The UK's battery register
Not all UK packaging duties moved to the new service. NPWD is the UK EPR register, the National Packaging Waste Database shared by the UK environmental regulators.
It is where battery producers register, and it also lists the public WEEE register. Electronics producers register through the separate WEEE online service or their compliance scheme, and packaging moved to the Report Packaging Data service. The Environment Agency runs it, alongside Natural Resources Wales, NIEA and SEPA.
What NPWD covers
- Electronics: a public register link only. Producers register through the WEEE online service or their compliance scheme, and since 12 August 2025 online marketplaces are the producer for what non-UK sellers sell to UK households, with vapes in their own category.
- Batteries: active since 2009. Portable-battery producers above one tonne a year must join a scheme by 15 October.
- Packaging: previous years' data only. Packaging now registers and reports through RPD, and PRNs are no longer handled in NPWD.
Who has to register
Any business in the UK that first places batteries on the UK market, importers included. Industrial and automotive battery producers register with the Office for Product Safety and Standards, also on NPWD.
Joining a compliance scheme
- Confirm your stream and thresholds.
- For batteries, join a battery compliance scheme above 1 tonne of portable batteries a year, which registers you, or register directly as a small producer.
- For electronics, use the WEEE online service or your compliance scheme instead. A non-UK business selling directly appoints a UK authorised representative or joins a scheme.
- Report on the scheme's cadence, and report new packaging data through RPD.
Selling in from outside the UK
For batteries there is no representative: overseas companies that are or should be registered with Companies House register directly, and otherwise the UK importer is the producer. For electronics, a non-UK business selling directly appoints a UK authorised representative or joins a scheme. Packaging follows the RPD rules, which have no representative concept.
The UK's other producer registers
The UK splits its registers by stream. New packaging data is reported through RPD, electronics register through the WEEE online service, and end-of-life vehicles register with Defra. This page is the battery register.
Frequently asked questions about NPWD
Short answers to what producers ask most.
What does NPWD cover now?
Battery registration, the public WEEE register and previous years' packaging data. Electronics producers register through the WEEE online service, and packaging through RPD.
Is packaging still in NPWD?
The historical packaging register sits here, but new packaging data goes through Report Packaging Data (RPD) under the 2025 rules.
Who registers for non-UK sellers?
For batteries, the UK importer, unless the overseas company is registered with Companies House. For electronics, a UK authorised representative or a scheme, and the marketplace for household sales made through it.
How do overseas producers register?
For batteries, overseas companies that are or should be registered with Companies House register directly. For electronics, a business selling directly from abroad appoints a UK authorised representative or joins a scheme.