Extended producer responsibility (UPV): what is it?

Are you an importer or producer and are you the first to market your product in the Netherlands? For certain product groups, you are responsible for your products when they are discarded or used up. You have what is called the extended producer responsibility (UPV).

Extended producer responsibility (UPV) ensures that manufacturers remain responsible for their products even after they are no longer used. If the UPV applies to your product, you will face additional costs and rules. Such as the obligation to provide and pay for collection and recycling. The UPV encourages producers to make more sustainable choices at the beginning of the chain. For instance, by choosing materials that last longer.

Who does the UPV apply to?

UPV applies to producers of the following product groups:

• Car tyres and cars
• Batteries and accumulators
• Electrical equipment
• Textiles
• Packaging
• Litter (single-use disposable plastics such as balloons and drinking cups)

The UPV applies to producers who are the first to place a product on the Dutch market. This includes importers, manufacturers, and foreign suppliers. Say, you import clothes from China. The UPV applies to you in this case, because you are bringing the clothes onto the Dutch market for the first time. If you buy it from a business in the Netherlands, you have no UPV obligations.

What are the UPV rules?

What do you need to arrange if the UPV applies to you? That varies per product group. For example: under the UPV litter, you have to declare how much plastic you put on the market, pay an annual contribution for collection and recycling, and encourage customers to prevent litter.

You can meet the obligation on your own, or you can join a producer organisation that takes care of everything for you. If you do not comply, you risk a fine. So always check carefully which UPV applies to your product (in Dutch) and which rules go with it.

For more information on the UPV in English, please go to Business.gov.nl.