A Digital Product Passport is not a factory licence and not a nationality test. If you manufacture outside the EU and never place the product on the Union market, you are usually not the ESPR manufacturer or importer. You can still receive contractual data and evidence requests from the EU operator who does place it. Specified battery passports apply from 18 February 2027 for defined classes. Most other groups still await product-specific measures. This page is general guidance, not legal advice or a finding that your SKU is in scope.
Organise the buyer request in a product workspace
Agree whether the manufacturer, exporter or customer owns the preparation workspace and makes the review decisions. Map the customer product reference to the factory reference and revision, then connect requested values to their source records.
Start with a single product and a real information gap. DPPLogic can retain values, evidence references, owners and human review decisions, then export JSON or CSV. A later product change can be tracked as a new review task; the software does not automatically monitor regulation or send supplier emails.
What this guide covers
This guide covers the work a non-EU manufacturer or exporter can actually do: role versus contract, what a factory can honestly prepare, and how to answer a customer’s data request. If you place the goods on the EU market under your own name or trademark, you are the placing operator — use the manufacturer guide instead. Applicability questions are answered on Who needs a Digital Product Passport, and origin-specific context on the country guides.
Are you the EU placing operator, or the factory?
ESPR Article 2 treats manufacturer, authorised representative, importer, distributor, dealer and fulfilment service provider as different operators. A manufacturer typically manufactures a product, or has it designed or manufactured, and markets it under their name or trademark. Nationality alone is not the test.
INTERPRETATION. Commission operator guidance checked on 11 September 2026: obligations attach to economic operators placing in-scope products on the Union market, whether made in the EU or imported. Primary responsibility for a required DPP’s creation and accuracy sits with that placing operator. Distance selling can still be placing; marketplace accessibility of a required DPP is not a finding that every overseas website is already an EU manufacturer. Use this tree as a screening aid, not a legal determination.
For a UK business, identify the destination and operator roles before applying the market-placement rules.
| If this is true | You are likely | Then |
|---|---|---|
| You only manufacture outside the EU and never place the product | Usually not the EU manufacturer or importer | Continue here — expect contract requests |
| An EU company places your goods under its name or trademark | That EU company is typically the manufacturer | They use the manufacturer page; you supply requested evidence |
| An EU company places your unbranded goods that it did not make | That EU company is typically the importer | They use the importer page |
| You place the goods on the EU market under your name or trademark | Manufacturer or considered manufacturer | Use the manufacturer guide — Article 34 may also apply |
| You only make an already-placed product available in the EU | Distributor | Different checks when a product measure applies |
| You cannot say who places the SKU, or under whose name | Unknown | More information required — do not buy a QR package |
Statutory duty versus customer contract
PENDING PRODUCT-SPECIFIC RULES. Until an Article 4 delegated act covers the product group, Chapter VII DPP duties for that group are not a live product DPP duty. A customer can still demand evidence by contract before they can complete their file.
| Question | Typical answer | Legal state |
|---|---|---|
| Who must make a required DPP available when an ESPR product measure applies? | The placing manufacturer under Article 27; the importer checks under Article 29 | Current law |
| Who must keep the Article 10(4) service-provider back-up? | The placing manufacturer; the importer must check it exists | Current law |
| Does a non-EU factory become the EU importer by shipping the carton? | Usually no, if it never places the product | INTERPRETATION of role and placing |
| Can the EU customer still demand composition, test or supplier evidence? | Yes, by contract | Guidance |
| Is a completed DPPLogic worksheet the Article 10(4) back-up? | No | Guidance |
Route-to-market responsibility matrix
These are typical roles, not a legal allocation for a specific product.
| Work item | Non-EU factory / exporter | EU placing brand or importer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal product class | Shared facts about what was made | Must decide before placing | Start here or the rest is guesswork |
| Required DPP, where an act requires one | Upstream inputs | Create or check and keep available | Commission: placing operator owns creation and accuracy |
| Article 10(4) back-up | Not a spreadsheet send | Manufacturer creates; importer checks | Not fulfilled by a DPPLogic worksheet |
| Supplier evidence | Respond with dated, scoped files | Own the request and the gap list | See supplier data collection |
| Own-name or relevant modification | Recheck if you also place or brand | Article 34 may switch the role | Role is factual |
| QR artwork | May print a mark the customer specifies | Identifier and access path remain the placing file | A QR code is not the passport |
Specified batteries — dated application
Article 77(1): from 18 February 2027 each LMT battery, each EV battery and each industrial battery with capacity greater than 2 kWh placed on the market or put into service shall have a battery passport. Article 13(6): from the same date batteries shall have a QR code; only those three classes use it for the Article 77 passport. A non-EU cell or pack plant that never places the battery can still be asked for Annex XIII inputs. That request is usually contract in service of the placing operator’s Article 77(4) accuracy duty. Do not collapse QR-on-every-battery with passport-for-every-battery.
Preparation sequence — not a conformity assessment
Identify the SKU, the EU destination, and who places it under whose name. If that operator is you, use the manufacturer guide instead. Classify the family in legal terms. Separate statutory fields, when an act applies, from customer spreadsheet extras. Answer with evidence: source, date, owner, verification state. Keep unknown and conflict visible. Do not send a QR package as a substitute for missing evidence.
Worked examples — not determinations
These situations are illustrative. They do not determine that your SKU is in or out of scope. Origin pages add local context; they do not replace this role split.
| Situation | Honest label | What not to do |
|---|---|---|
| Vietnam apparel factory; EU brand places under its trademark; no textiles delegated act | Prioritised / developing for the product group; factory is usually not the EU manufacturer | Claim a 2027 or 2028 apparel deadline as law |
| Chinese LMT pack plant; EU importer places in 2027 | Requirement confirmed at instrument level for the Article 77 class; factory still likely to see data requests | Treat this page as proof a named cell is in scope |
| Non-EU factory also sells direct to EU consumers under its own mark | Possibly the placing manufacturer — recheck | Assume the exporter role still applies and ignore Article 27 |
| Steel mill watching Q4 2026 | Policy / workplan — delegated act not adopted 11 September 2026 | Treat 2026 as an application deadline |
| Unknown placing operator or brand name | More information required | Guess yes and print QR codes |
What we are not claiming
- That every non-EU manufacturer already has a live DPP duty.
- That nationality or exporting to Europe is the legal test.
- That Working Plan years are exporter compliance deadlines.
- That a steel DPP is legally required in 2026.
- That a DPPLogic checklist makes you compliant or legally required.
- That DPPLogic creates, hosts, registers or certifies passports.
- That a QR code is the passport.
Primary and authoritative sources
Source links are provided for verification. Scope, consolidated versions and later measures should be checked again before implementation or reliance.
Regulatory disclaimer. This content provides general diagnostic and preparation information. It is not legal advice, certification or regulatory approval. Requirements may differ by product category, jurisdiction, market and supply-chain role and may change over time.