Extended producer responsibility for textiles
The EU has decided that producers of textiles and footwear must pay for the collection, sorting and recycling of their products when they end up as waste. The extended producer responsibility schemes must be up and running by April 2028 at the latest. Here is what has been decided, and what you can do now.
About producer responsibility
Other product areas
Decided in the EU, coming in Denmark
In 2025 the EU adopted an amendment to the Waste Framework Directive that obliges all member states to introduce extended producer responsibility for textiles and footwear. Producers must pay for the collection, sorting and recycling of the textiles they make available on the market.
The rules apply to all producers, including those selling online, and regardless of whether the company is established inside or outside the EU. Micro-enterprises get an extra year.
In Denmark the rules do not exist yet. They will come in a Danish ministerial order that must be in place within the directive's deadlines. Until then there is no registration, reporting or contribution for textiles, and no producer responsibility organisation (PRO) to join.
Emballage Indberetning will follow once the legislation takes effect. How producer responsibility fits together.
16 October 2025
The directive took effect
By June 2027
Member states must have implemented the rules in national law
By April 2028
The schemes must be operational, and producers take on the responsibility
By April 2029
Micro-enterprises become covered
Which textiles will be covered
The directive mentions clothing and accessories, hats, footwear, carpets, bed and kitchen textiles and curtains. That covers both what is sold to consumers and what is sold to businesses.
The precise Danish scope, and how volumes must be reported, will come with the ministerial order. Below you can see the directive's own groups.
Clothing, footwear and home textiles. The responsibility follows the textile, whether it is sold in a shop or online.
| Product group | Examples from the directive |
|---|---|
| Clothing and accessories | Clothing, accessories and hats. |
| Footwear | All types of footwear. |
| Home textiles | Carpets, bed linen, kitchen textiles and curtains. |
Will you be the producer?
The principle is the same as in the other product areas. Whoever first places the textiles on the Danish market takes on the responsibility. Here are four typical examples.
You manufacture clothing or shoes
You make textiles or footwear and sell them in Denmark.
Own brand
The item carries your name or trademark, even if someone else sewed it.
Import from abroad
You bring clothing, shoes or home textiles into Denmark and sell them on.
Online shop and distance selling
You send textiles to Danish consumers, including from abroad.
Recognise even one? Then the rules will apply to you.
The directive applies to all producers, including those selling online, and regardless of whether the company is inside or outside the EU.
What you can do now
There are no obligations for textiles yet, but three things will make the transition easy when the rules arrive.
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1
Get an overview of your volumes
How many textiles and shoes do you put on the Danish market per year? If you have the figures, you are ready when reporting arrives.
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2
Check the product areas that already apply
The packaging around your textiles is covered today, and the same can apply to batteries and electronics in your range. See producer responsibility for packaging.
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3
Stay informed
Book a call and we will go through what has been decided, and what it will mean for you once the Danish rules are in place.
Do you already have responsibility in other product areas?
Textiles are on the way, but many of the companies that sell textiles have producer responsibility for packaging today. One product can trigger several producer responsibilities at once.
Questions about textiles
The questions we get most often from companies that sell clothing, shoes and home textiles.
Do you sell textiles and want to know what is coming?
Book a call and we will go through what the directive means for you, and what you can prepare now. 20 minutes, no obligation.
