Change in application of the definition of Producer or Importer as of 1 January 2023.
Since January 1st 2023, the definition of ‘producer or importer’ for the Packaging Waste Management Contribution changed, on the insistence of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. This change ensures that the definition comes into line with the definition in law. The revision has an impact on the declaration you provide and thus the Packaging Waste Management Contribution to be paid by you if:
- As contractor or client (brand proprietor) you are involved in the manufacture of a product of which the trade mark does not belong to the manufacturer, for example store brand or own private label;
- You produce/import Point of Sale Packaging or add this to the sold product at the time of sale to a consumer.
Decision tree application definition Producer or Importer
Do you want to know whether you, as a producer or importer, are obligated to contribute? Follow the decision tree here.

Production on the instructions of the brand proprietor
This applies if company A (the client) instructs company B (the contractor) to manufacture a product and to include packaging featuring the name, logo and/or brand of the client (company A) on it.
- Situation before January 1st 2023: The contractor pays the Packaging Waste Management Contribution.
- Situation since January 1st 2023: The client, for example the owner of a store brand product, pays the Packaging Waste Management Contribution.
Note!
- This pertains to a brand expression on the packaging. If applicable within the reporting unit, all packaging for that product must be attributed to the brand proprietors.
- A delivery often also concerns how products are packaged, without any brand expression on the packaging. In such cases, this rule does not apply. Consider, for instance, a different packaging unit, such as 6 bottles in a tray instead of 12 bottles.
This means that the specification, declaration and corresponding administration are all the responsibility of the brand proprietors, which in practice means that, amongst others, supermarkets and private label holders are personally responsible for filing a declaration about the packaging of their store brands.
If a brand proprietor is not established in the Netherlands, or if there is importation outside the brand propietor's control, the responsibility remains with the importer established in the Netherlands.
Model Custom Agreement for the transfer of obligations 2023
This new situation may be undesirable for both the brand proprietor and the manufacturer. With the downloadable custom agreement model below, you can take action to address this. Under strict conditions, parties can transfer the contribution obligation back to the manufacturer through a cusom agreement, restoring the situation that applied until January 1, 2023.
Important
- When signing a custom agreement, all rights and obligations of both Afvalfonds Verpakkingen and Statiegeld Nederland are transferred.
- When signing the custom agreement, the entire assortment with the brand of the brand proprietor produced by the manufacturer is transferred.
- The agreement to be signed will be sent using DocuSign. To facilitate this, we kindly request a name and email address from both the producer/importer and the manufacturer via info@afvalfondsverpakkingen.nl.
- Subsequently, both you and the other party will receive an email via DocuSign to digitally complete and sign the custom agreement.
- The duration of the agreement can be filled in independently. Two conditions apply: 1. The contribution can only be transferred for a complete calender year. 2. Transfer is possible for the calender years 2023 through 2027.
- Only after the custom agreement is completed and signed by the "Producer or Importer" and the "Manufacturer", it will be further processed.
- The custom agreement applies to packaging for which the producer/importer has changed as of 2023 and does not apply to (point of sale) packaging for which no change in responsbility has occured. For point of sales packaging, with the name, logo or mark of the producer/importer, a standardized agreement can be used to transfer the contribution obligation to the manufacturer or importer of the empty point of sale packaging. The potential agreed-upon duration currently extends through 2024. The scope of this agreement is linked to the list of point of sale packaging (see below).
Point of sale packaging
This applies to packaging to be filled or added to a product on the premises at the time of sale. Consider for example bags, pouches, containers, drinking cups, lids or foils.
- Situation up to and including 31 December 2022: The organisation or the company where the point of sale packaging is filled or added pays the Packaging Waste Management Contribution.
- Situation since 1 January 2023: The organisation or the company that produces or imports the point of sale packaging pays the Packaging Waste Management Contribution.
What is the impact of the changed P/I definition on my administration?
According to the legislation (Packaging Management Decree, 2014), every producer or importer is obliged to minimize the environmental impact of their packaging. This implicitly means that as a PI, you need to be aware of the composition of the packaging for which you are responsible.
If you produce point of sale packaging, you can retrieve data from your production and raw material records; if you import them, this information can come from your purchasing records. In addition to the quantities of point of sale packaging, we also request you to specify the weight of the packaging materials used. You can obtain these weights from your suppliers. It's good to know that this obligation applies to all EU member states, and requesting such information is not an exceptional favor.
A brand proprietor, as the owner of the brand, will also monitor the quality of the brand and can negotiate agreements with the manufacturer on how the product should be made and/or packaged. If this is not the case in your situation, now is a good time to consult the manufacturer to obtain this information. This could, for example, be contractually documented.