Planned harmonisation of WEEE reporting in Europe by 2020

The revision of the WEEE Directive was meant to lead to a harmonisation between the various national laws and to reduce the red tape for manufacturers as well as for the national registers. However, different European countries have implemented the Directive in very different ways. As a result, the frequency and format of reporting continue to vary from one country to the next, for example.

The next steps in implementing the WEEE Directive 2012/19/EU

The European Commission is therefore planning to standardise reporting for companies, working together with the European WEEE Registers Network (EWRN), a consortium of European national registers for electrical and electronic equipment.

According to the press release of Stiftung EAR from 13. February 2019, manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment can look forward to “a more uniform European-wide format for registering their products,” starting as early as 1st January 2020. “The same is true of input status reporting [monthly reports] concerning the number of devices put into circulation.” 

Further means of improvement are being discussed

At its last meeting, the European WEEE Registers Network also discussed additional ways in which matters could be improved in a potential WEEE3 Directive. One idea being considered, for example, is to merge Categories 5 and 6 – i.e. Small Appliances and Small IT and Telecom Devices – in the medium term, in order to eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy for manufacturers. 

We will keep you updated on developments.

Further information