Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation: What the EU Commission's New Guidance Means forBusinesses in Malaysia

As EuroCham Malaysia's Legal Knowledge Partner for Malaysia, Aqran Vijandran provides regular legal insights tailoredfor EuroCham members. 

With less than five months until the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) applies across the EU on 12 August 2026, the European Commission has published long-awaited guidance to clarify how key provisions of the Regulation will be interpreted and enforced.For European companies with operations in Malaysia and for Malaysian exporters supplying EU buyers, this guidance resolves several practical uncertainties –but also removes any remaining ambiguity about the urgency of compliance.

This article is a focused update. If you are not yet familiar with the PPWR's core obligations – recyclability requirements, recycled content targets, reuse obligations, packaging minimisation rules and PFAS restrictions – our earlier write-up EU Packaging "Reset" through the PPWR: What Malaysian Exporters Need to Know Now provides the full picture. The focus here is on what the Commission's guidance of 30 March 2026 adds.

Why the guidance matters

The PPWR, as a directly applicable EU regulation, leaves no room for Member States to water down or delay its requirements. But the text of the Regulation left open a number of questions that companies – and national authorities – have been raising since its entry into force in February 2025. The Commission's guidance document (C(2026) 2151 final) and the accompanying FAQ, both dated 30 March 2026, address those questions directly.

The guidance does not amend the Regulation. It interprets it. The binding interpretation of EU law ultimately remains with the Court of Justice of the European Union. But for day-to-day compliance decisions – supplier negotiations, contract drafting, documentation structures– the Commission's guidance is the most authoritative signal available, and businesses should calibrate their approach accordingly.

Four clarifications that directly affect businesses in Malaysia

1. Who counts as "producer" – and why it matters for supply chains

One of the most commercially significant clarifications concerns the distinction between a "manufacturer" and a "producer" under the PPWR. The two roles carry different obligations and have been a persistent source of confusion.

The guidance confirms that there is only ever one manufacturer per packaging item in a given supply chain – typically the entity that applies its name or trademark to the packaging or packaged product. The producer, by contrast, is the entity responsible for extended producer responsibility (EPR) obligations: registering with national authorities, paying EPR fees, and reporting packaging placed on the market in each EU Member State.

For Malaysian exporters, the practical implication is this: your EU importer or distributor will almost always be the"producer" in the legal sense and they will bear the EPR obligations. But they will need accurate packaging data – material composition, weight, format – from you in order to register and report correctly. If you cannot provide that data, you become a liability in their compliance chain, not an asset.

2. Branch offices cannot qualify as importers

The guidance addresses a question that is directly relevant to the many European multinationals operating in Malaysia through branch structures: can a branch office qualify as an "importer" under the PPWR?

The answer is no. The guidance confirms that only entities with separate legal personality – incorporated subsidiaries – qualify as importers for PPWR purposes. A branch, even one that is registered for tax and has a permanent establishment in an EU Member State, cannot discharge importer obligations because it lacks the legal standing to do so.

For European groups that have structured their Malaysian and regional sourcing operations through branch offices rather than subsidiaries, this is a governance point worth reviewing – both in Malaysia and at the EU end of the chain.

3. No grace period for PFAS in food-contact packaging

The guidance settles what had been an open question regarding stock exhaustion: there is no transitional period for existing stocks of food-contact packaging that contain PFAS above the permitted thresholds. Packaging placed on the EU market after 12 August 2026 must comply, full stop. Packaging placed on the market before that date may remain – but nothing produced or imported after the deadline can exceed the limits, regardless of when it was manufactured.

This is a hard deadline. For Malaysian exporters of packaged food, beverages, and any product using grease-resistant, barrier-coated or treated packaging materials, the window for supplier-level chemical due diligence is now very short. Written confirmations of PFAS compliance from packaging suppliers should be obtained without delay.

4. Reuse targets apply differently in international trade

The guidance provides specific clarification on how reuse targets for transport packaging interact with cross-border trade. Transport packaging used in international trade – where goods are shipped from outside the EU into the EU – is subject to its own treatment under the reuse target framework. The operator responsible for meeting the reuse target will generally be determined by where the packaging is first made available on the EU market.

For Malaysian exporters shipping goods directly into the EU, this means that the immediate obligation typically rests with the EU importer. However, EU buyers will obviously embed reuse-readiness expectations into procurement contracts and supplier specifications. Exporters who use single-use transport packaging for EU-bound shipments should expect commercial pressure to shift formats, even where the formal legal obligation sits elsewhere.

The broader picture: uncertainty remains

Despite the guidance, significant secondary legislation is still outstanding. The Commission has confirmed it is preparing delegated and implementing acts on harmonised EPR registration and reporting formats, labelling for waste sorting, recycled content requirements for plastic packaging, and design-for-recycling criteria. Industry groups have noted that compliance planning remains difficult without these measures in place, and that the guidance – while helpful – does not resolve all outstanding questions.

This ongoing uncertainty does not, however, justify inaction. The core obligations of the PPWR are fixed. What is still pending is the detail of how some of them will be measured and reported. The August 2026 deadline is not contingent on that secondary legislation being finalised.

What businesses should do now

For European companies operating in Malaysia: review how your supply chain structures – including any branch arrangements – interact with PPWR producer and importer obligations at the EU end. Ensure your Malaysian packaging suppliers can provide the documentation you will need.

For Malaysian exporters supplying EU buyers: the message from the guidance is straightforward. Know your role in your EU buyer's compliance chain. Obtain PFAS confirmations from your packaging suppliers now. Build a packaging compliance file for each EU-bound productline. And engage your EU customers proactively – do not wait for them to come to you with requirements you are not yet in a position to meet.

At Aqran Vijandran, we assist both European companies operating in Malaysia and Malaysian companies doing business in Europe in navigating the legal and commercial implications of EU regulatory developments. If you would like to discuss how the PPWR affects your specific operations or supply chain, please contact us at harald@aqranvijandran.com.

‍