Do you have producer responsibility as a micro-enterprise?
Is your business a micro-enterprise? If so, special rules may apply to producer responsibility for packaging. Get an overview of when you are subject to producer responsibility and when the responsibility lies with another company.
When is your company a micro-enterprise?
You are a microenterprise if your company:
- employs fewer than 10 people, and
- has an annual turnover or annual balance sheet total of no more than EUR 2 million.
The number of employees is calculated in annual work units (AWU).
Your status does not change from one year to the next. If you are a microenterprise, you must exceed the threshold values for two consecutive financial years before you cease to be a microenterprise. Conversely, if you are not a microenterprise, you must meet the criteria for two consecutive financial years before you become one.
When can a micro-enterprise be subject to producer responsibility?
Being a micro-enterprise does not automatically exempt you from the rules on producer responsibility for packaging.
As a micro-enterprise, you will typically be subject to producer responsibility if you:
- import or distribute packaging or packaged products and make them available on the Danish market
- manufacture packaging that is subsequently made available on the Danish market.
Micro-enterprises are not subject to the same rules relating to company names and trademarks as other businesses. As a result, producer responsibility will often rest with the company that manufactures the packaging. In other cases, producer responsibility will typically lie with the company that first makes the packaging available on the Danish market.
Examples of producer responsibility for micro-enterprises
It can be difficult to assess when a micro-enterprise has producer responsibility and when the responsibility lies with another company. The examples below illustrate how the rules apply in a range of typical situations.
A micro-enterprise purchases packaged products from abroad and resells them in Denmark.
In this case, the micro-enterprise is subject to producer responsibility for both the packaging around the products and the transport packaging in which the products are delivered. This is because the micro-enterprise is the first company to make the packaging available on the Danish market.
A micro-enterprise has packaging manufactured according to its own design, or under its own name and trademark, by a Danish supplier.
In this case, the supplier is subject to producer responsibility because it is the company that first makes the packaging available on the Danish market.
Micro-enterprise A purchases jam jars from Company B and lids from Company C. Micro-enterprise A assembles the packaging and fills the jars with jam.
In this case, Company B is subject to producer responsibility for the jars, and Company C is subject to producer responsibility for the lids. Micro-enterprise A does not have producer responsibility.
Micro-enterprise A purchases jam jars from Company B and lids from Company C. Micro-enterprise A assembles the packaging and fills the jars with jam.
In this case, Micro-enterprise A is subject to producer responsibility for both the jars and the lids, as the company imports the packaging components, assembles the packaging, and makes it available on the Danish market.
Micro-enterprise A purchases jam jars from Micro-enterprise B and lids from Micro-enterprise C. Micro-enterprise A assembles the packaging and fills the jars with jam.
In this case, Micro-enterprises B and C bear producer responsibility, as they manufacture the packaging components and are the first to make them available on the Danish market.