What happens to the battery passport if my company stops?
The passport remains, even if the company does not
The digital battery passport is linked to the battery, not to the continued existence of the company that had it created. Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 (Battery Regulation), Article 77 places the responsibility for drawing up the passport with the economic operator who places the battery on the market — usually the manufacturer or importer. That obligation concerns the creation and provision of data, but the battery itself remains in circulation after sale, often for years. If the company ceases operations, the battery does not disappear and therefore neither does the obligation to maintain an accessible passport. In practice, this means that the passport must technically be independent of the company: it must be hosted somewhere where the QR code on the battery continues to point to, even when the original economic operator no longer exists.
For whom this is relevant, and for whom it is not
This applies to any company that as an importer, manufacturer or brand owner has placed a passport-obligated battery on the market — EV batteries, batteries for light means of transport such as e-bikes and scooters, and industrial batteries above 2 kWh. The question then concerns what happens to already published passports in the event of business termination, insolvency, takeover or cessation of an import activity. It does not concern the question of whether a new company that takes over the same batteries must itself create passports for stock yet to be imported — that is a separate question about who is the economic operator at that time. It also does not concern recycling or collection of the battery itself; that is handled through the extended producer responsibility schemes under Articles 56 and 57 of the same regulation, and that is a different process than keeping the data available.
What is already established, and what has not yet been worked out
There is no separate date for 'what happens when a business terminates' — that scenario is not described as such in the regulation. What is established is the main obligation under Article 77: the passport must be created and accessible from the moment the battery is placed on the market, and that moment for most battery categories is from 18 February 2027. The regulation does regulate when a passport must exist, but does not explicitly prescribe the mechanism by which the data remains accessible if the original economic operator ceases to exist. This is a practical issue that is being solved in the sector by placing the hosting with an independent party, separate from the continuity of the trading company itself. As long as no supplementary implementing rules have been published that address this specific scenario, this is the current state of affairs.
How this is being solved in practice
For a company that has a passport created, the first question is who actually hosts the data and under what conditions that hosting continues if the company ceases to exist. A passport that runs on the company's own servers or with a supplier bound to the company risks the QR code on the battery pointing to a dead link as soon as the company stops — with the result that the battery can no longer comply with the obligation of article 77, even if a passport was properly created at one time. A hosting party that operates independently of the trading company and commits to a fixed period in advance — batpas.eu uses ten years for this — prevents that problem, because the continuity of the data does not depend on the continuity of the business. In the event of a takeover, it is then important to establish who will be the point of contact after the takeover for any changes to the passport data, and in the event of insolvency it is important that the receiver or a successor party knows that the hosting obligation is separate from the estate and continues normally with the hosting party. A similar logic applies to the extended producer responsibility in articles 56 and 57: these arrangements are usually designed so that the collection and processing of batteries does not stop as soon as one individual producer falls away, because the obligations run through collective or individual schemes that are built on continuity.
Where this follows from: article 77 and articles 56-57
The obligation to create and make available the battery passport is set out in article 77 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542. The related obligations concerning the collection and processing of batteries after use, which apply when a market participant falls away, are set out in articles 56 and 57 of the same regulation. A specific provision that regulates the scenario of business cessation for the passport itself is not included in these articles; the practical implementation — hosting that is separate from the trading business — is a way to continue to meet the objective of article 77, not a literal statutory obligation.
Anyone who now has a passport drawn up is well advised to ask the hosting party about the duration of the hosting and what happens to the data in the event of business cessation, takeover or insolvency — and to document this in writing, so that the QR code on the battery also points to a functioning passport over the years.
What this is based on
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, Article 77 (battery passport)
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, Articles 56 and 57 (extended producer responsibility)
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
A battery passport continues to exist even if the company that created it no longer exists. The regulation requires that data be kept available for a fixed period, and that obligation does not automatically end when a company ceases operations. What this requires in practice breaks down into a few aspects.
The availability of the passport continues to run
Article 77 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 (battery regulation) links the passport to the battery, not to the company that had it created. For a company with 10 to 100 employees, this means that the choice of a hosting partner is a choice that extends beyond the company's own lifespan. Anyone who hosted on their own server leaves a gap when they stop; anyone who had it hosted by a platform shifts the question to the continuity of that platform. Where is battery passport data stored online and who manages it is therefore not only a technical question at the start, but also a question that remains relevant in case of a takeover, merger or cessation of operations.
The obligation transfers with the transfer of responsibility
In the event of a sale of the business, a merger or a transfer of a product line, the role of manufacturer or importer typically shifts to the new party. Articles 56 and 57 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 on extended producer responsibility describe that role independently of the specific legal entity that placed the battery on the market at any given time. For a company that is taken over, this means that it can be established where the responsibility for existing passports lies, and who the contact person will be for questions that come in after the transfer.
Insolvency does not automatically terminate the obligation
When a company becomes insolvent, it disappears as a legal entity, but the batteries already placed on the market remain in circulation, often for years. The question of who is then responsible for maintaining the passport is a question that varies from situation to situation and for which the receiver, any continuing parties and the hosting partner can each play a role. What in any case helps is that the underlying data and the link to the QR code is not just in the heads of a few employees, but is documented somewhere and can be transferred.
The link with own systems plays a role here
Many companies do not leave the passport as a standalone entity, but link it to their own ERP or inventory system, for example to have data updated automatically. Can I link the battery passport to my ERP or inventory system describes how that link works. In the event of business cessation, this is a point to look at separately: a link that depends on a system that is shut down can cause the passport to stop being updated, even though the basic data itself is retained by the hosting partner.
Where things go wrong in practice
A first situation is the importer who stops and assumes that the obligations also disappear with the company. However, the batteries already sold remain in use with end users, and the passport associated with them remains relevant for maintenance, repair or recycling.
A second situation arises with a restart after insolvency where the restarting party takes over the brand name and inventory, but does not consider whether the existing battery passports and the associated hosting agreement have also been transferred. The result is a passport that is still online, but for which no one is reachable if a question about it comes in.
A third situation is the merger where two companies combine their product assortment, and where no one has established which of the two companies (or the new combination) becomes responsible for the existing passports. Both parties then assume that the other will take care of it.
A fourth situation is the company's own server with passport data that is simply shut down because no one pays the hosting costs after business activities cease, without a plan in place for what should happen to the data.
A fifth, less common but frequently occurring situation is the self-employed person or small importer who winds down part of their business operations but still has a number of batteries on the market for which the passport was linked to a personal account on a platform. When that account is terminated, access disappears, while the batteries remain in use for years to come.
What you can record
- An overview of which battery digital product passports have been created, for which products, and via which hosting party they are available.
- An agreement with the hosting party stating what happens if your own business ceases: whether the data remains available and who can access it.
- In the event of a takeover or merger: an explicit agreement on who takes over the role of manufacturer or importer for the existing product line, including the associated digital product passports.
- A list of unique identification numbers per battery, so that a possible successor or liquidator can determine which digital product passports belong to which batteries — see also how do I give each battery a unique identification for the background on this.
- Documentation of the link between the digital product passport and any in-house systems, so that it is clear which part of the data was automatically updated and which part was manual.
- Contact details of the hosting party, recorded in a place that is also accessible to a liquidator or successor, not only to the departing management.
- A note on the retention period that applies to the digital product passport, so that a succeeding party knows how long the obligation still runs — more on this can be found at how long must a battery passport remain available.
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.