Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)

What Is Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)?

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a legal obligation, not a business registration type. It requires the producer, importer, or brand owner who places plastic packaging, electrical and electronic equipment, batteries, or tyres on the Indian market to take financial and physical responsibility for collecting and recycling a fixed share of that material once it becomes waste. The obligation follows the product from manufacture to end-of-life and sits entirely with the entity that introduced it into commerce — not with the local municipality or the consumer.

India runs four separate EPR regimes, each with its own rules, targets, and Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) registration portal: plastic packaging, electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste), batteries, and waste tyres. A foreign company that manufactures in India, imports finished goods, or sells under its own brand in any of these categories has an EPR obligation from the year after it starts selling — regardless of whether it has a factory in India.

Legal Basis

• Plastic packaging — Schedule II of the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, inserted by the Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2022 (G.S.R. 133(E), dated 16 February 2022) and most recently revised by the Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2026 (G.S.R. 237(E), dated 31 March 2026).
• E-waste — the E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2022 (G.S.R. 801(E), dated 2 November 2022), in force from 1 April 2023, which replaced the E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016.
• Batteries — the Battery Waste Management Rules, 2022 (S.O. 3984(E), dated 22 August 2022), which replaced the Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules, 2001.
• Waste tyres — Schedule IX of the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016, inserted by the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Amendment Rules, 2022 (G.S.R. 593(E), dated 21 July 2022).

All four rules are issued under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and are administered by the CPCB centrally and by State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) for entities operating in one or two states.

EPR for Plastic Packaging: Categories and Targets

The plastic packaging EPR framework covers four categories: Category I (rigid plastic packaging), Category II (flexible single or multi-layer packaging, sheets, carry bags, sachets), Category III (multi-layered packaging combining plastic with a non-plastic layer), and Category IV (compostable-plastic packaging and carry bags). Producers, importers, and brand owners — including online marketplaces — register on the CPCB portal and meet three obligations, each phased in over several years. The core EPR target (share of eligible quantity collected and processed) ramped up from 25% in 2021–22 to 70% in 2022–23 and 100% from 2023–24 onward. Layered on top is a minimum recycling requirement, category-wise:

A separate schedule mandates a minimum share of recycled plastic content in newly manufactured packaging: Category I rises from 30% (2025–26) to 60% (2028–29 onward); Category II from 10% to 20%; Category III (limited to the weight of the plastic layers only) from 5% to 10%. Where recycled content cannot be used for a statutory reason — for example, food-contact packaging regulated by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India — the entity can claim an exemption but must disclose the law or standard in its annual return.

Brand owners using Category I rigid packaging also carry a reuse obligation, split by container size and, since the 2026 amendment, by end use: containers of 0.9 litres/kg or more but under 4.9 hit 10% reuse in 2025–26 rising to 25% by 2028–29; containers of 4.9 litres/kg or more used for drinking water hit 70% rising to 85%; containers of that size used for other products face a lighter 10% rising to 15%.

The 2026 Amendment: What Changed

The Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2026 left the EPR, minimum-recycling and recycled-content percentages exactly as they stood, but it did change one set of numbers and added compliance machinery foreign investors should plan for:

• A lighter reuse target for large non-water containers. The 2022 schedule applied a single reuse band of 70% rising to 85% to every Category I rigid container of 4.9 litres or kilograms and above. The 2026 amendment splits that band: drinking-water containers keep 70% rising to 85%, while containers of the same size used for other products drop to 10% in 2025–26 and 2026–27, rising only to 15% by 2028–29.
• Mandatory standard and labelling. Each recycled plastic packaging or commodity must conform to Indian Standard IS 14534:2023 (Plastics — Recovery and Recycling of Plastics Waste — Guidelines) and bear the prescribed label and marking, on top of any Food Safety and Standards Authority of India marking and labelling requirement for food-contact applications.
• A carry-forward mechanism. An unfulfilled 2025–26 recycled-content target for packaging used in food-contact applications, and an unfulfilled 2025–26 Category I reuse target, can each be carried forward for up to three consecutive years starting from 2026–27, over and above the targets for those years, provided at least one-third of the carried-forward shortfall is cleared each year.
• A CPCB audit guideline due within six months of the 31 March 2026 notification, so by end-September 2026, to govern audit and verification of recycled-content use.
• Chemical recycling now counts as recycling, not disposal. The amended "end of life disposal" definition excludes processes converting plastic waste into feedstock chemicals or new plastic, which are now classified as recycling.
• New enforcement layer. Urban local bodies, Gram Panchayats, and District Panchayats are named as enforcement authorities, and each state must reconstitute a State Level Monitoring Committee chaired by the Chief Secretary.
• A new definition of "seller" covers anyone who sells plastic resins, pellets, or intermediate material used to make packaging — extending compliance visibility one step up the supply chain.

EPR for E-Waste, Batteries, and Tyres

The other three EPR regimes follow the same design — a rising recycling target measured against past sales, met through tradeable EPR certificates purchased from registered recyclers — but with different numbers:

• E-waste: under Schedule III of the E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2022, an established producer's annual recycling target is 60% of the electrical/electronic equipment placed on the market a set number of years earlier (its "average life"), rising to 70% for 2025–26 and 2026–27, and 80% from 2027–28 onward. Importers of used equipment carry a 100% obligation on the imported material if it is not re-exported.
• Batteries: under Schedule II of the Battery Waste Management Rules, 2022, portable rechargeable batteries face a rising annual collection target — 50% in 2022–23, 60% in 2023–24, reaching 70% from 2024–25 — with 100% of whatever is collected required to be recycled or refurbished, and full cumulative collection mandatory by the end of each ten-year compliance cycle.
• Waste tyres: under Schedule IX of the Hazardous and Other Wastes Rules, manufacturers and importers of new tyres face a target of 35% (2022–23), 70% (2023–24), and 100% from 2024–25 onward, measured against tyres placed on the market two years earlier.

Registration and Compliance on the CPCB Portal

Producers, importers, brand owners, and waste processors must register on the relevant centralized EPR portal before doing any business in the category — the rules explicitly bar a registered entity from dealing with an unregistered counterparty. An entity operating in more than two states registers directly with the CPCB; one operating in one or two states registers through the State Pollution Control Board via the same centralized portal. Registration is not a formality: paragraph 6.2 of Schedule II bars a covered entity from carrying on any business without it, and paragraph 6.4 lets the CPCB revoke a registration for a year where false information was given, with no fresh registration during that period.

Obligated entities meet their targets primarily by purchasing EPR certificates from registered recyclers, refurbishers, or waste processors, filed against the target through the portal. Where a target is missed, the CPCB's Environmental Compensation guidelines for plastic packaging (April 2024) set a charge of ₹5,000 per tonne of shortfall for a first violation, rising to ₹10,000 for a second and ₹20,000 for a third. The shortfall must still be cleared within three years, and a graduated share — 75% within one year, 60% within two, 40% within three — is refunded once it is. After three years, any unaddressed shortfall forfeits the compensation entirely.

Why EPR Matters for Foreign Companies and Investors

EPR registration is a precondition for lawfully selling in India, not a downstream environmental nicety. A foreign FMCG, consumer-electronics, or automotive-component company setting up an Indian subsidiary, appointing a distributor, or importing finished goods needs EPR registration in place before its first sale in the category. Schedule II puts it plainly: a covered entity may not carry on business without registration, and may not deal with any entity that is not itself registered on the portal — which puts EPR on the same critical path as company incorporation and IEC registration for an importer. The EPR target obligation itself starts the year after the entity first places its products on the market.

Common Mistakes

• Treating EPR as a one-time registration rather than an annually rising target. Recycling, reuse and recycled-content percentages step up on fixed schedules that run to at least 2028–29 for plastic packaging and 2027–28 for e-waste; an EPR action plan filed once at entry will fall short within two to three years without an update.
• Assuming imported goods are exempt. Importers carry the same category-wise EPR target as domestic producers, calculated on the same eligible-quantity basis, and an importer of used electronics or waste tyres can face a 100% obligation on the imported material.
• Ignoring food-contact and other statutory exemptions without documenting them. These exemptions are not automatic — the entity must cite the specific FSSAI, drug-control, or Indian Standard provision in its annual return.
• Buying EPR certificates without checking the recycler's registration status. Purchases are cross-checked against the recycler's own filing; where the two figures differ, the lower one governs compliance, leaving a purchaser short even after paying.

Practical Example

A foreign beverage company sets up an Indian subsidiary and begins selling in FY 2025–26, using 5-litre rigid PET jars of packaged drinking water (Category I) and multi-layered pouches for a powdered drink mix (Category III). As a Brand Owner it registers on the CPCB portal before its first sale. Its EPR target obligation starts the following year, FY 2026–27, and is 100% of eligible quantity — the 100% rate has applied to every obligated entity since 2023–24, so there is no phase-in for a new entrant.

Against that target it must recycle a minimum of 70% of the Category I quantity and 50% of the Category III quantity in 2026–27, and it must use 40% recycled plastic in its Category I packaging and 5% in the plastic layers of its Category III pouches. Because the jars are 4.9 litres or more and hold drinking water, the reuse obligation applies at 75% for 2026–27, met by refilling returned jars rather than manufacturing new ones. A 10-tonne recycling shortfall triggers an Environmental Compensation charge of ₹50,000 (10 tonnes × ₹5,000), of which 75% is returned if the shortfall is cleared within a year of the levy.

Key Takeaways

• EPR is a compliance regime, not a company registration — it applies to producers, importers, and brand owners across plastic packaging, e-waste, batteries, and tyres, each under its own CPCB-run rule and portal.
• The plastic packaging EPR target has been 100% of eligible quantity since 2023–24, so a new entrant faces the full rate from its first obligated year, with recycling minimums, recycled-content mandates and rigid-container reuse obligations that keep rising through at least 2028–29.
• The Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2026 (G.S.R. 237(E), 31 March 2026) left the EPR, recycling and recycled-content percentages unchanged, cut the reuse target for large rigid containers used for anything other than drinking water, and added mandatory conformity to IS 14534:2023 with prescribed labelling, a three-year carry-forward for 2025–26 shortfalls, and a CPCB audit guideline due within six months of notification.
• Environmental Compensation for a shortfall in the plastic packaging EPR target runs ₹5,000 per tonne for a first violation, escalating to ₹20,000 for a third, with a declining refund if the shortfall is later cleared.
• A covered entity cannot lawfully carry on business without EPR registration, and cannot deal with any unregistered counterparty — making EPR part of the same compliance timeline as company incorporation for any foreign investor entering a covered category.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a foreign company need a factory in India to have an EPR obligation?

No. The obligation attaches to whoever places the product on the Indian market — a producer, importer, or brand owner selling under its own label — regardless of where manufacturing happens. An importer of finished packaged goods, electronics, batteries, or tyres registers and meets the same category-wise targets as a domestic producer.

Can a company buy its way out of an EPR shortfall instead of recycling the material itself?

Yes, within limits. Producers, importers, and brand owners typically meet their target by purchasing EPR certificates from CPCB-registered recyclers or refurbishers through the centralized portal rather than operating recycling facilities themselves. The purchase is cross-checked against the recycler's own filing, and the lower figure governs compliance.

What happens if an EPR target is missed?

For plastic packaging, CPCB's Environmental Compensation guidelines impose a per-tonne charge on the shortfall — ₹5,000 for a first violation, rising for repeat violations — while the underlying obligation is carried forward and must still be met within a further three years. Part of the compensation is refunded if the shortfall is cleared within that window.

Did the 2026 amendment increase the plastic packaging recycling percentages?

No. The EPR targets, the minimum-recycling percentages for Categories I–IV and the recycled-content percentages are all unchanged from the 2022 schedule. The one number that moved went down: large Category I rigid containers used for products other than drinking water were split out of the 70–85% reuse band into a lighter 10–15% band. The rest of the amendment is compliance infrastructure — mandatory conformity to IS 14534:2023 with prescribed labelling, a three-year carry-forward for 2025–26 shortfalls, local bodies named as enforcement authorities, and a CPCB audit guideline due within six months.

Where does a company register for EPR in India?

On the CPCB's centralized EPR portal for the relevant waste stream — plastic packaging has its own dedicated portal. An entity operating in more than two states registers directly with CPCB; one operating in one or two states registers with its State Pollution Control Board through the same system. Registration must be in place before any business in the category, and a registered entity may not deal with an unregistered counterparty.

See also: environmental compliance, ESG and BRSR reporting, and the Import Export Code for the related clearances a foreign investor typically needs alongside EPR registration.

Need help registering for EPR or building an environmental compliance calendar alongside your Indian company incorporation? Beacon Filing provides compliance outsourcing services covering statutory registrations, annual filings, and regulatory liaison for foreign-invested companies.