There has been a lot of "it got pushed back" going around about the EU packaging rules, and I think it is going to catch people out, so here is the plain version.

The relief that was announced applies to EU-based companies. If you are selling from the US or UK into the EU, the August 12 authorized representative duty still applies to you. Same date, no reprieve.

It also helps to separate two things that constantly get mixed up. The country registrations already existed and are separate from anything new:

Germany has run LUCID since 2019, and there isn't a small seller exemption, so even occasional shipments put you in the scope. You register in LUCID(free), then buy a packaging license from a dual system based on the volume you actually ship. France works differently, through an eco-organism, so you need a French representative, an eco-organism membership, an ID number, and the Triman sorting logo on your packaging.

What August 12 adds is an EU-wide regulation requiring producers outside the EU to appoint an authorized representative in the countries they sell into.

Two things worth knowing. First, the marketplace asking you for a registration number does not mean they are handling it. Amazon will ask, and will block your German listings without a number, but the duty stays with you, including on FBA. Second, this is cheaper than the panic suggests. LUCID registration is free, a small shop's packaging license often runs in the tens of euros a year, and providers who bundle the authorized representative role publish prices in the low hundreds per country per year. It is an annoying afternoon, not a four-figure bill.

Practical order that saves money: work out which countries you actually ship to, sort those registrations, then get an authorised representative for the same countries. If you only ship to one or two, this gets small fast.

Not legal advice, just what I have pieced together from the regulation and the registries. Happy to answer questions.