Design Guide

What circular-economy law already requires you to design for — and what ignoring it will cost.

Every principle here is sourced from enacted and proposed bills — 471 bills across 35 states, read line by line. The guide stays current as legislation moves. Flip any card (↻) to see the source bills; each opens the full detail.

Keep it in the loop

Design strategies extracted from enacted bills, ordered highest-value first: reuse and repair down through recycling and composting.

Design for Reuse & Refill

Shift to reusable / refillable formats

Design pallet wrappings and straps for reuse; achieve 40% reuse target annually.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↑ Raises your fees↓ Lowers your fees

Set in ES, EU, FI, FR, NL +3 · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingTextilesElectronicsBatteriesOrganicsHazardous materialsFurniture

Reuse & Refill — sources

“Economic operators using pallet wrappings and straps are subject to the overall 40% re-use target under Article 29(1) of Regulation (EU) 2025/40 for transport packaging formats in a calendar year (not exempted by this Decision)”

86 bills · tap to read

Design for Repairability & Durability

Design for repairability, spare-parts access, and longevity

Ensure spare parts availability for product reuse, refurbishment, lifetime extension.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↑ Raises your fees↓ Lowers your fees

Set in CL, ES, EU, FR, NL +1 · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingElectronicsBatteriesHazardous materialsVehiclesTextilesOrganics

Repairability & Durability — sources

“Ensure spare parts are available for product reuse, refurbishment, and lifetime extension”

115 bills · tap to read

Design for Reduction

Reduce packaging material per unit (lightweight, right-size)

Minimize packaging volume and weight while maintaining safety and hygiene.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↑ Raises your fees↓ Lowers your fees

ES 0.45 eur/kg non recycled · FR 0.15 euros/kilogram

Set in CH, CL, EE, ES, EU +5 · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingElectronicsOrganicsBatteriesHazardous materialsTextilesBiobased

Source Reduction — sources

“Packaging must be designed and manufactured to minimise volume and weight while meeting safety and hygiene requirements, and to enable reuse or recovery including recycling”

138 bills · tap to read

Design for Recycling

Design packaging to be recyclable in available systems

Design packaging for reuse, recycling, or recovery if recycling impossible.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↑ Raises your fees↓ Lowers your fees

FR 80.0 euros/tonne

Set in CL, EE, ES, EU, FR +4 · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingElectronicsBatteriesHazardous materialsOrganicsVehiclesTextiles

Design for Recycling — sources

“Design and manufacture packaging to enable reuse and subsequent recycling, or at minimum recycling, or other recovery if recycling is not possible”

296 bills · tap to read

Recycled Content

Incorporate post-consumer recycled content

Incorporate minimum 25% recycled plastic content in PET beverage bottles.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↑ Raises your fees↓ Lowers your fees

Set in ES, EU, FR, JP, LV · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingElectronicsTextilesOrganicsBatteriesHazardous materialsFurniture

Recycled Content — sources

“From 2025: ensure PET beverage bottles (Annex 6 Point 3) contain on average at least 25% recycled plastic content (calculated per calendar year)”

71 bills · tap to read

Design for regeneration

Use certified-compostable materials where specified

Do not label industrial-only compostable packaging as 'compostable'.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↓ Lowers your fees

FR 25.0 euros/tonne

Set in FR · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingOrganicsBiobasedTextilesElectronicsBatteriesConstruction

Compostability — sources

“Prohibition: plastic products and packaging whose compostability can only be achieved in industrial composting units may NOT bear the label 'compostable' (Art. 13)”

18 bills · tap to read

Material & disclosure

What a product is made of — and what you have to declare on it.

Material Restrictions

Avoid banned / restricted materials and formats

Do not manufacture beverage containers or cups from expanded polystyrene.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↑ Raises your fees

CH 0.3 CHF deposit minimum · EE 40.0 EEK/kg

Set in CH, EE, EU, FR, LV +3 · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingOrganicsElectronicsTextilesHazardous materialsBatteriesBiobased

Material Restrictions — sources

“Do not manufacture single-use expanded polystyrene beverage containers, beverage cups, or food containers using expanded polystyrene.”

98 bills · tap to read

Toxics Elimination

Eliminate restricted substances (PFAS, heavy metals, etc.)

Ensure batteries contain ≤0.0005 wt% mercury regardless of form.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↑ Raises your fees↓ Lowers your fees

Set in ES, EU, FR, NL · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingElectronicsHazardous materialsBatteriesVehiclesOrganicsTextiles

Toxics Elimination — sources

“do not place on market batteries containing more than 0.0005 wt% mercury (regardless of whether built into devices)”

201 bills · tap to read

Labeling & Marking

Apply required recyclability / disposal labeling

Add chemical symbols (Hg, Cd, Pb) below bin symbol if hazardous thresholds exceeded.

Fee impact · eco-modulation

↑ Raises your fees↓ Lowers your fees

Set in FR · US: rate TBD (CAA)

Applies to

PackagingElectronicsBatteriesHazardous materialsOrganicsVehiclesTextiles

Labeling & Marking — sources

“Batteries/accumulators containing >0.0005 wt% mercury, >0.002 wt% cadmium, or >0.004 wt% lead must bear the relevant chemical symbol (Hg, Cd, or Pb) below the crossed-out bin symbol, occupying at least one quarter of the symbol's dimensions (Articles 9(4)-(6)).”

222 bills · tap to read

The full Design Guide

Pro

Each card above shows the headline imperative for one design lever. This is the full stack — every imperative, the exact numeric targets (percentages, dates), and the verbatim statutory language behind each line. Print-ready and kept current as bills move.

Need this scoped to your own products and the states you sell in — your SKUs mapped to the exact imperatives and deadlines that hit them? We build that per engagement.

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