Must I make business-sensitive data publicly available in the battery passport?

Not all data in the product passport is visible to everyone

No, not all information included in a battery product passport needs to be accessible to the general public. The Battery Regulation establishes in Annex XIII to Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 a distinction between different data categories, each with its own access level. Some data can be viewed by anyone with a QR scanner, while other data is only visible to competent authorities, notified bodies carrying out inspections, or parties that can demonstrate a legitimate interest in that specific information, such as recyclers or professional repairers. The idea behind this is that a battery product passport should provide transparency on safety, origin and recyclability, without a manufacturer or importer automatically disclosing all their technical and commercial secrets.

What can be protected, and what cannot

This distinction in access levels applies to the data listed in Annex XIII, and its classification determines which data falls into which access category — not the manufacturer's or importer's own assessment of what is sensitive. This means there is no room to decide independently that a particular piece of data is "too sensitive" and therefore omit it or place it behind additional restrictions, if Annex XIII actually marks that data as publicly accessible. Conversely, data that according to the annex falls within a restricted access category does not need to be freely available online, even if an importer would have no objection to this. The classification is thus a requirement of the regulation, not a menu of choices. What does not apply here: general business information that is separate from the specific battery — such as internal cost prices, supplier contracts or production processes that are not requested in Annex XIII — falls outside the passport anyway. It does not need to be included anywhere, because the passport calls for a fixed set of data about the battery itself, not open insight into business operations.

From 18 February 2027, this distinction applies just like the rest of the obligation

The obligation to maintain a battery product passport, including the differentiated access to data as set out in Annex XIII, applies from 18 February 2027. Until that date, there is no legal obligation to have a passport with these access levels, and therefore no immediate question about which data should or should not be public. Anyone considering the structure of a passport now is doing so in anticipation of that date — with the advantage that there is time to examine for each data category what will be publicly visible and what will not, rather than having to figure it out under time pressure.

How this is handled in practice

The first step is to identify which data about your own battery or product will need to be included in the passport — this is determined by Annex XIII. After that, it is worthwhile to review each piece of data to see which access category it falls into: public, or restricted to competent authorities and parties with a justified interest. This distinction is not something an importer or trader can themselves convert into a button in a system of their choice; it is built into the way the passport is structured and published, and that is precisely where a party assembling and hosting the passport bears responsibility. For anyone unsure whether a specific piece of data — for example the exact cell chemistry, a supplier code or a test report — falls under the public or restricted category, Annex XIII is the place to trace that data, not to make your own assumption about what is "sensitive enough". Anyone who wants to have this sorted by autumn 2027 is well advised not to leave this investigative work until just before the deadline, simply because which data is actually available and how it has been provided can vary by product line or supplier.

Where this follows from: Article 77 and Annex XIII

This division into access levels follows from Article 77 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, which regulates the battery passport and access to it, in combination with Annex XIII, which sets out for each data category what information must be included in the passport and who can view it. For the precise classification of data in the various access categories, the official text of Annex XIII is the source; this text ultimately determines what goes where, not an interpretation made afterwards.

If you now want to know concretely how your own product or battery line will fall into categories of Annex XIII, it is best to clarify this on the basis of the official text of the regulation, and use that result as a basis for discussion with the party that compiles and hosts the passport.

What this is based on

The Regulation itself is on EUR-Lex. We refer for each statement; you need not believe us.

What you need to do concretely

What is expected of you

Distinguish between public and restricted-access data

Annex XIII of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 (Battery Regulation), article 77 divides the data in the battery passport into categories: some are visible to anyone who scans the QR code, others only to specific parties such as market actors, recognised repairers or recycling operators. For a company with 10 to 100 employees, this means that not everything submitted for the passport automatically becomes public. The regulation itself determines which data falls into which category — this is not a choice that varies from company to company. Anyone who wants to know exactly which data must be included will find an overview at which data must be in the battery passport.

Recognise commercially sensitive information within the mandatory dataset

Part of the mandatory data concerns information that a company would normally not share with competitors: the exact material composition, the origin of raw materials, or the precise composition of battery chemistry. See what data about the materials in a battery do I need to provide exactly and how do I record the battery chemistry in the battery passport. The regulation requires this data in the passport, but links an access level to it in Annex XIII. For an importer or assembler, this means that submitting this data to the platform is different from making it public — the access rules determine who gets to see it.

Align access rights with the role of the requester

Who may view which data depends on the role of that party: a consumer who scans sees something different from a recycler who dismantles a battery, and that in turn differs from a market surveillance authority. This is set out at who may view which data from the battery passport. For a company, this practically means that the platform hosting the passport must be able to technically guarantee this separation — this is not a matter of relying on the good faith of the viewer, but of an access system organised according to the categories in Annex XIII.

Completeness of the dataset despite sensitivity of parts

The regulation offers no general exception of "we will omit this data because it is sensitive". Data that is mandatory according to Annex XIII — such as the share of recycled material (see how do I demonstrate the proportion of recycled cobalt, lithium, nickel and lead) or the carbon footprint (see how do I determine the carbon footprint of a battery) — must be in the passport, even if a company would have preferred not to share those figures. What does vary is who that data is made visible to according to the access category that the regulation links to it.

Where things go wrong in practice

Leaving everything on "public" for convenience. When submitting data to a platform, consideration is not always given to the access level per data category. The result is that data which according to Annex XIII may be restricted access nevertheless becomes visible to every scanner — because no distinction was made in the setup.

Confusion between "mandatory to submit" and "mandatory to make public". An importer who must provide the material composition sometimes assumes that this data thereby also becomes visible to the end user. That is an assumption, not something that automatically follows from the obligation to submit.

Lack of clarity about who exactly the recycler or repairer is. Access by role presupposes that the role is established or verifiable. Smaller companies often lack a documented process to determine who correctly presents themselves as a "recognised market actor" in order to request certain data.

Submitting more than what Annex XIII requires. Out of caution or lack of clarity, additional information is sometimes added to the dataset — technical drawings, supplier names, internal test results — which is not part of the mandatory data but is nevertheless passed on to the platform and may inadvertently become visible there more broadly than intended.

No internal agreement on who may submit which data. When multiple departments (procurement, engineering, quality) submit data to the platform independently, there is a risk that business-sensitive details are supplied twice or uncontrollably, without anyone having an overview of where information ends up.

What you can record

An overview of which data from own battery production or import fall under which category of Annex XIII, linked to the corresponding access level.
An internal designation of who within the company is authorised to submit data to the platform, so that not every department sends data separately.
A check on the dataset before it is submitted: does it contain only the data that Annex XIII requires, or has more been added than necessary?
A documented agreement with the platform on how access rights are technically separated — which party sees which category, in line with who may view which data from the battery passport.
A note on sensitive components such as battery chemistry or material origin, regarding the source of the figure and on the basis of which calculation or supplier statement it was established — useful in the event of a later question about origin or substantiation.
A periodic review of whether the submitted data is still current, particularly because changes in composition or supplier may have implications for previously submitted, possibly sensitive information — see also how often must I update the data in the battery passport.

This is not legal advice. This page provides general information about the legislation that this platform covers. We do not know your situation. If in doubt about your own case, consult a lawyer or the competent supervisory authority.

Written with AI based on the sources above, checked by a human on 2026-08-22. Is something wrong? Let us know — corrections take priority.