Weaving new rules for the textile industry

With the revised EU Waste Framework Directive (“WFD”) the EU establishes a comprehensive harmonized regulatory framework for the management of textile waste and introduces EU wide Extended Producer Responsibility schemes for textile products placed on the EU market. All EU Member States will be required to transpose these new requirements into national laws until 17 June 2027.

The EU Waste Framework Directive is already in place for several years now, more precisely since 2008. Its overarching goal is the prevention and reduction of waste and the minimization of the environmental impact of waste. Since then, the WFD set the basic principles for waste management. The Directive defined the waste hierarchy prioritising (i) waste prevention followed by (ii) preparation for re-use, (iii) recycling, (iv) recovery and (v) disposal as last resort. But it only provided for very limited concrete obligations for specific sectors. For the textiles sector, the WFD until now only provided for an obligation for Member States to set up separate collection systems for textiles until 1 January 2025. The new rules aim at enforcing adherence of textile products to the fundamental waste management principles in accordance with the waste hierarchy.

1.1 What does the revised WFD bring for the textiles industry?

The scope of the textile related obligations under the revised WFD is considerably broad. The Directive covers a broad variety of textiles, ranging from clothing and footwear to household textiles such as bed linen and curtains – and may, depending on national implementation, even include mattresses.

→  Extended Producer Responsibility for textiles

At the core of the revision is the introduction of EU wide Extended Producer Responsibility (“EPR”) schemes for textiles. With the introduction of EPR schemes, the polluter-pays principle will be extended to textiles, meaning that those parties that place textile products on the EU market will be held responsible for the end-of-life of their textile products. So far only individual Member States such as for example France or the Netherlands had EPR schemes in place for textile products. The rollout of textile related EPR obligations across the EU will, thus, significantly extend the responsibilities of textile producers that are doing business in the EU.

Under the new framework, producers will be held financially responsible for the end-of-life of their products. The physical waste management will be carried out by others, namely by Producer Responsibility Organisations (“PROs”). Textile producers’ financial contributions must cover the full costs associated with:

• Collection, transport, sorting, preparation for reuse, recycling, and disposal of textile waste;
• Waste management activities of social enterprises and other collectors;
• Surveys of municipal waste composition;
• Consumer information campaigns on sustainable consumption and end-of-life treatment of textile products;
• Data gathering and reporting; and
• Support for R&D to improve product design and waste management operations, particularly in fibre-to-fibre recycling.

→  Registration and compliance obligations

To ensure transparency and compliance with the EPR obligations, each Member State must establish a register of textile producers. Producers will need to register in every Member State where they first place textile products on the market, providing detailed company and product information such as:

• Producer identity and contact details;
• Brand names;
• Customs codes (CN codes); and
• Information about the entrusted Producer Responsibility Organisation.

Only registered producers will be allowed to make textile products available in the EU market for the first time. This “no registration – no market access” principle is designed to ensure a level playing field and to prevent free-riding by non-compliant operators. At the same time the lack of an EU wide producer register will impose additional administrative burdens on textile producers that are active in different EU Member States as they will have to register in multiple national registers. To facilitate the registration process, the EU Commission is at least required to establish a website that provides links to all national registers.

→  Mandatory entrusting of Producer Responsibility Organisations

Under the revised WFD producers will not themselves be responsible for practically organising the textile waste management. Instead, producers will have to fulfil their EPR obligations collectively through authorised Producer Responsibility Organisations (“PROs”). This means that producers will have to appoint an authorized PRO in each Member State where they intend to place textile products on the market for the first time. This obligation shall reduce administrative burdens for textile producers following from the introduction of an EPR scheme for textiles as much as possible. Insofar, the EU particularly acknowledges that a vast majority of the textiles sector is constituted by small and medium-sized enterprises.

For the fulfilment of the producers’ EPR obligations, these PROs will inter alia be responsible for:

• Collecting textile waste free of charge from consumers through the set up of collection points;
• Informing the public about reuse and repair options and the location of collection points; and
• Reporting annually on textiles placed on the market, collected, reused, recycled, or exported.

The financial contributions that producers will have to pay to their appointed PROs for the fulfilment of their EPR obligations shall be modulated based on product weight and eco-design features such as durability or recyclability. These eco-design requirements will be determined by the delegated acts to be adopted under the EU Eco-design for Sustainable Products Regulation (“ESPR”). Thus, textile products that for example consist of different types of fibres or that come with additional applications or zippers will most likely face higher financial contributions than textile products that only consist of one type of fibre. With these eco-modulated financial contributions, sustainable textile design shall be incentivised. For the same reason and to address fast-fashion practices and the overgeneration of textiles waste resulting from this, Member States shall also be allowed to modulate the financial contributions based on the product life span or the length of the useful life of the products beyond the first user.

→  Strengthen Textile Waste Management

These rather economic actor facing obligations are supplemented by several additional obligations for Member States that aim at strengthening the textile waste management so that it is in line with the waste hierarchy. The textile waste management related measures that should be expected to be adopted by Member States will essentially impact those parties that are involved in the collection, sorting and treatment of waste textiles. Among other things, Member States will be required to ensure through national measures that:

• Collection, transport, and storage of used and waste textiles are protected from adverse weather and contamination, and that collected textiles undergo professional screening to remove unsuitable materials;
• Used textiles are generally treated as waste upon collection, unless directly and professionally assessed as fit for re-use at the collection point;
• Sorting operations prioritise local sorting and re-use, include item-level sorting, and direct non-reusable items towards remanufacturing or recycling (including fibre-to-fibre recycling where possible);
• Compositional surveys of municipal waste are carried out every five years to assess the share of textile waste and guide improvements to PROs on their network of collection points and their information campaigns; and
• Shipments of used textiles declared fit for re-use comply with record-keeping and documentation requirements to prevent the illegal export of textile waste, with inspection costs potentially charged to producers or intermediaries.

These measures aim to increase transparency and to support the development of a genuine circular economy for textiles in the EU. However, insofar Member States are given a relatively broad leeway for interpretation and on how to pursue these goals on a national level which is why measures may differ across Member States.

→  Preparations for actors in the textile supply chain

The textile related obligations under the revised WFD will directly impact textile manufacturers and sellers as well as online marketplaces on which textile products are offered.

Both manufacturers and sellers may qualify as a producer under the revised WFD with corresponding producer obligations. For ensuring compliance with the applicable rules textile manufacturers and sellers will have to assess whether they qualify as producers under the EPR rules in each Member State where they offer textile products for sale. Insofar, the revised WFD provides for a rather detailed definition of “producer”. However, put simply, producers are typically those who first make textiles available on the market in a given Member State. Sellers of unbranded textiles should act with particular scrutiny as they may even qualify as producers if they merely resell such textiles under their own name or trademark, even if they have already been placed on the market before by another party. Depending on the outcome of this assessment, manufacturers and sellers of textile products will have to comply with their respective producer obligations in each Member State where they act as a producer.

In the context of online sales, online marketplaces will be involved in ensuring compliance with producer obligations. In order to do so, the revised WFD requires them to verify compliance with EPR obligations by the sellers using their platforms. For this, they must collect registration information from producers and obtain self-certifications confirming compliance with EPR obligations. After obtaining this information, they will be required to make “best efforts” to verify whether this information is reliable and complete. This is in line with the EU’s broader policy approach of making digital platforms jointly responsible for ensuring regulatory compliance across supply chains.

1.2 Building on existing textile EPR schemes in the Netherlands and France

Where the EU plans to mandate extended producer responsibility for textiles across the EU, there are already extended producer responsibility schemes in place in France and the Netherlands, and the EU can build on the experiences gained on national level.

(a) What are the experiences with textile EPR schemes in France?

France introduced EPR for textiles in 2007 under the Finance Law for 2007. Initially limited in scope, the scheme now covers all finished textile products except furnishing elements or decorative/protective items. Its aim is to address the entire lifecycle of textiles, from eco-design and waste prevention to collection, reuse and recycling. The Anti-Waste for a Circular Economy Law (AGEC) of 2020 strengthened this framework, requiring all entities placing textiles on the French market – manufacturers, distributors, importers and online platforms – to manage waste from their products. The system evolved from a financial-support model to a comprehensive waste-management approach covering collection, sorting, reuse, repurposing and valorisation.

France relies on Refashion (formerly Eco-TLC), a State-approved PRO whose approval is renewed every six years. Funded through eco-fees (€0.02–€0.20 per item, totalling €101.4 million in 2023), Refashion coordinates collection, supports reuse actors, promotes eco-design and funds recycling innovation. Since the AGEC law, eco-fees vary according to environmental performance, incentivising durability and recycled content. Producers must declare annually the volumes placed on the market and pay contributions based on actual quantities or a simplified flat-rate for smaller firms.

Since 2022, EPR organisations cover the full costs of textile waste collection, sorting, reuse and recycling. Financial support is provided to sorting operators and local authorities, linked to performance criteria. The scheme also addresses abandoned textile waste and all actors must comply with strict specifications, undergo audits and report annually to ADEME via the Syderep platform. Companies may opt for individual compliance schemes if they meet regulatory requirements.

In 2023, 811,000 tonnes of textiles were placed on the French market; 36.4% were collected and only 0.8% of collected textiles were disposed of without recovery. Collection volumes have risen 40% since 2014. New targets include a 60% collection rate by 2028, 80% recycling by 2027 and disposal below 0.5%.

As of now, France has not published any draft legislation or official proposal for adapting its existing textile EPR framework to the new EU requirements. This creates uncertainty about how France will reconcile its advanced national system with the harmonised EU rules.

(b) What are the experiences with textile EPR schemes in the Netherlands?

In the Netherlands EPR is regulated by the Dutch Textile EPR Decree (in Dutch: “Besluit uitgebreide producentenverantwoordelijkheid textiel”). Many of the requirements from the revised WFD, are already implemented in Dutch law.

This regards for instance the responsibility for setting up and funding appropriate collection systems, targets for recycling and preparation for reuse, based on the weight of the products marketed by a specific producer (importers or authorised representatives – if the producer is not established in the Netherlands) and registration and reporting obligations in this regard.

The Decree also specifically requires the producer to take measures to ensure that the textile fibres recycled from end-of-life textile products are used as much as possible in textile products marketed.

In the Netherlands, producers and enforcement authorities have experience with PROs. Currently, every producer is responsible for the products that they market, but they can voluntarily establish or join a PRO. Therefore, there are already several PROs established in the Netherlands, that comply with the EPR in the name of the producers in terms of notification and reporting obligations and for the joint organisation of collection and preparation for reuse and recycling of the textile waste.

EPR can already be enforced in the Netherlands through administrative or criminal law, as enforced by the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (in Dutch: “Inspectie Leefomgeving en Transport” or “ILT”). We are however not aware of any enforcement actions already taken.

With the revised WFD, the scope of the obligations and/or the producers affected likely expands in the Netherlands, as for instance footwear is currently not included in the scope. At this moment it is however unclear how the Dutch government intends to do this, as no proposal for amended legislation is yet published, although the current legal framework and the multiple (voluntary) PROs in place already provide for a setup.

The ESPR is already in force since July 2024. The overall aim of the ESPR is to improve the environmental sustainability of products. With a staggered approach individual obligations will start to apply from 2026.

→  Prohibition of destruction of unsold textiles

As of 19 July 2026, the ESPR will prohibit the destruction of several kinds of unsold textile products with only some exceptions and deferrals for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. This prohibition applies to a broad variety of apparel and clothing accessories as well as footwear within the EU market. From 19 July 2026 on, the covered products must not be destroyed if they have not been sold. This includes surplus stock, excess inventory and deadstock as well as products returned by consumers on the basis of their right of withdrawal. Parties involved in the manufacturing and sale of textile products that used to destroy such products either themselves or through third parties should prepare for this prohibition and look for alternative approaches to sell-off or donate unsold textile products.

→  Eco-design requirements

The ESPR provides a common framework for setting eco-design requirements for almost all kind of products. Yet, the ESPR does not set forth product specific eco-design requirements itself. Rather, these have to be adopted step by step by the EU Commission through delegated acts for respective product groups. One of the focus product groups for the setting of such requirements are textiles, in particular garments and footwear. It is expected that the EU Commission will adopt specific requirements for the textiles industry by 2027 through a delegated act that is based on the framework provided in the ESPR. The delegated act is expected to apply from 18 months after the entry into force of that delegated act. Textiles that do not comply with these requirements will not be allowed to be placed on the EU market any longer. In this respect, the ESPR provides for a catalogue of several parameters that could be used for setting future eco-design requirements for textiles. For example, this could include aspects such as:

• Durability and reliability of the product;
• Design for recycling;
• Use of substances, in particular substances of concern;
• Use or content of recycled materials; and
• The environmental footprint of the product.

Where appropriate, such parameters shall be accompanied by minimum or maximum levels in relation to specific product parameters. In practice, this could mean that manufacturers of textile products must assess the recyclability grade of their products and ensure that a certain minimum amount of recycled fibres is used in some products. Such eco-design requirements will obviously have a massive impact on the procurement and design processes of textile manufacturers.

→  Textile Digital Product Passport

The delegated act to be adopted by the EU Commission will also include mandatory obligations with regard to information that must be provided together with textile products. As a minimum, textile products will have to be accompanied by a Digital Product Passport (“DPP”). The DPP will act as a digital record that tracks a broad variety of relevant information about the relevant textile products throughout their lifetime. Each textile product will have to be connected to such a DPP through a QR-code or similar data carrier that must be present on the textile product itself, its packaging or on accompanying documents, depending on the specific rules in the relevant delegated act. There is no definite decision yet which information exactly will need to be included in textile DPP. But the ESPR provides for a catalogue of potential information that could be required to be included in the DPP. For example, this may include information on:

• the identity of the manufacturer and the facility of production;
• the importer and the EU responsible person; and
• on the relevant commodity codes.

Following a research study conducted by the EU Parliament further information such as for example on the product composition, the supply chain, the transport, the environmental and social impact and circularity aspects could also be included in textile DPPs. The EU Parliament suggests a staggered approach for the introduction of a DPP in three different phases starting with only limited mandatory information such as on the composition of the product, on its recyclability and location of essential manufacturing processes; in the last step, the DPP shall be comprehensive and shall also track distribution, usage and aftersales services, and shall provide information about the design and manufacturing techniques to make sorting and recycling processes more efficient.