ElektroG 2026: what producers and retailers must do now

At a glance

What the ElektroG governs

The ElektroG governs extended producer responsibility (EPR) for electrical devices. Producers finance the collection and recycling of their old devices; retailers and local authorities accept old devices^[1]. The Act transposes the EU WEEE Directive into German law. Each EU country has its own register; a German registration is valid only in Germany^[1][23].

The core obligations at a glance:

• Registration with stiftung ear before the first offer, per brand and device type^[5].
• An insolvency-proof guarantee for devices that private households can use (B2C); for purely B2B devices, substantiation (Glaubhaftmachung) and a take-back concept^[6][26].
• Marking the devices and stating the registration number when offering them and on invoices^[5][8].
• Quantity reports to stiftung ear^[12].
• Collecting old devices from the local authorities (B2C) or own take-back (B2B)^[16][27].
• Take-back and information obligations for retailers^[9][10].

Batteries do not fall under the ElektroG. Battery law applies to them: the EU Battery Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 and the Battery Law Implementation Act (Batterierecht-Durchführungsgesetz, BattDG) of 30 September 2025^[15][2]. A device with a built-in rechargeable battery can therefore trigger two registrations with stiftung ear: one for the device, one for the battery. The guide EPR and extended producer responsibility gives an overview of all EPR areas.

Which products the ElektroG applies to

The ElektroG applies to all electrical and electronic equipment ("open scope"). Only what § 2(2) expressly names is excluded^[3]. An electrical device is a device that operates at up to 1,000 volts alternating current or 1,500 volts direct current and needs electric current or electromagnetic fields to function^[4].

This does not only affect classic electronics. Furniture, clothing or lifestyle products with electrical components can also be covered^[15]. Annex 1 names, for example, clothing with a heating or lighting function, shoes with a lighting function, illuminated tiles, drones, adapters and ready-made cables^[1]. What matters is whether there is a finished end device with its own function. Mere components are not covered; a kit that the end user assembles into a device is^[15].

Exclusions include filament bulbs, large-scale stationary industrial tools and large-scale fixed installations, means of transport with type approval, non-road mobile machinery for professional use and devices that function only as part of a device that is not covered^[3]. Electric two-wheelers without type approval remain covered; Annex 1 names pedelecs expressly^[1][3]. In borderline cases, stiftung ear can certify on application, for a fee, whether a registration obligation exists^[19].

Who is affected: the roles in the ElektroG

The obligations depend on the role, not on the size of the company. The ElektroG sets no quantity or turnover threshold for registration^[4][5]. The ElektroG defines its terms independently, and they differ from packaging law^[4].

Two distinctions come up often. A contract manufacturer without its own brand (OEM) is not a producer; the producer is its customer, who sells the device under its own brand^[16]. Postal and parcel services are not fulfilment service providers^[4]. Since 1 July 2023, marketplaces and fulfilment service providers must check their sellers' registration^[22]. Our article EPR proof for Amazon.de shows which proof Amazon requires for this.

Obligations by role

The following overview lists each obligation, who it applies to and the legal reference. Which of them apply to you follows from the roles table above.

Producers must not show disposal costs separately to end customers^[6]. The producer reports quantities for exports and for old devices it has taken back itself annually by 30 April^[12].

Registration with stiftung ear

Registration is the prerequisite for any offer in Germany. It is made in the ear portal per brand and device type; the result is the WEEE registration number, which you state when offering devices and on invoices^[5][16]. The process in brief:

• Determine your role and device types; if in doubt, apply for a certificate on the registration obligation^[15][19].
• Without a German establishment, first appoint exactly one authorised representative based in Germany: in writing, in German, for at least three months^[7][17].
• Create a user account in the ear portal and submit the registration application per brand and device type^[16].
• For B2C devices, provide proof of a guarantee; for B2B devices, attach substantiation and a take-back concept^[5][6].
• After the decision, enter the number in your shop, marketplace account and invoices, then submit the ongoing reports^[5][12].

The guide Applying for a WEEE number explains which documents you need, how long the procedure takes and what it costs. Our article on the duration of registration with stiftung ear shows which factors the processing time depends on.

Take-back obligations for retailers and online shops

Retailers must take back old devices free of charge if they have at least 400 m² of sales area for electrical devices. Food retailers are obliged from 800 m² of total sales area if they offer electrical devices several times a year or permanently^[9]. For online retailers, the total storage and shipping area counts instead of the sales area, including abroad; since 2026 this includes the total area of all shelves^[4][9].

Obliged retailers take back in two ways:

• 1:1: When a new device is bought, they take back an old device of the same device type free of charge. For delivery to the home, they collect it there free of charge; online, the collection obligation applies to temperature exchange equipment, screens and large equipment^[9].
• 0:1: Without any purchase, they take back up to three small old devices per device type with no external dimension longer than 25 cm^[9].

Online retailers cover the remaining cases through suitable return points within reasonable distance of the customer^[9]. For e-cigarettes and electronic tobacco heaters, a separate obligation has applied since 1 July 2026: anyone who stocks them or has stocked them in the last six months takes them back free of charge, regardless of floor area and new purchase, including in distance selling^[9][14][20].

Obliged retailers inform their customers about returns, battery removal, data deletion and the wheelie bin symbol: in the shop on clearly visible signs, online in the presentation media they use, or in writing in the shipment^[10]. Since 1 July 2026, their take-back points also carry the new take-back logo under Annex 3a, in the shop at least in DIN A4 size^[11][14]. Online shops place it on the product pages or in the ordering process and explain how collection and return work^[11].

Marking of devices

Producers permanently mark each device with three items before placing it on the market^[8][16]:

• a producer identification that makes the producer clearly identifiable,
• the crossed-out wheelie bin symbol under Annex 3,
• a date or a solid bar below the symbol, showing that the device was placed on the market after the relevant cut-off date.

Only where size or function requires it may the symbol appear on the packaging, the instructions for use or the guarantee certificate^[8]. These are separate from the WEEE number, which appears in offers and on invoices, and from the take-back logo under Annex 3a for collection and take-back points^[5][11].

What changed with ElektroG4 in 2026

The Second Act Amending the ElektroG of 25 November 2025, called ElektroG4 by stiftung ear, was promulgated on 27 November 2025; its changes have applied since 1 January 2026^[2][20].

The registration obligation, the roles, the guarantee obligation for B2C devices and the floor-area thresholds of 400 m² and 800 m² have not changed^[5][6][9].

Deadlines and timeline

The dates show what applies and what is still open.

The European Commission has announced that it will revise the WEEE Directive. There is no legal act; for businesses, nothing changes as a result at present^[24][25].

Costs and consequences of missing registration

The official fees of stiftung ear are set by the fee ordinance ElektroGBattDGGebV (BGBl. 2025 I No. 187)^[19]:

stiftung ear does the calculation itself: a B2C producer with one brand, five device types and collective proof of guarantee pays one-off fees of EUR 47.50 and annual fees of EUR 150.20, both net^[18]. On top of this come costs that no authority sets: the guarantee or guarantee scheme, collection and disposal of old devices and, where applicable, an authorised representative. These prices depend on the provider and the quantities.

Without registration, the producer must not place its devices on the market in Germany. The ban extends into the supply chain: retailers must not offer the devices for sale, marketplaces must not enable the offer and fulfilment service providers must not store, pack or ship them^[5]. A retailer that offers such devices anyway is itself deemed a producer and takes on the producer's obligations^[4].

Infringements relating to registration, marking, take-back, information and reports are administrative offences under § 45 ElektroG^[13]. The German Environment Agency is responsible for registration, the appointment of the authorised representative and quantity reports; the state authorities are responsible for most other cases^[13][22]. If you have already sold without registration, register immediately and have the handling of the quantities already sold clarified case by case.

Common mistakes

• Only the main product registered. Solution: check each brand and each device type individually, including accessories with their own function^[5][16].
• Battery in the device overlooked. Solution: register batteries separately under battery law^[15].
• Own brand on purchased goods. Solution: with your own brand you are the producer, even if someone else built the device^[4].
• Home-country registration assumed to be sufficient. Solution: a separate registration for Germany, through an authorised representative if you have no establishment^[7][23].
• B2C device registered as B2B. Solution: devices that private households can also use count as B2C; only substantiation can rebut this^[6].

For companies from the Netherlands, Austria and Switzerland

A registration in your home country is not valid in Germany. Each EU country keeps its own register; this applies to companies from the Netherlands and Austria as well as to companies from Switzerland^[23].

• Direct sales to end users in Germany: you are a producer under § 3 No. 9 d and must appoint an authorised representative based in Germany. The representative registers and fulfils the obligations in its own name^[4][7][17].
• Own brand, delivery to a German retailer: in this case too you are the producer and appoint an authorised representative. As long as none is appointed, the German importer bears the producer obligations^[7].
• Third-party goods to a German retailer that is the first to offer them in Germany: the producer is usually the German retailer as importer^[4].
• Establishment in Germany: stiftung ear generally recognises a branch entered in the commercial register or a fixed place of business with its own staff; a German tax number is mandatory. A subsidiary is not an establishment, but can itself be a producer^[17].

For Austria, the guide to the EDM portal explains registration in the home market. Switzerland has no state producer register; there, the industry schemes Swico and SENS finance recycling, as the guide Swico and SENS shows. Our article on EPR obligations in other EU countries shows which obligations you should check in further EU countries. Whether you are a producer in a country depends on brand, delivery route and contracting party. You should clarify these cases individually before your first sale. In a digital needs analysis for companies whose home market is the Netherlands, Austria or Switzerland, ClearoSystems checks which obligations apply per product, role, sales channel and country, and then supports registration, reports and the appointment of an authorised representative.

Status and changes

As of 16 October 2026. On that day we checked the ElektroG text on gesetze-im-internet.de in the version of the Act of 25 November 2025, the Federal Law Gazette (Bundesgesetzblatt) 2025 I No. 286 with the entry into force, the fee ordinance ElektroGBattDGGebV, the producer, fee and press pages of stiftung ear, the ElektroG page of the German Environment Agency and the status of the announced WEEE revision at the European Commission and the European Parliament^{[1][2][19][22][24]}. Changes: 15 October 2026, first version; 16 October 2026, technical clarifications after expert review (deadlines of the amendment in the introduction). Translated from the German version of 16 October 2026.

Frequently asked questions

As a small business selling only a few devices, do I need a registration?

Yes. The ElektroG sets no minimum quantity and no turnover limit. Anyone who offers even a single device in Germany as a producer must be registered beforehand. For individual fees, for example for registration, stiftung ear can grant a reduction on application if the standard fee would be disproportionate for small quantities. The quarterly fee is not one of them.

I only sell spare parts, cables and adapters. Does that fall under the ElektroG?

Cables and adapters usually do: the Act's list of devices expressly names ready-made power cables, USB, HDMI and network cables as well as adapters and travel plugs. Pure components that only function when built into another device are not covered. In cases of doubt, stiftung ear can issue a certificate on the registration obligation.

I sell on Amazon through Fulfilment by Amazon. Who is the producer here?

The marketplace and the fulfilment warehouse are not the producer of your goods. You are the producer if you sell under your own brand, are the first to import, or deliver directly to end users from abroad. Amazon may only list and ship your devices if the registration has been proven.

Does the take-back of e-cigarettes also apply to small online shops?

Yes. The obligation does not depend on floor area, but on whether you stock e-cigarettes or electronic tobacco heaters or have stocked them in the last six months. It also applies to distance selling. The take-back must not be tied to a new purchase.

My device contains a permanently built-in battery. Is the WEEE registration enough?

No. You register the device under the ElektroG and the battery under battery law. Both registrations go through stiftung ear, but they are separate procedures with their own obligations.

May I show the recycling costs on the invoice to my customers?

Not as a producer. The ElektroG prohibits producers from showing disposal costs separately to end customers. It is different in Switzerland, where the advance recycling fee may be stated on invoices and often is.