Frequently asked questions
FAQ - WEEE
What is the meaning of electrical and electronic equipment?
Electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) which is dependent on electric currents or electromagnetic fields in order to work properly and equipment for the generation, transfer and measurement of such currents and fields, belonging to categories under annexe 1A and designed for use with a voltage rating not exceeding 1000 Volt for alternating current and 1500 Volt for direct current.
What is the meaning of waste of electrical and electronic equipment?
Electrical or electronic equipment which is waste (WEEE) within the meaning of article 6, paragraph 1 letter a) of the Legislative decree dated 5 February 1997, no. 22, as subsequently amended, including all components, subassemblies and consumables which are part of the product at the time of discarding.
Who is a producer?
Pursuant to article 3, paragraph 1, point m) is considered producer and must register to the register any person who, irrespective of the selling technique used, including by means of distance communication as under Legislative decree 22 May 1999, no. 185, as subsequently amended:
1) manufactures and sells electrical and electronic equipment under his own brand;
2) resells under his own brand equipment produced by other suppliers; a reseller not being regarded as the “producer” if the brand of the producer appears on the equipment, as provided for in point 1, or
3) imports or is the first to put on the domestic market electrical and electronic equipment on a professional basis and markets it, also by means of distance sale;
4) produces electrical and electronic equipment for export only: this latter is considered producer only for the purpose of the design requirements and obligations to make the annual communications and register to the producers’ register.
What is the meaning of private household WEEE?
Article 3, paragraph 1 of Legislative decree no. 151 dated 25 July 2005, defines WEEE from private households, WEEE which comes from private households and from commercial, industrial, institutional and other sources which, because of its nature and quantity, is similar to that from private households.
What is the meaning of business WEEE?
Article 3, paragraph 1 of Legislative decree no. 151 dated 25 July 2005, defines business WEEE, WEEE coming from the administrative and economic activities, other than the WEEE coming from private households.
Who finances the WEEE management?
The operation of transport from the collection centres established by the Municipalities, as well as the environmentally compatible treatment, take-back and disposal operations of the WEEE is at the charge of the producers present on the market in the calendar year where the respective costs are incurred.
Which are the obligations of business WEEE producers?
The producers of business EEE put on the market following the date of entry in force of the system must finance the handling of WEEE coming from electrical and electronic equipment put on the market as from the above-said date.
The financing of the handling operations of the business WEEE coming from electrical and electronic equipment put on the market before the date of entry in force of the system is at the charge of the producer in case of supply of a new electrical and electronic equipment as replacement of a product of equivalent type and put to the same functions of the new equipment supplied. It is at the charge of the holder in the other cases.
The producer complies with its obligations individually or through membership to a suitable collective or mixed system.
What are the collective financing systems?
The producers of private households equipment must comply with the financing obligations of the system, becoming a member of a collective financing system.
The collective system arranges on behalf of the producers the collection of WEEE, lodged with the centres established by the Municipalities and their transportation to the treatment facilities and takes care of the financing of said operations.
As of today, about 15 collective financing systems have been established, structured in the form of consortium or company. In some cases, these are systems addressed to specific types of products (for instance, lighting or air conditioning equipment), in other cases the consortium deals with more types of products (for instance large and small household appliances).
Which are the types of products subject to the registration duty?
Annexe 1A to Legislative decree dated 25 July 2005 no. 151 contains a list of 10 categories in which the following products are grouped: Large household appliances, Small household appliances, IT and telecommunications equipment, Consumer equipment, Lighting equipment, Electrical and electronic tools, Toys, leisure and sport equipment, Medical devices, Monitoring and control instruments and Automatic dispensers.
Are there any sanctions?
The producer who, failing to register with the Chamber of commerce pursuant to article 14, paragraph 2, Legislative decree no. 151/2005, puts EEE on the market is sanctioned pursuant to article 16 of the above-mentioned decree by administrative monetary fine from € 30,000 to € 100,000. The producer who fails to communicate to the national register of the persons liable for the WEEE disposal the information on the products put on the market every year or communicates incomplete or inaccurate information, is sanctioned with the administrative monetary fine from € 2,000 to € 20,000.
Which are the terms of registration?
The legal representative of the producer shall make the registration to the Register with the competent Chamber of commerce. Registration is exclusively made by electronic means, through the website www.impresa.gov.it
Access to the electronic system shall be made through digital signature: legal representative can grant to another person, also holding a smart card, the relevant powers to fill in and transmit the application.
Which is the data to be communicated by the producer?
Upon registration to the Register, the producer shall mention:
- its belonging to one of the business types defined by article 3, paragraph 1, letter m) of the legislative decree 25 July 2005, no. 151.
- the specific ISTAT code of activity which identifies it as producer of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE);
- for each category of equipment under annex 1A of the legislative decree 25 July 2005, no. 151, as subsequently subdivided into annexe 1B of said legislative decree, the number and actual weight or the sole actual weight of equipment put on the market in the preceding calendar year, divided between household and business equipment. This last subdivision does not apply to lighting equipment pursuant to the provisions of article 10, paragraph 4 of the legislative decree 25 July 2005, no. 151;
- information on the collection centres set up and managed pursuant to article 6, paragraph 1, letter c) and paragraph 3 of the legislative decree 25 July 2005, no. 151, specifying if the organisation is made on the individual or collective basis;
- any registration to Registers of other member States of the European Union;
- information relating to the extent and the terms of presentation of the financial guarantees within the meaning of articles 11 and 12 of the legislative decree 25 July 2005, no. 151.
- for each category of electrical and electronic equipment put on the market, the system or systems through which it intends complying with the financing obligation of WEEE. If it is a collective system, the producer shall mention the name of the elected system.
Which data shall the financing Collective System communicate?
In order to allow a rational and neat management of WEEE on the territory, by 90 days of the date of entry into force of the relevant regulation or, in any case, prior to the operation on the Italian market of the collective system each collective system registers to the Register pursuant to article 1 and under the terms of article 3, paragraph 3, communicating the following information:
- the data relating to its incorporation;
- producers who become members to the collective system and, for each producer, the categories of handled equipment under annexe 1A of the legislative decree 25 July 2005, no. 151, as further subdivided in annexe 1B of said legislative decree;
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the categories of WEEE types managed, according to the following classification:
- historical household WEEE
- historical business WEEE
- new household WEEE
- new business WEEE
- lighting WEEE
What’s the registration number?
Once the registration is carried out, each producer is assigned a registration number through the Chamber of commerce’s IT system. Within 30 days of its release, the registration number shall be mentioned by the producer in all commercial documents, pursuant to article 3, paragraph 9 of Ministerial decree no. 185 dated 25 September 2007.
Who’s the recipient of the communicated data?
The Chambers of commerce, industry, handicraft and agricultural communicate to the Vigilance and Control Committee established with the Ministry of the environment, the list of the companies identified as producers of electrical and electronic equipment, for the purpose of drawing up and updating the National Register. The transmission is made by electronic means.
FAQ – Batteries and Accumulators
What’s the scope of application of the Legislative decree no. 188/2008 in matters of batteries and accumulators?
The decree governs the batteries and accumulators put on the market, as well as the collection, treatment, recycling and disposal of waste of batteries and accumulators, for the purpose of promoting a high level of collection and recycling. Batteries or accumulators are that energy source obtained by means of direct transformation of chemical energy, composed of one or more primary elements (non-rechargeable) or composed of one or more accessory elements (rechargeable).
What is the National Register?
The National register of the persons responsible for the financing of management systems of Battery and Accumulators Waste is established with the Ministry of the environment and protection of the territory and the sea. In said register there is a section relating to the collective systems set up for the financing of the batteries and accumulators waste management. The producer of batteries and accumulators can put said products on the market only following the electronic registration to the Register, to be made by 18 June 2009.
Which are the sanctions for omitted registration?
The producer who, failing to register with the Chamber of commerce puts batteries or accumulators on the market is sanctioned by administrative monetary fine from € 30,000 to € 100,000.
Who’s considered producer?
It is considered producer and is thus liable for the registration to the Register any person who, irrespective of the selling technique used, including by means of distance communication in accordance with the definition of articles 50 and ff. of the Legislative decree no. 206 of 6 September 2005 - implementing the Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts -, puts on the domestic market for the first time on a professional basis, batteries or accumulators, including those which are part of appliances or vehicles.
The expression ‘put on the market’ means the supply or availability, with or without consideration, for the benefit of third parties within the territory of the community, including the import in the community in the customs territory.
Which are the separate collection systems of Batteries and Accumulators?
The producers or third parties acting in their name arrange and manage, on an individual or collective basis, bearing the relating costs, separate collection systems of portable batteries and accumulators capable of covering the whole domestic territory in a consistent manner.
Said systems:
- enable the final users to discard, free of charge, the portable batteries and accumulators waste at the closest available collection points, considering the population density;
- shall neither imply charges for the final users upon discarding their portable batteries and accumulators, nor their obligation to purchase new batteries or new accumulators.
How may portable batteries and accumulators be collected?
Collection may be carried out in two ways:
- The producers or collective financing systems may, by prior execution of specific agreement, avail themselves of the separate collection structures set up by the public service for the management of municipal waste. In this case, they are held liable for the taking-back and handling of the portable batteries or accumulators waste separately collected within the public service for the municipal waste management.
- The distributors supplying new portable batteries or accumulators make available to the public containers for the discharge of portable batteries or accumulators waste in their sale store, without any obligation to purchase of new batteries.
Which are the systems for the separate collection of industrial and automotive batteries and accumulators?
The producers of industrial batteries and accumulators or any third parties acting in their names, arrange and manage the separate collection systems of industrial batteries and accumulators capable of covering the whole domestic territory in a consistent manner.
To this end, they may:
- become members of existing systems and use their collection network;
- arrange autonomously, on an individual or collective basis, collection systems of industrial and automotive batteries and accumulators.
How are industrial and automotive batteries and accumulators collected?
The producers of industrial and automotive batteries and accumulators or any third parties acting in their name:
- collect for free the industrial batteries and accumulators from the final users;
- ensure the separate collection of automotive batteries and accumulators in order to cover in a consistent manner the whole domestic territory;
- arrange and manage, bearing the relevant costs, separate collection systems of industrial batteries and accumulators in order to cover in a consistent manner the whole domestic territory.
The above-mentioned persons are in any case held liable for the free taking-back and handling of the industrial and automotive batteries or accumulators’ waste collected within the public service for the municipal waste management. The collection operations may be also carried out by any independent third parties, provided that the producer of the waste or the final user do not bear any additional charges and always acts in compliance with the applicable legislation.
Which are the terms of registration?
The legal representative of the producer shall make the registration to the Register with the competent Chamber of Commerce. Registration is exclusively made by electronic means, through the website www.impresa.gov.it
Access to the electronic system shall be made through digital signature bearing the authentication certificate in the name of the company legal representative. Said legal representative can grant to another person, also holder of digital signature, the relevant powers to fill in and transmit the application.
Which is the competent Chamber of commerce?
The producer shall make its registration to the Register with the Chamber of commerce where the company’s registered office is located.
How can foreign producers register?
If the producer is not based in the Italian territory, it may register with the Register through its legal representative in Italy who is in charge of all duties provided by the relevant decree. In this case, registration is made with the Chamber of commerce where the company’s registered office is located.
Which are the data to be communicated upon registration?
Upon registration, the producers shall communicate the following data, provided under annexe 3 of Legislative decree no. 188/2008:
- if the activity code does not expressly identifies the nature of the producer of batteries and/or accumulators, the specific code of activity identifying as such the producer;
- for each category of batteries or accumulators under Chart 1, subdivided into the types under said chart, the number and actual weight of batteries or accumulators put on the market in the preceding calendar year;
- any registration to the Register of the producers of the electrical and electronic equipment;
- any registration to the Register of batteries and accumulators of other member States of the European Union;
- for each category and type of batteries or accumulators put on the market, the system or systems through which the producer intends complying with the obligations to finance the management of batteries and accumulators waste; in case of collective system, the producer shall mention the name of the chosen system.
The founding members
The Electrolux Group is the world's largest producer of powered appliances for kitchen.
More information is available at http://www.electrolux.com.
HP is a leading global provider of products, technologies, solutions and services to consumers and businesses
More information is available at http://www.hp.com/">http://www.hp.com.
Sony manufactures audio, video, communications and information technology products for the global consumer and professional markets.
More information is available at http://www.sony-europe.com.