The EU Digital Product Passport (DPP)

The Digital Product Passport is the data layer of ESPR: a machine-readable record that accompanies a regulated product through its lifecycle. This page covers the central registry, the published DPP standards, and the battery passport, which is the most mature category.

The DPP Registry

The EU DPP registry must be operational by 19 July 2026. This is fixed in Article 13 of ESPR (Regulation (EU) 2024/1781).

Locked

No official Commission statement confirming operational readiness has been published. The legal deadline is locked; whether the platform will be fully ready on that date is unconfirmed. Build to the deadline and maintain a contingency plan.

Speculative

The registry is an index, not a data warehouse. It stores the unique identifier, the data-carrier reference, and pointers. Passport content sits with the manufacturer, a service provider, or another platform. Market surveillance and customs use it to verify that a passport exists and is valid.

Locked

The economic operator placing the product on the market is responsible for registering the passport and retains legal responsibility even when a third-party PIM or DPP service provider performs the registration and lifecycle updates.

Locked

Required metadata at registration is expected to include: unique product identifier (UPI) in GS1 Digital Link URI format, EORI-linked operator records, CN commodity codes, and a link to the declaration of conformity. The precise field set is governed by implementing rules still being finalized.

Signaled

By 1 July 2026, organizations in a regulated category should have decided: who will register (in-house versus a service provider), whether they can issue compliant unique identifiers and GS1 Digital Link data carriers, and whether their EORI and conformity documentation is ready to link.

Signaled

DPP Standards and Data Carriers

CEN and CENELEC published the first six horizontal DPP standards on 27 May 2026 (EN 18216, 18219, 18220, 18221, 18222, 18223) under Standardisation Request M/604. Two more (prEN 18239, EN 18246) are under approval, expected September 2026. Official Journal citation for presumption of conformity is a separate step, not yet confirmed.

Locked

GS1 Digital Link is published and available for implementation today.

Locked

In batteries and automotive, the Catena-X / IDTA AAS battery passport guideline (February 2026) is the most concrete buildable specification available.

Locked

The Battery Passport

Battery passports are mandatory from 18 February 2027 for EV batteries, LMT batteries, and industrial batteries over 2 kWh under Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, Article 77.

Locked

IDTA and Catena-X released the Digital Battery Passport Use Case Guideline of the AAS in February 2026. It provides open semantic submodel templates and API architecture, with Eclipse Tractus-X as the reference application. This is the most concrete buildable specification in the battery DPP space as of mid-2026.

Locked

The battery passport covers approximately 90 data fields across: general model information, carbon footprint (per kWh of lifetime), recycled content (cobalt, lithium, nickel, lead), state of health, due diligence on raw material sourcing, and capacity and cycle life.

Locked

The Global Battery Alliance's 2026 Operational Trials are running with 17 value-chain consortia; results were expected June 2026. The trials map supply chains, collect data against the GBA Battery Benchmarks and Greenhouse Gas Rulebook, and test digital solutions with independent assurance providers.

Signaled

The EV battery carbon-footprint calculation methodology act remains in draft as of June 2026. It gates real enforcement of the carbon-footprint declaration requirement. Do not finalize your carbon-footprint reporting approach until this act is adopted.

Speculative

Readiness is strongest in the automotive and large-cell segment (Catena-X, IDTA, GBA ecosystems). The gap risk sits with smaller producers and segments outside that ecosystem, including light-means-of-transport and industrial-storage, where implementation remains pilot-stage and fragmented.

Signaled

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the EU Digital Product Passport registry?
The registry is an index, not a data warehouse. It stores each product's unique identifier and the responsible economic operator, while passport content sits with the manufacturer or its service provider. It must be operational by 19 July 2026 under ESPR Article 13.
Are the Digital Product Passport standards published?
CEN and CENELEC published the first six horizontal DPP standards (EN 18216 to EN 18223) on 27 May 2026 under Standardisation Request M/604. Two more are expected September 2026. Official Journal citation for presumption of conformity is a separate step, not yet confirmed.
What specification can battery producers build against today?
The IDTA and Catena-X AAS battery passport guideline, published February 2026, is the most concrete buildable specification, with Eclipse Tractus-X as the reference implementation. GS1 Digital Link is also published and available to implement today.