EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542
Full citation: Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2023 concerning batteries and waste batteries, amending Directive 2008/98/EC and Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and repealing Directive 2006/66/EC.
Published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 28 July 2023 (OJ L 191). It entered into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union (Article 96(1)) and applies from 18 February 2024, save as set out in Article 96(2), second subparagraph, and in other provisions of the Regulation (Article 96(2)).
This documentation is informational only and does not constitute legal advice. Consult qualified legal counsel for advice specific to your products and compliance situation.
Purpose
The EU Battery Regulation replaces Directive 2006/66/EC (the Battery Directive) and represents a comprehensive overhaul of EU battery law. Its stated objectives are to:
- Establish a sustainable, high-performance, and safe battery value chain within the EU
- Ensure batteries placed on the EU market are safe, durable, and efficient throughout their lifecycle
- Minimise the environmental and social impact of batteries at all lifecycle stages, including raw material extraction, manufacturing, use, and end of life
- Contribute to the EU's circular economy and climate objectives by promoting battery recycling and second-life use
- Improve market transparency through mandatory information provision, including the battery passport
The regulation reflects a lifecycle approach: obligations apply to economic operators across the entire supply chain, not only to manufacturers at the point of production.
Scope
The regulation applies to:
- All batteries placed on the EU market or put into service in the EU, regardless of whether they are sold as standalone products or incorporated into other products or vehicles.
- All economic operators in the battery supply chain who place batteries on the EU market: manufacturers, importers, distributors, and authorised representatives.
- All battery categories as defined in Article 3: portable, SLI (starter, lighting, and ignition), LMT (light means of transport), EV (electric vehicle), and industrial batteries.
Certain limited exemptions apply for batteries in equipment related to the protection of EU member state security interests, weapons, munitions, and war material (Article 1(5)(a)), and for batteries in equipment designed to be sent into space (Article 1(5)(b)).
For a detailed breakdown of which battery types and operators fall within scope, see Regulation Scope.
Key Provisions
Digital Product Passport (Article 77)
Article 77 of the Battery Regulation establishes the mandatory digital product passport (DPP) for batteries. Article 77 sets the general framework: from 18 February 2027 each LMT battery, each industrial battery with a capacity greater than 2 kWh and each electric vehicle battery placed on the market or put into service must have a battery passport (Article 77(1)), accessible through the QR code referred to in Article 13(6) (Article 77(3)). The information is included "to the extent applicable to the category or sub-category of battery concerned" (Article 77(2)), and the economic operator placing the battery on the market or putting it into service uploads the unique identifier in the registry referred to in Article 13(1) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 (ESPR) (Article 77(10)).
The DPP must be created before the battery is placed on the EU market. The QR code must be printed or engraved visibly, legibly and indelibly on the battery; where this is not possible or not warranted on account of the nature and size of the battery, it is affixed to the packaging and to the documents accompanying the battery (Article 13(7)). It links to a unique identifier that the economic operator placing the battery on the market attributes to it (Article 77(3)).
Traceable's core DPP module is built around Article 77. It provides a template for each battery category, although portable and SLI passports cannot currently be created on the production platform (see Portable batteries and SLI batteries); the economic operator placing the battery on the market remains responsible for ensuring that the information in the battery passport is accurate, complete and up to date (Article 77(4)).
Carbon Footprint (Article 7 and Annex II)
Article 7 requires carbon footprint declarations for electric vehicle batteries, rechargeable industrial batteries with a capacity greater than 2 kWh and LMT batteries. The carbon footprint must be calculated in accordance with the methodology established in delegated acts under Article 7(1) and must cover the life cycle stages set out in point 4 of Annex II (raw material acquisition and pre-processing, main product production, distribution, and end of life and recycling). The use phase is excluded from the calculation, except where it is demonstrated that choices made by battery manufacturers at the design stage can make a non-negligible contribution to that impact.
For EV batteries, the obligation is phased:
- Carbon footprint declaration (the calculated value): applies from 18 February 2025 or 12 months after the date of entry into force either of the delegated act or of the implementing act respectively referred to in the fourth subparagraph, points (a) and (b), whichever is the latest (Article 7(1), second subparagraph, point (a))
- Carbon footprint performance class (classes set by Commission delegated act, with category A being the best class; Annex II point 8): applies from 18 August 2026 or 18 months after the date of entry into force either of the delegated act or of the implementing act respectively referred to in the fourth subparagraph, points (a) and (b), whichever is the latest (Article 7(2), third subparagraph, point (a))
Carbon footprint declarations must be included in the battery's DPP.
Recycled Content (Article 8 and Annex VIII)
The regulation establishes minimum recycled content targets for cobalt, nickel, lithium, and lead used in battery manufacturing. The minimum shares apply from 18 August 2031 (first tranche, Article 8(2)) and 18 August 2036 (second tranche, Article 8(3)). Article 8(2) sets 16 % cobalt, 85 % lead, 6 % lithium and 6 % nickel, and Article 8(3) sets 26 % cobalt, 85 % lead, 12 % lithium and 15 % nickel; the same shares apply to each battery category the paragraph covers.
Recycled content information must be included in the battery passport (Annex XIII, point 1(e)); for SLI batteries it is made accessible through the QR code (Article 13(6), point (c)). For every battery category covered by Article 8, conformity with Article 8 is assessed under Module D1 or Module G of Annex VIII, which involve a notified body (Article 17(2)).
Supply Chain Due Diligence (Article 48 and Annex X)
From 18 August 2027, Article 48(1) requires economic operators that place batteries on the market or put them into service, subject to Article 47, first paragraph, under which Chapter VII does not apply to economic operators that had a net turnover of less than EUR 40 million in the financial year preceding the last financial year and that are not part of a group which, on a consolidated basis, exceeds the limit of EUR 40 million, to set up and implement battery due diligence policies concerning the raw materials listed in point 1 of Annex X (cobalt, natural graphite, lithium, nickel, and chemical compounds based on them which are necessary for the manufacturing of the active materials of batteries) and the associated social and environmental risk categories listed in point 2 of Annex X (Article 49(1)(a)).
The battery passport includes, as publicly accessible information, information on responsible sourcing as indicated in the report on battery due diligence policy referred to in Article 52(3) (Annex XIII, point 1(d)). The supporting documentation, including the country of origin of the raw material (Article 49(2)(c)), is not an Annex XIII item; the operator keeps it for 10 years after the last battery manufactured under the relevant policy has been placed on the market (Article 48(3)).
Second-Life Provisions (Articles 14 and 77)
The regulation establishes obligations to support battery repurposing and second-life use. From 18 August 2024, the battery management system of stationary battery energy storage systems, LMT batteries and electric vehicle batteries must contain up-to-date data for the Annex VII parameters for determining the state of health and expected lifetime (Article 14(1)), with read-only access for the person who has legally purchased the battery, including independent operators or waste management operators, or any third party acting on their behalf (Article 14(2)). The battery passport includes information on the state of health of the battery pursuant to Article 14, accessible only to persons with a legitimate interest (Annex XIII, point 4(b)).
Extended Producer Responsibility (Articles 56–76)
Producers (as defined in Article 3(1), point (47), which can be a manufacturer, importer or distributor) are required to register in the register of producers that each Member State establishes, applying in each Member State where they make a battery available on the market for the first time (Article 55), fulfil extended producer responsibility themselves or through a producer responsibility organisation (Article 57(1)), meet collection rate targets (by battery category), and fund the recycling of end-of-life batteries. Annex XIII does not list EPR registration information; the battery passport includes the information on prevention and management of waste batteries laid down in Article 74(1), points (a) to (f) (Annex XIII, point 1(s)).
Conformity Assessment (Articles 17–26)
Batteries placed on the EU market must comply with the applicable requirements of the regulation and carry CE marking. The conformity assessment procedure depends on the requirement assessed and on whether the battery is manufactured in series. For the requirements laid down in Articles 6, 9, 10, 12, 13 and 14, the manufacturer uses Module A (internal production control), or Module D1 or Module G (Article 17(1)); for the requirements laid down in Articles 7 and 8, it uses Module D1 or Module G, which involve a notified body (Article 17(2)), from 12 months after the date of the first publication of the list referred to in Article 30(2) (Article 96(2), point (b)). Where compliance has been demonstrated, the manufacturer draws up an EU declaration of conformity (Article 38(3)).
The battery passport includes the EU declaration of conformity referred to in Article 18 (Annex XIII, point 1(r)), whose model structure names the notified body where one was involved (Annex IX, point 7).
Enforcement
Enforcement of the Battery Regulation is the responsibility of national market surveillance authorities (MSAs) in each EU member state, acting under Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 on market surveillance. Each member state designates one or more MSAs responsible for batteries placed on their market.
MSAs have powers to:
- Request documentation from economic operators (including DPP data)
- Conduct market surveillance checks (including physical inspection of batteries and QR code verification)
- Order corrective actions, product recalls, or market withdrawals
- Impose penalties under national law
The regulation does not set harmonised penalties at the EU level — penalties are set by member state law. Member states are required to ensure penalties are effective, proportionate, and dissuasive.
Operators using Traceable should be aware that the DPP data stored on the platform may be accessed and reviewed by MSAs as part of market surveillance activities. All data entered into the platform must be accurate and verifiable.
How Traceable Helps
The table below maps the regulation's major obligations to specific features within the Traceable platform:
| Regulatory Obligation | Regulation Reference | Traceable Feature |
|---|---|---|
| Battery passport creation | Art. 77 | DPP Builder — structured data entry by battery category |
| QR code data carrier | Art. 13(6), Annex VI | QR code generated for each passport once it passes the publish gate; with a GTIN it encodes a GS1 Digital Link web address, otherwise the passport's /dpp/{slug} address |
| Carbon footprint declaration | Art. 7, Annex II | Carbon Footprint module within DPP |
| Carbon footprint performance class | Art. 7(2), Annex II point 8 | Carbon Footprint Performance Class field on every battery template, optional on all of them |
| Recycled content declaration | Art. 8, Annex VIII | Recycled content fields for cobalt, lithium, nickel and lead percentages; no verification field |
| Supply chain due diligence | Art. 48, Annex X | Supply Chain Due Diligence section: sourcing declarations for cobalt, graphite, lithium and nickel, and one Annex X material countries-of-origin field on the EV and LMT templates |
| State of health data | Art. 14, Annex VII | Performance & Durability section: state-of-health fields; no SoH methodology field |
| Declaration of Conformity | Art. 18, Art. 20 | Certificates: CE Declaration of Conformity document; a notified-body field on the EV and LMT templates only |
| Producer registration in each Member State's register of producers | Art. 55 | No DPP field for EV, industrial or stationary batteries: Annex XIII does not list a producer registration number. The LMT template has an optional PRO Registration ID field |
| Access control (public vs restricted data) | Art. 77(2) | Per-field access tiers set in each category configuration: public, persons with a legitimate interest, and authority |
| Extended producer responsibility | Arts. 56–76 | End-of-life collection point locator on every battery template; collection scheme URL on the portable, SLI and industrial templates; Producer Responsibility Organisation ID on the LMT template |
Further Reading in This Section
| Page | Contents |
|---|---|
| Regulation Scope | Which batteries and operators are covered |
| Enforcement Timeline | Mandatory dates by category and obligation |
| DPP Requirements | What must be in every battery DPP |
| Annex XIII: Battery passport information | Field-by-field reference for LMT, industrial (>2 kWh) and EV batteries, using industrial batteries as the worked example |
| DPP Field → Regulation Mapping | Traceable fields mapped to regulation articles |