Amazon's new regulations impose a "plastic tax", and non-compliance will result in suspension of sales!

Recently, Amazon Germany has issued new regulations!

Starting from January 1, 2025, all sellers on the German site (Amazon.de) will be required to implement the extended producer responsibility compliance requirements for single-use plastic products. If the product involves single-use plastic products, the seller must complete the relevant registration process before January 1, 2025 and submit a valid registration number to Amazon , otherwise the product will face the risk of being removed from the shelves.

The new regulations are mainly based on the provisions of the EU Directive on Single-Use Plastics. On May 11, 2023, the German government approved legislation to implement a tax on disposable plastics in Germany (EWKFondsG). The legislation aims to reduce the impact of disposable plastic products on the environment and make the producers of such products responsible for the cost of cleaning up the waste generated by disposable plastics .

The German Environment Agency's Disposable Plastic Fund Platform (DIVID) is used to register companies or producers, who will then need to pay taxes (or eco-payments) in Germany to cover the costs of disposing and cleaning waste in public places. The bill will determine the tax rate and payment system for the fund, which will be levied on January 1, 2024, with the first payment due in 2025.

To add: The plastic recycled under the German Packaging Act is different from disposable plastic!

Disposable plastics emphasize the characteristics of one-time use and cannot be recycled or reused. On the contrary, some products with plastic packaging are restricted by the German Packaging Act , not German disposable plastics !

• If your company is established in Germany and manufactures, fills, sells or imports (regardless of how it is sold) single-use plastic goods in Germany and places them on sale in Germany for the first time;

• If your company is not established in Germany and sells single-use plastic goods directly to private households or other users via telecommunication (e.g. online sales).

● If you are a German producer, you need to register as a producer on DIVID before selling goods and provide the product type and brand name;

● If you are not a producer located in Germany, you must designate an authorized representative and then follow the registration process. The registration function for non-German producers is expected to be open on August 1, 2024.

After receiving the relevant registration number, upload the registration number of the corresponding brand and product type through the Amazon Compliance Portal. The format of the registration number is role code-XXXXXX-DE: For example: H-123ABC-DE

Producers need to report the amount of single-use plastics and pay taxes or ecological fees to the German Environment Agency (DIVID) before May 15 each year , stating the type and quantity of single-use plastic products that you first marketed or sold in Germany in the previous year.

A penalty system will be implemented for non-compliance (such as failure to register, incorrect declaration of the number of disposable plastics):

1) Amazon has the right to take action and directly remove the links of non-compliant sellers selling products in Germany, or even suspend their stores;

2) The German Federal Environment Agency will impose a fine of up to 100,000 euros;

3) You may be reported and complained by competitors or sellers, and the corresponding criminal and civil liabilities may be pursued.

4) In addition, the penalty system also includes sanctions against companies that allow non-compliant operators to offer goods on the German market (e.g. electronic interfaces/online marketplaces).

Finally, a reminder: Amazon Europe has always had strict policies, and platform compliance is the general trend. When selling on the German site, you do not necessarily need to register for the single-use plastic tax, but you must register for the German Packaging Act!