Digital Product Passport (DPP) – what do you need to know about it?

The Digital Product Passport is an electronic document containing information about a product, intended to accompany it throughout its entire life cycle—from production, through use, to recycling. The concept was introduced as part of the circular economy policy in order to increase the transparency of information about specific products. The Digital Product Passport is to be implemented based on Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 on ecodesign for sustainable products (ESPR) of 13 June 2024. What is worth knowing about it and what important changes will it bring for consumers and manufacturers? We explain.

Digital Product Passport (DPP) – what do you need to know about it?

DDP – Digital Product Passport, i.e., the Digital Product Passport, is a tool whose main purpose is to increase the transparency of the product life cycle. It will be a set of recorded information on a given product’s page, containing detailed data on:

• composition,
• country of origin,
• manufacturing process,
• supply chain,
• recycling and methods of management after the end of use,
• companies and plants,
• method of use.

Thanks to all this information, it will help consumers make informed purchasing decisions. Easy access to all product information—by scanning the link to the page—will enable thoughtful shopping. Moreover, the introduction of the Digital Product Passport will support the circular economy and help eliminate greenwashing and the sale of counterfeit goods.

What will the Digital Product Passport look like?

The Digital Product Passport will be a digital document stored in a database and available to the user on the product’s website. All required product data will be placed by the manufacturer on a dedicated page, and the URL link is to be attached to each product in the form of a label with a QR code or an NFC label. Information about a given product will be easy to read by scanning the QR code from the label or using NFC technology—by holding the phone up to the NFC label. The requirement is that the label attached to the product, as the carrier of product data, must be indestructible throughout its entire period of use.

Digital Product Passport – from when will it be mandatory?

The obligation to have a Digital Product Passport will be introduced gradually. Currently, the European Commission is working on delegated and implementing acts, which will include detailed data contained in the DDP and their scope. As early as 2026, some goods will have to have a Digital Product Passport.

In addition, a DDP register will be created, in which all collected data will be stored. This is also planned for 2026.

Digital Product Passport – which products will it cover?

The European Commission has specified groups of goods that will be required to have a Digital Product Passport. At the beginning, in 2026, this will include electronics, textiles, batteries, and iron and steel. Then it is planned to implement the obligation for the following groups of goods:

• in 2027, aluminium, tyres,
• in 2028, furniture,
• in 2029, mattresses, electronic devices.

All remaining products will be covered by this obligation by 2030. However, companies from a specific industry will have a specified time to introduce the DDP on their products after the European Commission issues delegated acts containing detailed provisions.

New obligations for manufacturers and sellers

The introduction of the Digital Product Passport involves additional obligations not only for manufacturers but also for sellers. Manufacturers will have to ensure that all data in the product database is completed and that NFC labels or QR code labels are placed on their products. Store owners, on the other hand, will additionally have to ensure that products available for sale have a DDP. In addition, the seller, both in an online store and in a physical store, must provide consumers with access to the data contained in the Product Passport even before purchase. The method of storing products will also be important and will have to be adapted so that the data carrier is not damaged during storage.

The Digital Product Passport is an instrument that will certainly facilitate access to key information about goods for consumers and entrepreneurs. It will be a powerful database that will already apply to some products from 2026. The obligation will apply to goods manufactured in the EU and imported into its territory.

Labels for the digital product passport and label printers

Etisoft offers solutions supporting the implementation of the Digital Product Passport (DPP). The Etisoft offering includes, among others, NFC labels that enable recording and reading product data in digital form, as well as label printers that allow printing markings with QR codes leading to detailed product information. These labels are designed to be highly durable and practically indestructible, thanks to which they maintain readability and functionality throughout the entire product life cycle, guaranteeing constant access to the information recorded in the digital product passport.

If you want to learn how to implement the Digital Product Passport, you need labels for your products – Contact us!