thresholds. With less than 10 tonnes of packaging subject to system participation in the previous year, the statutory data report to the ZSVR is reduced to one annual report by 1 June of the following year[5].
Whether you are responsible for a packaging yourself does not depend on your tax status, but on product, role and sales channel. Especially with own brands, imports, several suppliers or sales to other countries, additional EPR obligations can arise. With the ClearoSystems needs analysis you get a complete overview of which EPR obligations apply to your products, roles, sales channels and target countries. This way you see early on what you need to register or organise, and avoid missing registrations or other compliance gaps.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need a packaging licence as a small business?
- Yes, if you are the producer within the meaning of EPR for the packaging concerned. In the typical webshop case, where you pack your goods yourself in boxes, mailing bags or other shipping material, registration and system participation apply in principle from the first item of packaging. Next step: note your registration number from LUCID and conclude a contract with a compliance scheme before your first shipment.
- Does the licensing obligation also apply if I only sell to business customers?
- Yes. Your shipping packaging is subject to system participation for B2B sales as well. Packaging for e-commerce is regarded as subject to system participation regardless of whether the end user is a consumer, an office or a larger commercial business.
- Is LUCID registration enough, or do I also have to contract a dual system?
- Both are necessary, and the order matters: without a LUCID entry you may not make packaging available at all, and without a system contract you may not place packaging subject to system participation on the market. Next step: document purchase invoices and quantities per material type; this makes the later report to the ZSVR easier.
