UK Statutory Instrument SI 2015 United Kingdom

Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2015

These Regulations revoke and replace the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2003 (“the 2003 Regulations”). The 2003 Regulations implemented Articles 9 and 11 of Directive 94/62/EC of the European Parliament and the Council on packaging and packaging waste (OJ No L365, 31.12.94, p 10) which relate to the essential requirements to …

Read it on legislation.gov.uk (opens in a new tab)
Enforced by
Environment Agency, DEFRA, SEPA
Status
Amended (in force with amendments)
Penalty ceiling
Prosecution 3 of 6 obligations carry an unlimited fine. 3 have no criminal penalty — flagged in the list below.

Does it bind you?

Business-side roles with duties under this instrument.

Any Person2 Director or Officer1 Responsible Person1

Plus 2 duties on the regulator, Crown ministers and public bodies — folded into the section list below.

Other Acts binding the same actors

If a role above is yours, these are the other instruments that most often bind it.

Any Person — also bound by 2340 other Acts
Director or Officer — also bound by 429 other Acts
Companies Act 2006 126 duties
Responsible Person — also bound by 108 other Acts
MH(CT)(S)A 2003 30 duties

What it requires

Regulations creating concrete business duties or carrying penalties, grouped as the instrument is structured. Titles link to the source text — blue means you’re leaving for legislation.gov.uk.

Part 1

Preliminary

0 of 3 sections shown
3 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.001 Citation and commencement
s.002 Interpretation (opens in a new tab)
s.modification of the waste directive Modification of the Waste Directive
Part 2

Application

0 of 1 section shown
1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.003 Packaging (opens in a new tab)
Part 3

General Requirements

0 of 4 sections shown
4 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.004 General duty relating to the placing on the market of packaging
s.005 Concentration levels of regulated metals present in packaging
s.006 Requirement for technical documentation
s.qualifying northern ireland goods Qualifying Northern Ireland Goods
Part 4

Enforcement

4 of 5 sections shown
s.007 Enforcement authority (opens in a new tab) Regulated
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Local authorities and NI departments must enforce packaging regulationsLocal authority
s.008 Offences (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Fail to meet packaging essential requirementsAny Person

Unlimited fine

s.009 Penalties (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Fail to meet packaging essential requirements (reg 8a)Any Person

Unlimited fine

s.011 Liability of persons other than the principal offender (opens in a new tab) Prosecution
  • Be held liable for another's packaging offenceDirector or Officer

Unlimited fine

1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.010 Defence of due diligence (opens in a new tab)
Part 5

Miscellaneous

1 of 5 sections shown
s.012 Review (opens in a new tab) Regulated
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must review the effectiveness of packaging regulationsCrown / Minister / Government department
4 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
s.013 Consequential amendments (opens in a new tab)
s.014 Consequential amendments (opens in a new tab)
s.015 Consequential amendments (opens in a new tab)
s.016 Revocations (opens in a new tab)
Schedules

Schedules

1 of 14 shown
s.006 Requirement for technical documentation (opens in a new tab) Regulated
  • Maintain and provide packaging technical documentation upon requestResponsible Person
13 other schedules
s.001 (Annex II of the Directive ) (opens in a new tab)
s.004 Enforcement (opens in a new tab)
s.005 Illustrative Examples of Packaging Referred to in the definition of Packaging in Regulation 3(2) (opens in a new tab)
s.sch001 Requirements specific to the manufacturing and composition of packaging
s.sch001 Requirements specific to reusable packaging
s.sch001 Requirements specific to the recoverable nature of packaging
s.sch002 (1) The plastic crate or plastic pallet must be, or...
s.sch002 (1) The plastic crate or plastic pallet must be introduced...
s.sch003 (1) No regulated metals must be intentionally introduced during the...
s.sch003 (1) The manufacturer or the manufacturer’s authorised representative, or, where...
s.sch004 (1) For the purposes of providing for the enforcement of...
s.sch004 Nothing in this Schedule authorises any enforcement authority to bring...
s.sch004 An enforcement authority must, whenever the Secretary of State so...

Help complying

Guvnor’s practical routes through this instrument.

Meet environmental compliance requirements

Navigate your environmental obligations including waste duty of care, pollution prevention, packaging responsibilities, and energy reporting

Start a manufacturing business

Launch a manufacturing business with the right permits and compliance
3 more guides that reference this instrument
Packaging Design Requirements Packaging Producer Responsibility Food and drink regulations and traceability

Duty extraction and severity labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the instrument, not the instrument itself. Always verify against the linked source text.