Do I need a WEEE registration number when placing electrical products on the German market?

Yes, you need a WEEE registration number for electrical products in Germany

The Foundation for the Registration of Old Electrical Equipment (EAR), is responsible for the approval of licenses in accordance with the German Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act within the territory of Germany. It is responsible for issuing WEEE registration numbers.

As a general rule, anyone planning to introduce an electrical appliance to the German market for the first time must first obtain the corresponding license from the EAR foundation. Therefore, if your range of products includes electronic appliances, you should familiarize yourself with the relevant information before supplying them to the market: whether you need to register for WEEE.

You can evaluate this by answering the following three questions:

1. Does the law recognize you as a manufacturer?

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According to legal regulations, a manufacturer not only refers to the manufacturer of the equipment, but also to the person who introduces the equipment into the German market, whether online or physically. This includes the sale, import, and even leasing of electrical appliances.

2. Does the product belong to electrical appliances?

An electrical appliance is a device that uses electricity as the driving force, that is, any device with a plug, battery, rechargeable battery, or powered by a solar cell panel. There are also some electrical appliances that may not be classified as such at first glance, such as charging cables, EC cards, or LED Christmas sweaters.

3. Are you introducing the device to the German market for the first time?

If you are the first to introduce an electrical appliance to the German market, you must register it. Whether someone in your supply chain has already fulfilled this obligation for the device can be conveniently checked on the EAR Foundation website by registration number, supplier name, brand, and device type. In the “Directory of Registered Producers and Authorized Representatives under the Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act”, you can see whether a device has been registered.

Note: Someone in the actual supply chain must have completed the corresponding electrical registration, and the registration must indicate the correct brand and device type. Of course, you can also search for the registration number you found on the supplier version description or invoice here.

If you answered “yes” to all three questions and your devices have not been registered or have not been registered correctly, you should create a user account as a manufacturer and submit a registration application on the EAR portal. All other important registration-related information can be found on the EAR Foundation website, allowing you to obtain a registration number in a timely manner. In addition, you can also learn about the expected registration time in the FAQ section.

Once you receive the registration confirmation letter, an official document with the WEEE registration number, you can start marketing your devices in the German market. From now on, you are allowed to put the devices of the brands and types mentioned in the confirmation letter on the German market.

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