NovaLoop - News

UPDATE CZ: “Visible Fee” for WEEE introduced!

On January 1, 2021 the new law on waste products No. 542/2020 entered into force in the Czech Republic. It introduces a “Visible Fee” requirement for electrical and electronic equipment. This means that the cost for taking back, treating and disposing of waste equipment must be displayed separately from the product price on the invoice at the time of sale, either per device or per unit of weight.

While the format of making the fees visible on the invoice is possible in various ways, the device price and the applicable recycling fee are to be shown separately. A blanket indication that the total invoice amount includes a recycling fee in a certain amount is not sufficient to meet the legal requirement, according to the competent authority.

The introduction of the visible fee shall help to protect downstream distributors, who themselves fall into the role of obligated manufacturer if they purchase equipment from manufacturers who, for their part, do not pay the required fees to a collective manufacturer system (PRO). In addition, the new requirement is intended to prevent unequal treatment by PROs regarding the amount of fees to be paid by manufacturers.

With this recent change, Czech Republic joins a growing list of countries requiring additional information, such as France and Portugal.

Please contact us if you need assistance with regard to the visible fee requirement for products distributed to the Czech Republic.