Last December, the Spanish Council of Ministers approved Royal Decree 1055/2022, dated December 27, on packaging and packaging waste (hereinafter referred to as the “Royal Decree“), which includes measures aimed to achieve the prevention of packaging waste, focusing on reducing the quantity and impact of waste and promoting the packaging reuse.

The regulation incorporates a very broad definition of what shall be understood as “packaging,” including hangers for garments (sold with the item) or labels directly attached to or hanging from the product.

There are many entities obligated under this new regulation, ranging from packaging manufacturers to traders or distributors of packaged products, all of whom are referred to as Product Producers in the regulation.

The obligations of the aforementioned Product Producers revolve around three main areas: (i) design, labeling, and packaging information, (ii) registration in the Product Producers Registry, and (iii) information.

Product Producers must register in the Product Producers Registry through the Sede Electrónica del Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico using their digital certificate. According to the Royal Decree, the deadline for registration for obligated entities is three months from the effective date, that is, until March 29, 2023. However, in order to facilitate the registration of all Product Producers, the registration deadline has been extended beyond March 29, 2023, without indicating a specific deadline, making it possible to register outside the timeframe indicated in the Royal Decree, but always before July 31 in order to comply with the communication obligations indicated below for the year 2021.

Product Producers must communicate certain annual information through the Sede Electrónica, no later than March 31 of the following year. However, two extraordinary periods are established for the information of data corresponding to packaging placed on the Spanish market between the years 2021 and 2022:

  • From 01/05/2023 to 31/07/2023, deadline for providing information on data corresponding to the year 2021.
  • From 01/08/2023 to 31/10/2023, deadline for providing information on data corresponding to the year 2022.

The Royal Decree does not establish specific sanctioning provisions, making references to other regulations. In this regard, failure to register in the Product Producers Registry and non-compliance with the information obligations regarding the placement of packaging in the market are considered serious infractions, with fines of up to 100,000 euros.

At addwill, we are at your disposal if you would like more information and advice on this issue from our professional experts.

For any query, do not hesitate to contact us by email info@addwill.eu or phone +34 93 487 52 00.