What are the PPWR reuse targets for transport packaging?

From 1 January 2030, economic operators must ensure at least 40 percent of their transport packaging, such as pallets and plastic crates, is reusable within a system, with an endeavour to reach 70 percent by 2040. Cardboard boxes are exempt, and micro-enterprises that also place under 1,000 kg of packaging a year in a market are exempt from all the Article 29 targets.

Are pallet wrapping and straps banned under PPWR?

No. They were originally within the 100 percent reuse requirement for intra-company logistics, but a Commission decision of 25 February 2026 exempted pallet wrappings and straps from that rule on cost and load-stability grounds. The 40 percent transport-packaging target from 2030 still applies to the operation as a whole.

Do any transport-packaging reuse duties apply already?

Yes. Since 12 August 2026, Articles 26 and 27 require anyone first making reusable packaging available to ensure a re-use system exists for it, and operators using reusable packaging to participate in a system and recondition it. The Article 29 percentage targets start on 1 January 2030.

PPWR Transport

Transport Packaging & PPWR: Rules for B2B and Pallet Wrapping

Reuse targets, empty space limits and format bans for pallets, crates and B2B cartons

By Daniel Vaknine16 July 20266 min read

The PPWR requires at least 40 percent of transport packaging - pallets, crates, boxes and trays - to be reusable by 1 January 2030, rising to a 70 percent endeavour by 2040. Intra-company transport needs 100 percent reusability, though pallet wrap and straps were exempted in February 2026. Cardboard boxes and micro-enterprises under 1,000 kg a year are also exempt.

Stacked pallets wrapped in plastic stretch film in a distribution warehouse

Updated 19 August 2026: revised now that the PPWR (Regulation (EU) 2025/40) applies, since 12 August 2026, to separate the reuse-system duties that are live from the 2030 targets that are not.

Because these materials never reach a private consumer, they were long assumed to sit outside packaging law. B2B logistics is now squarely in scope.

Key takeaways

Two clocks. The Article 26 and 27 reuse-system duties apply now; the Article 29 reuse targets start on 1 January 2030.
Cardboard boxes are exempt from the Article 29 targets, as are micro-enterprises under 1,000 kg of packaging a year, which takes most small e-commerce operations out of scope.
The 50 percent empty-space ratio is a 2030-at-the-earliest rule, not a current one, and fillers count as empty space.
Pallet wrap and straps have a specific exemption from the 100 percent intra-company reuse rule.

What counts as transport packaging?

According to the definition of transport packaging in Article 3 of the EU PPWR regulation, transport packaging (also known as tertiary packaging) facilitates the handling and transport of multiple sales units to prevent physical damage. This includes pallets, foldable plastic boxes, intermediate bulk containers (IBCs), pails, drums, and strapping.

Grouped packaging, or secondary packaging, is distinct but similarly regulated. It is designed to group a number of sales units together at the point of sale, whether sold to the final user or used to restock retail shelves.

What already applies, and what starts in 2030?

Worth separating, because the two get merged constantly. Since 12 August 2026, Articles 26 and 27 have required whoever first makes reusable packaging available in a Member State to ensure a re-use system meeting Annex VI exists for it, and required operators using reusable packaging to participate in a system and recondition the packaging between rotations. Those duties are live today, and they bite on anyone already running returnable crates or totes.

What does not apply yet is the percentages. Under the Article 29 reuse targets, operators using pallets, plastic crates, foldable plastic boxes, pails and drums within the EU must reach at least 40 percent reusable within a system by 1 January 2030, with a 70 percent endeavour by 2040. Grouped packaging in the form of boxes, excluding cardboard, has its own 10 percent target on the same date.

For internal logistics the rule is stricter: transporting products between your own sites, or delivering to another operator within the same Member State, requires 100 percent reusable transport packaging by 2030.

The exemptions decide whether any of this reaches you. Cardboard boxes are exempt from the transport-packaging target under Article 29(4)(d), as are dangerous-goods packaging, custom large-scale transport packaging and flexible formats in direct food contact.

And micro-enterprises are exempt from all the Article 29 targets under Article 29(13), provided they also made no more than 1,000 kg of packaging available in that Member State that calendar year – the article requires both conditions. For a small e-commerce operation shipping in corrugated boxes, the 2030 targets may not apply at all – which is worth confirming before you re-plan a warehouse around them.

From 1 January 2030, a business moving goods between its own warehouses or within the same Member State must ensure 100 percent of its transport packaging is reusable – with cardboard boxes, pallet wrap and straps carved out.

Are pallet wrapping and straps restricted?

Initially, the 100 percent reuse target for intra-company transport included pallet wrappings and straps, causing significant concern for logistics operators regarding technical feasibility and cost.

The Commission decision on the pallet wrappings and straps exemption, adopted on 25 February 2026, removed these two items from the 100 percent intra-company reuse requirement. The Commission's assessment was that exclusive use of reusable pallet wrappings and straps would mean disproportionate adaptation costs. So you will not need 100 percent reusable stretch film for domestic warehouse transfers, but your operation as a whole still faces the 40 percent transport-packaging target from 2030.

Stop trying to track shifting material targets in spreadsheets. See how Gramta maps your materials against upcoming EU mandates.

How does the empty space rule affect transport boxes?

If you pack small B2B product bundles into large tertiary cartons, you will have to adjust your box sizes – though not this year. The Article 24 obligation on excessive packaging caps grouped, transport and e-commerce packaging at a 50 percent empty space ratio from 1 January 2030, or three years after the Commission adopts the calculation methodology (due by 12 February 2028), whichever is later. There is an earlier duty for sales packaging: from 12 February 2028, Article 24(4) requires its empty space to be reduced to the minimum necessary.

Critically, space filled by bubble wrap, air cushions, polystyrene chips and paper cuttings counts as empty space. The detailed mechanics are in our guide to the PPWR 50 percent empty space ratio.

Which transport packaging formats are banned?

The regulation introduces market prohibitions for specific single-use items found in logistics and retail distribution, and they start on 1 January 2030 rather than now. Under the Annex V restrictions on packaging formats, single-use plastic grouped packaging used to bundle cans or bottles at the point of sale, such as shrink wrap, is prohibited from that date.

Member States may allow micro-enterprises to keep using some Annex V point 3 formats where switching is technically infeasible, so the bans are not entirely uniform in practice.

How should online sellers and distributors prepare?

If you understand what the PPWR requires, you know that transport packaging obligations apply directly to the economic operator who fills or uses the packaging.

To prepare, audit your B2B logistics. Start by establishing which of the 2030 targets actually reach you once the cardboard-box and micro-enterprise exemptions are applied – that answer changes the size of the project completely. Where the targets do apply to internal transfers, plan the switch to durable, rotation-ready crates. Review your volumetric box dimensions ahead of the 50 percent empty-space cap. And keep an eye on labelling: the harmonised material codes depend on implementing acts the Commission has not yet adopted, as our breakdown of PPWR labelling requirements explains.

Do not let complex logistics regulations disrupt your supply chain. Let Gramta automate it from start to finish.

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Frequently asked questions

What are the PPWR reuse targets for transport packaging?: From 1 January 2030, economic operators must ensure at least 40 percent of their transport packaging, such as pallets and plastic crates, is reusable within a system, with an endeavour to reach 70 percent by 2040. Cardboard boxes are exempt, and micro-enterprises that also place under 1,000 kg of packaging a year in a market are exempt from all the Article 29 targets.
Are pallet wrapping and straps banned under PPWR?: No. They were originally within the 100 percent reuse requirement for intra-company logistics, but a Commission decision of 25 February 2026 exempted pallet wrappings and straps from that rule on cost and load-stability grounds. The 40 percent transport-packaging target from 2030 still applies to the operation as a whole.
Does the 50 percent empty space rule apply to B2B shipments?: It will, but not yet. Article 24(1) caps transport, grouped and e-commerce packaging at a 50 percent empty space ratio from 1 January 2030, or three years after the Commission adopts the calculation methodology, whichever is later. Fillers such as bubble wrap count as empty space.
Do any transport-packaging reuse duties apply already?: Yes. Since 12 August 2026, Articles 26 and 27 require anyone first making reusable packaging available to ensure a re-use system exists for it, and operators using reusable packaging to participate in a system and recondition it. The Article 29 percentage targets start on 1 January 2030.

Reviewed 19 August 2026 by Anton Kröger