The EU passport registry, and getting ready to use it

The EU's Digital Product Passport registry went online on 20 July 2026, a day after the deadline the Ecodesign Regulation set for it, with a separate test environment. It is the central directory that lets authorities and customs find a product's passport. By 18 February 2027, each covered battery's identifier must be findable there.

An index, not a database

The registry holds very little: essentially the product's unique identifier and the web address of its passport, plus the commodity code for customs and some administrative data. Batteries are registered one item at a time. The passport content stays with the manufacturer or its provider.

Two consequences follow:

• Registration is not proof of compliance. The registry stores identifiers, not test results, and responsibility for the passport content stays with you (Art. 77(4)).
• Customs will check it. When goods are declared for free circulation, the registration identifier has to be given, and customs releases them only once the identifier and commodity code match the registry. Goods that don't match can be held at the border.

Why battery passports can't be registered yet

As of October 2026 the registration function is locked for batteries. The Commission still has to publish the semantic catalogue for battery passports, which defines the fields, and the registry's programming interfaces. Both were planned for the fourth quarter of 2026. Rules for service providers registering on a manufacturer's behalf are expected later, around the second quarter of 2027.

The deadline itself hasn't moved. So the useful work now is everything that doesn't depend on the catalogue.

What you need before you connect

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1778, which applies from 6 August 2026, sets out who may register:

• Only verified economic operators can register. Access is through an EU Login account, and the organisation must be verified first.
• Companies verify with a qualified electronic seal. A personal signature isn't enough for a legal person; sole traders can use a qualified signature or another high-assurance electronic ID. Getting a qualified certificate under eIDAS can take days or weeks because of identity checks.
• Verification lasts up to three years. It runs from issue, so time the purchase of a seal so its validity covers early 2027 and beyond.
• Registration can be manual or automated, one item at a time or in batches. In a batch, one faulty entry rejects the whole batch, so validate before you send.
• There is no fee for registering itself. The costs are the seal and preparing the data.

What to do while you wait

• Get the data ready. Material composition, supply-chain and carbon data are the usual bottleneck, and none of them depends on the registry.
• Name one person responsible for the passport and for registration, with access to the organisation's EU Login.
• Obtain a qualified electronic seal in good time, and try verification in the Commission's test environment.
• Decide whether you will register yourself or authorise a provider. Responsibility stays with you either way.
• Design your data so field names can be mapped later, since the catalogue isn't published yet.
• Choose identifiers that follow ISO/IEC 15459 (GS1 is one way, but not the only one) and fit the registry's format.

FAQ

Can battery passports be registered in the EU registry yet?

Not as of October 2026. The registry is live, but registration for batteries waits on the Commission's semantic catalogue and programming interfaces, planned for late 2026.

Does the EU registry store our battery data?

No. It stores identifiers, the passport's web address and administrative data. The passport content stays with you or your provider.

What do we need to register battery passports?

A verified organisation with an EU Login account. Companies verify with a qualified electronic seal, and verification lasts up to three years.

Sources

• EU DPP registry live since July 2026, DPP Hero
• The EU battery passport registry, DPP Hero
• Battery passport registration and service providers, DPP Hero