Summary

If your business is not incorporated in the UK and has no UK establishment, you generally cannot register as an obligated producer under UK packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). The scheme is built around UK-established organisations. Where an overseas business sells into the UK, the legal obligation passes to a UK party instead — usually the UK importer ("first UK owner") or, for marketplace sales, the online marketplace itself.

This article explains who is obligated, where the responsibility lands when the seller is overseas, and the practical options if you want or need to participate.

What is UK packaging EPR?

Packaging EPR is the UK scheme that makes businesses responsible for the cost of dealing with the packaging they place on the UK market. It runs under the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024, is administered by PackUK (within Defra), and operates across all four UK nations. Obligated businesses must register with their environmental regulator, report packaging data, and — above the higher thresholds — pay fees that fund local-authority recycling.

Who is an "obligated producer"?

The regulations apply to UK organisations that import or supply packaging and carry out a defined packaging activity (such as selling under their own brand, packing/filling, importing, distributing empty packaging, or operating an online marketplace).

The key gate is UK establishment. To register as a producer — or to form a group account — the entity must be established in the UK.

"Established in the UK" has a low threshold

You may count as established with only a modest UK footprint. This can include:

• a UK branch or office
• a UK warehouse or premises
• a UK postal address or PO box

Because the bar is low, a business that assumes it is out of scope may in fact be established — for example, if it holds stock in a UK warehouse. Whether using a third-party fulfilment centre amounts to establishment is fact-specific and should be checked.

Where the obligation goes if you are NOT established in the UK

If you have no UK incorporation and no UK establishment at all, you fall outside the obligated-producer definition and cannot register as one. The obligation moves to a UK party:

In practice this means an overseas seller on a UK marketplace usually has the packaging obligation handled by the platform — though the cost is very likely passed back through seller fees.

Practical options for a non-UK business

If you want to participate, or need to for commercial reasons, the realistic paths are:

1. Establish a UK presence. Even a modest footprint can make you an obligated producer who can register and report — most overseas businesses that want control do this and then join a compliance scheme to handle registration, data and fees.
2. Let the obligation rest with the UK party. Allow your UK importer/distributor or the marketplace to carry it, and settle commercially in your contracts who bears the cost — the UK party will price it in regardless.

Note that there is no formal "overseas authorised representative" route in UK packaging EPR (unlike some other schemes). Establishment in the UK, or passing the obligation down the chain, are the available options.

Do the thresholds apply to me?

Even a UK-established business only takes on the main obligations if both of the following apply:

• annual turnover of £1 million or more, and
• responsibility for more than 25 tonnes of packaging supplied to the UK market in the previous calendar year.

The larger, fee-paying tier applies at £2 million turnover and more than 50 tonnes. Below the £1m / 25-tonne threshold a business is treated as de minimis and has no fee obligation, though a separate nation-of-sale data requirement can still apply.

Key takeaways

• UK packaging EPR registration is for UK-established organisations; without any UK presence you cannot register as the producer.
• The obligation does not disappear — it shifts to the UK importer / first UK owner, or to the online marketplace for marketplace sales.
• The "established in the UK" test is low (a branch, warehouse, or postal address may be enough), so check whether you already qualify.
• If you want to handle EPR yourself, the usual step is to set up a UK presence and join a compliance scheme.