General overview of the WEEE Directive

We have put together a Guidance document to give you an overview of the existing WEEE legislative framework and your options as producer.

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Directive 2002/96/EC on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) entered into force with its publication in the Official Journal of 13 February 2003. Take-back obligations have been imposed by law on manufacturers and importers of electrical and electronic products. Importers and manufacturers are responsible for the take-back and recycling of products discarded by end users.

However, the legislation is different in each member state. Directives are not directly applicable to manufacturers: each member state must first transpose it into national law. This area is all the more complex because the Directive is under Article 175 of the EC Treaty, which allows member states considerable leeway in their transposition. As a result, the various national legislations tend to differ considerably.

The aim of the Directive is the protection of human health and of the environment. Directives under this Article of the EC Treaty provide for a "minimum harmonisation" measure. In other words, member states are allowed to put in place stricter measures to achieve the aims, if they so wish. It is, therefore, in the framework of the national law of each country that the responsibilities and obligations of manufacturers, authorities, distributors and all other actors must be addressed. As a consequence producers have to assess the national laws.