How Does Transition Work for Batteries Already on the Market?

Transition for batteries already on the market covers batteries placed on the market or put into service before 18 February 2027, and batteries in the distribution chain, in storage or in use at the milestone date. The general rule is that the passport duty applies to batteries placed on the market or put into service from 18 February 2027, and does not apply retroactively to batteries already placed before that date. Transition planning must therefore distinguish the placing date, the distribution stage and any later life stage event, because each element can change the transition result for a specific battery.

Transition confusion arises from the difference between manufacture, shipment, warehousing and placing. A battery manufactured before the milestone, shipped before the milestone, but first made available after the milestone is placed after the milestone and needs a passport. A battery first made available before the milestone, held in a warehouse by a distributor, and sold to an end user after the milestone does not acquire a passport duty by the later sale alone, because the placing already occurred. The placing act, not the later sale, is the transition anchor, and the file must show it.

What is the general transition rule?

The general transition rule is the placing date rule in Article 77: from 18 February 2027, each battery in a passport category placed on the market or put into service must have a passport. Batteries placed before that date are outside the passport duty for that placing, subject to later life stage placing questions. The rule is stated in the Regulation text, and it is the only transition rule for the passport duty that is fixed in the Regulation. Any other transition treatment, such as a sell through period or a grace period for stock, would need a specific provision in the Regulation or in a delegated act, and no such general provision should be assumed without a cited source.

A transition note should cite Article 77, state the placing date rule, and apply it to the battery in question with the placing evidence. A note that states a general sell through assumption, without a cited provision, is an unverified assumption. A note that applies the placing rule to the specific battery, with the placing date evidenced, is a transition decision that can be audited. The note should be filed with the passport evidence for the model.

How are batteries in the distribution chain treated?

Batteries in the distribution chain at the milestone date are treated according to their placing date, not according to their location in the chain. A battery placed on the market before the milestone, held by a distributor at the milestone, and made available to a retailer after the milestone remains a battery placed before the milestone, because making available further down the chain is not a new placing. A battery imported after the milestone, even when manufactured before it, is placed on the market at import and needs a passport, because import placing is the first making available on the Union market.

Worked check: a distributor holds one hundred packs placed in January 2027 and receives one hundred packs imported in March 2027. The January packs need no passport for that placing, and the March packs each need a passport. The distributor file must keep the two batches separate, by placing date and identifier, so that a later check does not merge them. A file that merges the batches by model alone will misstate the passport position for at least one batch.

What about batteries in storage or in use?

Batteries in storage before first making available are treated on first making available, as above, while batteries already in use at the milestone date are treated as placed before the milestone, with no retroactive passport duty for that placing. A battery in use that is repaired, with the same identity and the same placing, does not acquire a passport duty by repair alone. A battery in use that is prepared for reuse, repurposed or remanufactured, and then placed again, must be assessed for a new placing, with the passport duty applying where the new placing falls in a passport category from the milestone date.

Storage and use tracking should record the placing date, the first use date where relevant, and any life stage event, so that the transition question can be answered for each battery. A tracking file that records only the current holder, without placing and life stage history, cannot answer the transition question. A file with the full history allows the question to be answered for the original placing and for any new placing separately.

How do life stage changes affect transition?

Life stage changes affect transition by creating a new battery that is placed on the market or put into service in a new stage, with the passport duty judged at the new placing date. Preparation for reuse, repurposing and remanufacturing each create a new life stage battery, and the new battery needs passport treatment where the new category and the new placing date require it, with linkage to the original passport where the Regulation requires it. A life stage change before the milestone, with a new placing before the milestone, does not create a passport duty for that placing, while the same change with a new placing after the milestone does.

Life stage files should record the original placing, the operation, the new battery characteristics, the new category and the new placing date, with the passport treatment stated for the new placing. A file that records only the operation, without the new placing date, leaves the transition question open. A file with the full sequence allows the transition to be judged for the new placing, and it preserves the link to the original history for a later recycler or authority.

What evidence proves a pre milestone placing?

Evidence proving a pre milestone placing includes the first making available record, the invoice or transfer record for the first making available, the operator who placed the battery, and the battery identifiers placed, with dates. A manufacture date alone, a shipment date alone, or a warehouse receipt alone does not prove placing, because placing is the first making available on the Union market, not manufacture or movement. The evidence should be contemporaneous, with the placing act recorded at the time, rather than reconstructed after the milestone from sales data.

Evidence should be filed as a placing register, with the placing date, the act, the operator and the identifiers, and with the register retained for the keeping period. A register reconstructed after the milestone, from memory or from later sales, is weak evidence, because the placing act cannot be verified from later data alone. A contemporaneous register, kept live through the transition period, is strong evidence, and it should be started well before the milestone, so that the transition period is covered without reconstruction.

What transition assumptions should be avoided?

Transition assumptions to avoid include assuming a sell through period for stock, assuming that manufacture before the milestone exempts a battery placed after it, and assuming that a battery in use will never need a passport. Each assumption needs a cited provision or a life stage assessment, and none should be adopted without that basis. As checked on 28 October 2026, the transition rule is the placing date rule in Article 77, and the file should apply that rule battery by battery. This guide gives general educational information only and is not individual legal advice. A reader with a specific battery or market decision should check the current Regulation text and any applicable delegated act, as checked on 28 October 2026, before acting.

This guide gives general educational information only and is not individual legal advice. A reader with a specific battery or market decision should check the current Regulation text and any applicable delegated act, as checked on 28 October 2026, before acting. Transition is judged by the placing act, and the placing register should be contemporaneous.