Overview#
The Battery Regulation governs batteries from the materials that go into them to the moment they become waste. It is a single rulebook that ties together what a battery is made of, how it performs, how easily it can be removed and recycled, and what data must follow it through its life.
It replaces the Battery Directive 2006/66/EC. Because it is a regulation rather than a directive, it applies directly in every member state instead of being rewritten into 27 national laws. Its many requirements switch on in stages over several years.
What it requires#
The regulation reaches across the whole life cycle rather than a single stage.
Substances#
The regulation keeps tight limits on hazardous metals in batteries, including mercury, cadmium and lead. These caps continue and tighten the controls that existed under the old directive.
Due diligence and recycled content#
For the raw materials that go into batteries, the regulation adds supply-chain due diligence, so companies must identify and address risks in how those materials are sourced. This sits alongside the EU's wider sourcing rules, such as the Conflict Minerals Regulation. It also sets minimum recycled content for key metals, pushing recovered material back into new batteries.
The battery passport#
Light means of transport (LMT) batteries, industrial batteries above 2 kWh, and electric-vehicle batteries must carry a battery passport; portable batteries are excluded. The obligation becomes mandatory from 18 February 2027. This is the first operational Digital Product Passport, holding the battery's data, from composition and carbon footprint to recycled content and performance, accessible to the people who handle the battery over its life.
Where it sits#
The Battery Regulation is part of the same EU push as the ESPR, bringing durability, recycled content and the Digital Product Passport into product law. Persistent organic pollutant rules under POP can also apply to materials used in batteries.