Law adjustment Open Scope

Since August 15, 2018, there has been a legal amendment to the scope of the Dutch Regulation on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (hereafter: the Regulation). This amendment to the law has (possibly) an impact on the electrical appliances you are legally obliged to report. We call this the Open Scope with three types of changes:

New products are in scope of the Regulation o Component or device
Products are re-categorized
Classification based on external dimension (with the exception of luminaires)
New exceptions are in force

New products

Before 15 August 2018, only products that were dependent on electricity for their primary function (via mains or battery) fell within the scope of the Regulation. From August 15, 2018, also products with an electrical function that does not have to do with the primary function of the product fall within the scope of the Regulations. Examples:

cuddly bears with sound
shoes with integrated lights
desks with integrated electrical adjustment function
products in which a chip has been processed, such as a debit card, SIM card, RIFD, etc.
e-bikes without type approval
consumer luminaires

New exceptions

A number of new exceptions are in force. This means that some products no longer fall within the scope of the Regulation and no longer need to be reported. You will find an overview of these new exceptions below:

Equipment that is designed to leave the atmosphere;
Large, non-movable industrial tools;
Large fixed installations with the exception of equipment that is not specifically designed for and installed as part of such installations;
Means of transport for persons or goods (with the exceptions of e-bikes);
Non-road mobile machinery made available exclusively for professional use;
Equipment that is designed exclusively for research and development purposes and that is only made available by another company to another company (B2B);
Medical devices and in vitro diagnostic medical devices, where these devices expect to be infectious before the end of their lifespan, and active implantable medical devices.

Wecycle has drawn up an overview with a few examples per exception. You can also find examples of products on which a particular exception does not apply.

Based on the above information and the information in the overview it cannot always be concluded a product does not have to be reported. We request you to contact us in case of doubt. If necessary, we ask the helpdesk of the Dutch government to determine whether or not an exception applies to your product.

Electrical component or complete device?

The government has drawn up the following guideline to determine whether the device must be reported completely or only the electrical component. Please, pay particular attention to the underlined sections.

If an electrical or electronic element is dismountable/replaceable of a product that functions both electrically and non-electrically (the product still works after removal of the electrical element), only the removable electrical or electronic element of the product can be regarded as a device and not the entire product. An element is considered as dismountable and replaceable if the user can remove it in a simple manner (i.e. manually or with standard tools) without damaging the product in which the electronics are incorporated.

If the above applies to your product you only need to report the electrical element. If the above does not apply to your (electrical) product, you need to report the entire device.

New categorization

From January 1, 2019 we will switch from ten to six categories. The old categories have been reclassified into six new categories. You will find the old and new categories below:

New categories as of 1-1-2019

Temperature exchange equipment
Screens, monitors, and equipment containing screens having a surface greater than 100 cm²
Lamps
Large equipment (any external dimension more than 50 cm)
Small equipment (no external dimension more than 50 cm)
Small IT and telecommunication equipment (no external dimension more than 50 cm)

When does the new categorization apply to you?

Annual report

If you report once a year, you make use of the new categorization and associated article codes at the beginning of 2020, when you submit your annual report of 2019.

Quarterly report

If you report quarterly, you make use of the new categorization and associated article code on the 1st of April 2019, when you submit your report of the first quarter of 2019.

Easy transfer

Your will find the new categorization and Wecycle article codes in the Product and Tariff list 2019. To make the transition to new article codes easier, a conversion table has been developed.

Division based on measurement (excl. luminaires)

New in 2019 is that several products must be divided into categories based on the external dimension. This division is applicable for the following type of products:

Large equipment (with external dimension > 50 cm)
Small equipment (with external dimension ≤ 50 cm)

This division is not applicable to luminaires. For luminaires a distinction is made based on weight (> 750 grams or ≤ 750 grams). Both divisions are applied clearly in the products and tariff list 2019.

When determining the size of your device, do not include the length of the cable. If your company sells separate cables (with or without plug), measure the size of the coiled cable. Further explanation can be found in the document 'Determine device size'.

More information

Wecycle is developing a new product finder: a (non-exhaustive) list in which you can easily check whether your product falls within the scope of the Regulation. Please let us know in case you have any questions. You can reach us by e-mail or by phone via +31 79 76 00 630.

Johanna van der Meer

Employee Producer Services

Producers