By Razvan Toma · Founder · Last checked 7 November 2026 · Sources linked below
Three parts: the representative's fee, the official fees and the guarantee. Ours is €500 a year, flat, whatever your volumes. The official fees are the same whoever represents you, because the fee ordinance (ElektroGBattDGGebV) sets them: for one brand and one device type they come to about €195 in the first year and €135 a year after that. Equipment usable in private households also needs the yearly financing guarantee of § 7 ElektroG, priced by the bank, insurer or guarantee system that provides it. The official fees and the guarantee are passed on at cost. See WEEE representative. Sources (3)
ElektroGBattDGGebV, fee scheElektroGBattDGGebV, fee scheduleElektroG § 7ElektroG § 7ElektroG § 8ElektroG § 8
How much does a German WEEE authorised representative cost? The official fees
The fees of stiftung ear are set by the Gebührenverordnung ElektroGBattDGGebV (BGBl. 2025 I Nr. 187), not by the representative. These are the items a foreign seller of electronics actually meets:
| What | When | Fee (No. in the schedule) |
|---|---|---|
| Registration, per brand and device type | Once | €9.50 (1.1) |
| Confirmation that your representative is named, or of a change | Once, and at each change | €50.60 (1.7) |
| Quarterly fee, per registration number | Every calendar quarter begun | €32.80 (1.2) |
| Check of the guarantee amount, per device type | Every calendar year | €3.80 (1.5) |
| Check of an individual guarantee (bank, insurer or deposit) | Per guarantee submitted | €156.90 (1.4) |
| Check that B2B-only equipment is credibly not used in households, with the take-back concept | Per registration | €18.90 (1.6) |
| Change of the registered device type | Per change | €20.50 (1.10) |
| Confirmation that a representative's mandate has ended | When you switch | €12.60 (1.8) |
| Formal ruling on whether a device must be registered | Only if you ask for one | €38.50 to €1,118 (1.3) |
A surcharge of €35.50 to €320.20 applies when an application is filed outside the authority's online system (3.2). A representative files online, so you do not pay it.
ElektroGBattDGGebV, fee sche ElektroG § 8
A worked example: one brand, one device type
An illustrative example: the business is invented. A seller established outside Germany sells one brand of hair dryers to German consumers, with the guarantee provided through an approved guarantee system.
| Item | First year | Each later year |
|---|---|---|
| Registration (1.1) | €9.50 | €0 |
| Representative named (1.7) | €50.60 | €0 |
| Quarterly fee, 4 quarters (1.2) | €131.20 | €131.20 |
| Guarantee amount check (1.5) | €3.80 | €3.80 |
| Official fees | €195.10 | €135.00 |
| Our representation | €500 | €500 |
| Guarantee | The guarantee system's own price, passed on at cost | |
Each further brand or device type adds a registration of €9.50 and another quarterly fee of €32.80. Selling only to businesses replaces the guarantee with the credibility check of €18.90 (§ 7(3) ElektroG).
ElektroGBattDGGebV, fee sche ElektroG § 7
Costs that are not fees
- The financing guarantee. Every calendar year for equipment usable in private households (§ 7(1) ElektroG): a surety or guarantee on first demand, a cash deposit, or a guarantee system the authority has found suitable (§ 7(2)). See the guarantee.
- Collection of old devices. stiftung ear can order a producer to pick up full containers from municipal collection points (§ 38(3) ElektroG, fee €6.80 per order under No. 1.16); the disposal is then the producer's cost.
- Take-back at your own premises. Only from 400 m² of storage and shipping areas for electrical equipment (§ 17 ElektroG): see take-back for online sellers.
Small sellers can ask for a reduced fee or an exemption for Nos. 1.1, 1.4 to 1.6 and 1.10 where the regular fee would be disproportionate, judged on quantity, the value of the registration, expected disposal costs and waste relevance. The request goes in within three months of the fee notice (§ 2 ElektroGBattDGGebV).
ElektroG § 7 ElektroG § 38 ElektroG § 17 ElektroGBattDGGebV, fee sche ElektroGBattDGGebV § 2
What battery registration costs
If your devices contain batteries, the battery registration under the BattDG has its own fees in the same ordinance: €16.40 per brand and battery category (2.1) and €3.80 per registration number and calendar quarter (2.2), so €15.20 a year. A formal ruling on whether a battery must be registered costs €103.70 to €3,008.90 (2.3). The organisation for producer responsibility you join for portable batteries charges its own prices. Our battery representation is €500 a year: see batteries built into devices.
ElektroGBattDGGebV, fee sche BattDG § 7
More on Costs
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- Is LUCID registration free? What does German packaging compliance actually cost?
- Can I get the licence fee back for damaged or unsold goods?
- How high are the fines under German packaging law?
- Do recyclable packaging and recycled content lower my dual-system fees?
- What is the insolvency-proof guarantee for electronics in Germany, and do I need one?