Producer and/or importer

These can be downloaded here.

These can be downloaded here.

A foreign producer who puts electrical or electronic equipment on the Dutch market can directly join the OPEN Foundation without having to appoint an authorized representative. As of the 1^st of  March the OPEN Foundation is in of the producer responsibility for all producers (foreign producers as well) in the Netherlands. With its generally binding waste management fee agreement the OPEN Foundation actually fulfils the purpose of the Authorised Representative role and therefore it is in the opinion of the OPEN Foundation not necessary and less efficient to appoint an Authorised Representative

Foreign producers that meet the obligations from the waste management fee agreement of the OPEN Foundation can be handed a compliance statement which they can hand over to their own country to show that they act in accordance with the Dutch legislation on producer responsibility for electrical and electronic equipment. For more information on the way the OPEN foundation handles the Authorised Representative, read our statement.

Of course, a foreign producer is free to appoint an Authorised Representative, but in the opinion of the OPEN Foundation this is not necessary.

Welcome! You can sign up through our portal MyOpen. A button is located at the top right of this site. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

Please contact the OPEN Foundation, Operations department, to discuss the possibilities.

Yes, if you are a producer or importer and you put an electrical or electronic device on the Dutch market for the first time. From 1 March 2021, the producer responsibility is being directed by the OPEN Foundation. All producers of electrical and electronic devices must, as of that date, fulfil their legal obligations through the OPEN Foundation. This page explains when you are responsible as a producer and/or importer, which appliances are covered by the WEEE regulation and more about the legislation. If this is compulsory for you, we will welcome you at the OPEN Foundation. The waste management-fee agreement is available if you should like to read through it. You can join via the MyOPEN-button on this site.

Here you can find the 2021 rates list. Every year before 1 December, the OPEN Foundation publishes the rates of the various product categories for the next year.

If your annual invoice exceeds € 1200, you must pay a monthly advance. This depends on the expected Put-On-Market (POM) of a year. At the beginning of each new calendar year you are supposed to submit a declaration, which means that at the beginning of 2022 you can report on 2021. Subsequently, a settlement takes place. This advance is necessary to be able to organise the collection, transport, sorting and processing of WEEE during the year.

The waste management levy creates a so-called level playing field. The rates are fixed, there are no discounts.

Yes, energy-efficient light bulbs are covered. Producer responsibility for lamps lies with LightRec for two more years. Luminaires fall under the OPEN Foundation. On 1 January 2023 also light bulbs fall under OPEN. LightRec and the OPEN Foundation work together on the implementation. Registration with the OPEN Foundation and for LightRec is possible through the MyOPEN-button on this site.

The so-called waste-management levy is an amount that each producer and importer of electrical and electronic devices must pay to the OPEN Foundation. It is based on the amount of electrical and electronic appliances that a producer and/or importer puts on the market on a yearly basis.

The waste-management contribution is made up of operational costs, system costs and a fixed contribution. The operational costs include the costs of collection, transport, sorting and processing of waste electrical and electronic appliances. The system costs include the costs of organisation, communication, research, controls and audits, etc. The fixed contribution consists of a fixed amount per producer or importer for costs not included in the operational costs or system costs, such as the contribution to the National (W)EEE Register (NWR). For reporting year 2021, the contribution to the National (W)EEE Register amounts to EUR 100. The OPEN Foundation charges these costs directly as a fixed amount to the producers and/or importers of electrical and electronic appliances and pays this amount one-to-one to the National (W)EEE Register.

We will notify you when it is time to submit your report. Of course, you are welcome to visit the portal in the meantime. You will also find relevant news here. The MyOpen button is displayed on this site. You will find all your invoices here, for example.

In legislation, our price list and in the reporting screen, you will notice that there is a distinction between large and small electrical appliances. The following applies here:
The classification is determined by considering the outside dimensions, i.e. the length, width or height of the product.

Large equipment is > 50 cm.
If all sizes are less than or equal to 50 cm, this comes under the category of Small appliances.

This classification does not apply to luminaires. Light fittings are distinguished on the basis of weight (> 750 grams or ≤ 750 grams). Both classifications can be found in the 2021 product and price list.
When determining the size of your device, do not include the length of the cable. If your company sells loose cables (with or without a plug), you must measure the size of the rolled-up cable. For further explanation see the document ‘Determining device dimensions’.

The WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) mark, a crossed-out wheelie bin, indicates that the product should not be disposed of as unsorted waste but collected separately for recovery and recycling. The WEEE mark has to be affixed to all electrical and electronic equipment placed on the market in the EU together with your identification mark, such as a brand name or trademark. If the product was put on the market after 13 August 2015, you can put a bar under the crossed-out wheelie bin or indicate the date when the product was put on the market.

The markings must be printed on the product itself and must be visible, legible and indelible. The marking may only be affixed to the packaging, the instructions for use or the guarantee certificate, instead of to the product itself, if the product is too small or its operation would be impaired by the marking.

A foreign producer who puts electrical or electronic appliances on the market in the Netherlands can assign an authorised representative. Under Dutch law, the foreign manufacturer is not obliged to do so. A foreign producer can join the OPEN Foundation without an authorised representative. The OPEN Foundation advises foreign producers to first check the regulations of the country where he is established to make sure that affiliation without an authorised representative is allowed.

How to perform producer responsibility in the distribution of electrical and/or electronic equipment of a foreign manufacturer.

Manufacturers and/or importers (the Producers) of electrical and electronic equipment (the Equipment) have producer responsibility for the Equipment they place on the Dutch market. This responsibility applies to the Equipment covered by the scope of the Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulation (WEEE Regulation).

A Producer performs producer responsibility by joining the OPEN Foundation. Pursuant to the WEEE Regulation, the Producer is the party who puts equipment on the Dutch market for the first time.

In the Netherlands, this producer responsibility also applies to importers who purchase equipment from a foreign manufacturer and then distribute this equipment for use on the Dutch market. The foreign manufacturer does not have the option of adopting manufacturer’s responsibility for its equipment from the distributor. This is evident from an extensive statement of considerations on this subject from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management (the Foreign Manufacturer Considerations).

The ‘Foreign Manufacturer Considerations’ is at odds with how many European Member States deal with the compulsory declaration of equipment by foreign producers and distributors. In various Member States, foreign producers can declare the equipment supplied to distributors, and consequently relieve the distributors. In the Netherlands, before the universally binding declaration of the waste-management fee agreement of the OPEN Foundation (AVV EEA) came into effect, this was also (largely unconsciously) common practice with various producer collectives.
It would be unmanageable for the foreign producers who used to declare equipment in the Netherlands in this way, if they had to revise and change their administration from 1 March 2021.

With respect to this, the OPEN Foundation has decided, based on its central directive role, to continue the current practice in this transition year in which the performance of producer responsibility has changed drastically for Producers.
This means that foreign producers can make a declaration for 2021 with regard to their distributors. In order to avoid duplications, the OPEN Foundation asks foreign producers for additional information on their distributors. Foreign producers must moreover provide their distributors with accurate information.

The OPEN Foundation has asked the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management to also apply the current practice in 2022. The OPEN Foundation aims to link up with European practice and to change the ‘Foreign Manufacturer Considerations’ to be in line with common practice. A change to the ‘Foreign Manufacturer Considerations’ moreover contributes to further harmonisation of producer responsibility within Europe. This will make it easier for producers, who are engaged in the markets of various Member States, to perform their producer responsibility.

Producers, importers or distributors can register here. If you wish to register as a foreign producer and submit a declaration on behalf of a distributor, please contact the distributor first in order to avoid duplicate registrations as much as possible.

If you have questions about the producer responsibility distributor please contact us.

In case customers of Dutch producers and importers that are members of OPEN buy EEE and subsequently export such EEE, while a waste-management fee on this EEE has been or is being paid to OPEN through the Dutch producer/importer, this situation refers to an unjustified levy. This EEE will most likely not end up in the waste phase in the Netherlands after the end of its life cycle. As a result, no costs are incurred for collection and appropriate processing. In that case, a partial refund of the waste-management levy (export refund) may be made.

Qualifying manufacturers can apply for the Export Refund Scheme at any time of the year. The Export Refund Scheme can be used to declare, every six months, the EEE effectively exported during the previous six months. For more information on the Export Refund Scheme click here. Make sure that you meet the conditions. For the Control Protocol click here. You can register with the Producers Services department via e-mail.

Lamps are excluded from the Export refund scheme because a separate general binding declaration applies to lamps until 1 January 2023 and this product category comes under the responsibility of Stichting LightRec Nederland until that time. A separate refund scheme applies to lamps, called the export-refund scheme. Do you and/or your customers also export lamps? Take a look at the export-refund scheme here.

If you export electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) for recycling as a business, you are obliged to report this as of 2021. This exported EEE is no longer collected in the Netherlands and can therefore be included in the settlement for the collection target to be achieved. By providing insight into the quantities that leave the Dutch market due to exported recycling, it becomes more practical to achieve the collection target. You can join the OPEN Foundation.

If you export WEEE for recycling for business purposes, you must also register as a processor with the National (W)EEE Register.

If your company is on the market in several European countries, you can choose to place the producer responsibility with one party, such as WEEE Europe or Weee Nederland. They will arrange contracts with the various European collection systems, and you can centralise your reporting for the whole of Europe through an online portal.

WEEE Europe is a joint venture of several European collectives, including the OPEN Foundation. The company is based in Germany and is a one-stop-shop for companies that are on the market in several European countries. WEEE Europe provides the following services, including:

• Organising the contracts with the various European collection systems.
• An online portal in which centralised reporting for the whole of Europe can take place.

For further information, please visit the WEEE Europe website or contact Producers Services of the OPEN Foundation by e-mail.

Yes, this is possible if a company believes that it can adequately arrange the collection and recycling of its products itself, it can submit to the Minister a reasoned and substantiated request for exemption from the AVV. Here you will find more information about this procedure.

Yes, for the contracting of the waste management structure at Stichting OPEN has established a purchasing organization called Waste Management Structure WEEE B.V. (AEEA B.V.). AEEA B.V. is a 100% subsidiary of Stichting OPEN and takes care of the contracting and invoicing.