APPLiA’s position on the EU Product Act and the Digital Product Passport (DPP)

EU manufacturers face a growing competitive gap

European manufacturers are operating in an increasingly challenging environment. They face stronger global competition, expanding product requirements and a growing number of regulatory obligations that apply specifically to companies established in the European Union. At the same time, significant volumes of products enter the Single Market without scrutiny, traceability or effective enforcement.

This creates a structural imbalance: European manufacturers bear the costs of compliance and responsibility, while competing products may enter the market without equivalent accountability and at a lower cost.

Without addressing this enforcement gap, each additional regulatory requirement risks increasing the competitive disadvantage for EU industry, encouraging a shift towards low-value imports, and undermining the objectives of EU product legislation. It is essential that the European Product Act resolves this imbalance rather than becoming another piece of legislation that further exacerbates the problem. 

A Digital Product Passport (DPP) in isolation is not an effective market enforcement tool

While the European Commission has identified the DPP as a key "compliance tool", it cannot ensure compliance on its own. Without clear responsibility and robust verification mechanisms, there is a real risk of missing or fraudulent DPPs. This would allow non compliant products to continue accessing the EU market without an accountable economic operator, perpetuating unfair competition and placing compliant manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage. As the underlying principle, the DPP must provide relevant and verifiable product information, but it should never become a comprehensive reporting obligation system.

To make product rules truly enforceable, the European Product Act needs to ensure:

• Clear EU-based responsibility. Every product placed on the EU market should be linked to a legally responsible economic operator established in the Union. This operator must be identifiable, verifiable and capable of taking corrective action where products do not comply. This is particularly important for imports from third countries and online sales. Beyond improving product compliance, this approach also safeguards consumer rights by ensuring access to guarantees, supporting participation in WEEE  recycling systems, facilitating the future availability of spare parts, and reinforcing other obligations associated with placing products on the EU market.
• A Single EU QR Code. The EU Product Act should establish a Single EU QR Code linking each product to its responsible EU operator. This would avoid multiple QR codes created by different EU legislation, reduce administrative burden and provide consumers and authorities with one clear point of access.
• A pragmatic and enforceable DPP. The DPP should initially focus on a limited set of relevant and verifiable information. New obligations should only apply once governance, data requirements, access rights and technical architecture are fully operational. The guiding principle should be: start small, fair and pragmatic. Ultimately, the success of the DPP as a compliance tool depends on every product being linked to a properly established and legally responsible economic operator in the EU. Only then can the DPP create a clear enforcement pathway, strengthen accountability and support a level playing field for responsible manufacturers in Europe.

Our 8-step roadmap to an effective DPP implementation

Step 1: Establish a mandatory responsible EU economic operator. Before additional data obligations are introduced, every product placed on the EU market must have a legally responsible operator established in the Union.
Step 2: Enable verification of the economic operator. The identity and establishment of the economic operator should be digitally verifiable through trusted EU mechanisms.
Step 3: Establish the Single EU QR Code horizontally. One QR code should provide access to all legally required product information, avoiding duplication and consumer confusion.
Step 4: Use established EU mechanisms already in place, such as EPREL. For energy-labelled products, EPREL or EPREL+ should be used as an existing infrastructure, avoiding parallel structures.
Step 5: Define a Minimum Viable DPP. Initial requirements should focus on essential, verifiable information with clear regulatory value. The DPP should provide relevant and verifiable product information.
Step 6: Systematically assess data requirements. Every mandatory data point should have a clear purpose, an identifiable user and a proportionate burden.
Step 7: Protect trade secrets and sensitive technical documentation by ensuring that access is strictly limited, justified, and secured. Critical data must only be available upon request.
Step 8: Provide for pilots and realistic transition periods. Pilot phases and sufficient transition periods should precede broad enforcement of new obligations.