FAQs about producer responsibility

Producer responsibility refers to a company’s obligation to organise the reuse, recycling and other waste management of waste generated from its products, as well as to cover the related costs. Under the Waste Act, this responsibility lies with companies that, regardless of their sales channel, place tyres for motor vehicles, vehicles, electrical and electronic equipment, batteries and accumulators, paper for recycling, packaging, as well as certain single-use plastic products and plastic-containing fishing gear on the Finnish market.

In Finland, producer responsibility is managed through a shared system in which producer responsibility organisations are responsible for the practical implementation of producer responsibility obligations, such as collection and recycling. The system is financed through recycling fees charged to companies that are subject to producer responsibility.

Packaging producer responsibility applies to all businesses operating on a professional basis that place packaging on the Finnish market. The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) changes the definition of a producer in certain respects. Customers of Finnish Packaging Producers Ltd (Suomen Pakkaustuottajat Oy) can access a comprehensive Producer Definition Guide in the Rinki Extranet. The guide explains both the producer definition valid until 11 August 2026 and the definition under the PPWR, which will apply from 12 August 2026 onwards.

Producer definition until 11 August 2026

Packaging producer responsibility applies to companies established in Finland* that:

1. Pack or have products packed for the Finnish market (excluding service packaging and farm packaging)
2. Import packaged products into Finland
3. Manufacture or import service packaging or farm packaging for the Finnish market

Service packaging: Packaging used at the point of sale to pack food or other products directly for consumers.

Farm packaging: Packaging used for unprocessed agricultural and horticultural products sold from a farm.

Packaging producer responsibility also applies to companies established outside Finland that:
4. Sell packaged products by distance selling directly to users in Finland

*A Finnish company refers to a company that has a Finnish Business ID and is domiciled in Finland, or a Finnish branch of a foreign operator that is registered in the Trade Register maintained by the Finnish Patent and Registration Office and has a permanent establishment in Finland.

Producer definition from 12 August 2026 onwards

A packaging producer is:
 

1. A company established in Finland that:

• Manufactures or has manufactured, under its own name or trademark, packaged products or empty transport, service or primary production packaging; or
• Imports packaged products or empty service, transport or primary production packaging, provided that it is not the end user of those items.

 
2. A company established outside Finland that:

• Sells packaged products or empty transport, service or primary production packaging by distance selling to Finnish end users (consumers or businesses).

 
If no producer can be identified for a package under points 1 or 2 above, the producer is the company established in Finland that removes the packaging surrounding the packaged product without being the end user of the product.
 
Please note! More detailed guidance on the producer definition is available in the Rinki Extranet for customers of Finnish Packaging Producers Ltd. The guide explains, among other things:

 
• How transport packaging, service packaging, primary production packaging and end users are defined;
• What is meant by having products manufactured under one’s own name or trademark; and
• The exemption applicable to micro-enterprises.

 
The guide is updated regularly and contains the latest guidance, interpretations and positions issued by the authorities regarding the producer definition.

Yes, online shops are included in the scope of producer responsibility. Finnish online shops must join the producer responsibility scheme in Finland if they supply packed products to the Finnish market. Foreign online shops must register if they distance sell products directly to users in Finland

Packaging is defined in Government Decree 1029/2021. A packaging preserves and protects the product, enables its handling and transport from the producer to the consumer or other user. A packaging provides information about the product and facilitates its presentation in the shop. All elements that reinforce or are attached to the packaging, such as labels, are packaging.

Examples of packaging include sales packaging, transport packaging and multi-pack.

Producer responsibility applies both to packaging reaching the end user and to packaging used for transport (both B2B and B2C packaging). Producer responsibility applies to all packaging and packaging materials used for storing, protecting, handling, transporting and displaying the product. The packaging for dangerous goods is also covered by producer responsibility and the use is reported on the declaration form.

The packaging of products imported for the company’s own use must also be reported.

The volume of packaging does not affect the reporting obligation. Packaging data is reported even if the quantity is small.

Deposit packaging is not reported to Rinki.

Finnish Packaging Producers Ltd’s business customers report their packaging data on the Rinki Extranet service, where they can also find useful materials to support the compilation of the report.

The company contact person can update the contact persons as well as company information on the Extranet. The company is responsible for keeping contact and billing information up to date.

Yes, the importer is responsible for the imported packaging. It is the importer’s responsibility to determine the weights of the packaging, even if they do not see the packaging that is delivered directly to the customer.

A distance seller established outside Finland is responsible under producer responsibility legislation for the packaging of products delivered directly to end users in Finland. Please note that the definition of the term “end user” will change on 12 August 2026, which in certain situations will transfer producer responsibility from one operator to another. Until 11 August 2026, a company established in Finland is responsible for the packaging of raw materials and components it imports for use in its own production, but from 12 August 2026 onwards this responsibility will rest with the distance seller established in another country. Further information on these changes is available in Rinki’s Extranet.

Exports (including exports to the Åland Islands) are not reported, only packaging that remains on the Finnish market is reported.

If the same packaging is sold to consumers and to businesses, it is reported as a consumer packaging. If the packaging is a larger packaging aimed primarily at for example catering establishments, it is a B2B packaging.

B2B packaging comprises the packaging that ends up to companies along with products. B2B packaging includes sales packaging as well as grouped and transport packaging for products intended for companies. B2B packaging also includes such grouped and transport packaging for consumer products that does not go to consumers with the product.

Consumer packaging includes sales packaging for consumer products and some grouped packaging, for example. Consumer packaging also includes packaging used at the point of sale for packing products, such as paper and plastic bags, boxes, single-use containers, etc., that consumers take with them.

The plastic container and metal frame of an IBC are reported as separate packaging even if tools are required to separate them. The plastic container is reported on the plastic tab on the form in the B2B packaging section, and the metal frame on the metal tab in the B2B packaging section.

Note: Starting with the 2026 packaging data reporting, the 1000 liter size limit will be removed and all packaging, regardless of size, must be reported.

Reusable polypropene tote bags are products, not packaging. They are not reported on the packaging declaration form.

Biodegradable plastic packaging and packaging made from bio-based plastics are plastic packaging and are reported as plastic packaging.

Yes, packaging material is reported only once in the supply chain.

No packaging should be subject to a recycling fee twice.

However, the reuse of reusable packaging is reported separately for statistical purposes. For example, if a company imports a reusable wooden pallet, the pallet is reported at import and if the pallet is then reused in Finland, the reuse is be reported in the column for reuse.

The reuse of packaging intended for single use is not reported.

Imported packaging is always considered as new when placed on the Finnish market even though it has already been used in the country of origin. If packaging remains on the Finnish market, it should be entered in the import column. Packaging should only be declared under reuse in Finland after its first time of use or when an imported packaging is reused in Finland.

No they cannot. Rinki eco take-back points only accept household packaging waste. Companies can arrange for packaging waste to be transported to the producers’ collection terminals, which accept packaging waste sorted in accordance with the producer organisations’ instructions, free of charge.