The EAR foundation (German WEEE and battery registration board) points out that e-cigarettes and disposable e-cigarettes are battery-powered electrical appliances that must be disposed of properly at the end of their life: “E-cigarettes, like any other electrical appliance, must be disposed of properly. Under no circumstances do they belong in the household waste, in the yellow (recycling) bag or in public waste bins, but should be disposed of free of charge as electronic waste at recycling centres or within the trade.”
E-cigarettes: WEEE, the Batteries Act and Packaging Act must be observed
E-cigarettes (small appliances as contemplated by the Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act/ElektroG) require three registrations: A WEEE or ElektroG registration is required for the vaporiser, a battery registration for the rechargeable battery (device battery within the meaning of BattG; now permanently installed in disposable e-cigarettes), and a registration under the Packaging Act and a licence for the packaging.
Customs and excise: Tobacco tax law also applies to liquids
As the retail trade association Bundesverband des Tabakwaren-Einzelhandels e.V. (BTWE) reported, the regulations under tobacco tax law regarding mandatory packaging, the prohibition of packaging and tying, as well as the use of tax stamps also apply without restriction to substitutes for tobacco products (liquids). In recent weeks, the customs administration has received an increasing number of enquiries regarding the correct handling of substitutes for tobacco products, which are to be considered as tax objects under tobacco tax law as of 1 July 2022. The problems reported bore testimony that there is still a great deal of uncertainty, especially among those partly confronted with tobacco tax law for the very first time, how to proceed in accordance with the law. In order to enable all parties involved to have equal access to the information, the Directorate General of Customs has published a specialist notification to this effect at www.zoll.de. In principle, it should be noted that according to Section 1b sentence 1 of the Tobacco Tax Act, the provisions of the latter as well as the implementing regulations issued in connection therewith also apply to substitutes for tobacco products, unless otherwise stipulated.
The take-e-way consultancy team is at your disposal via +49/40/750687-0 or beratung@take-e-way.de for your questions regarding WEEE, the Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act, the Batteries Act, Packaging Act and the EPR and provides assistance with registration/licensing.
