By Razvan Toma · Founder · Last checked 7 November 2026 · Sources linked below
Material type, weight and your LUCID number. § 7(1) VerpackDG: you license before the packaging is made available, stating the material types and weights and your LUCID registration number. The system confirms without delay, in writing or electronically, with the same materials and weights. Keep that confirmation: your LUCID data reports must match it. See when the figures differ. 
VerpackDG § 7
German packaging material categories for the dual system licence
You license by material type and weight (§ 7(1) VerpackDG). The material types are the ones in § 42(2), which also sets the share each dual system must recycle:
| Material type | Typical items | Recycling the systems must reach (§ 42(2)) |
|---|---|---|
| Glass | Jars, bottles | 90 % |
| Paper, cardboard and corrugated board | Shipping boxes, product boxes, paper filling, labels | 90 % |
| Ferrous metals | Tins, steel lids, crown caps | 90 %, 95 % from 2028 |
| Aluminium | Cans, foil trays, tubes | 90 %, 95 % from 2028 |
| Beverage cartons | Juice and milk cartons | 80 % |
| Other composites | Bonded materials that cannot be separated by hand, such as coated paper pouches | 70 % |
| Plastics | Bottles, caps, film, tape, mailer bags, blisters | 75 % from 2028, 80 % from 2030 |
Anything else, such as wood, textile or ceramic packaging, is reported as other materials in one figure (§ 9(1)).
VerpackDG § 7 VerpackDG § 42 VerpackDG § 9
Sorting the tricky items
- Parts you can separate by hand go in their own material: a glass jar with a steel lid is glass plus ferrous metals.
- A bottle and its cap are often both plastics: add them up in one line.
- Beverage cartons have their own category, separate from other composites.
- Tape and labels count in their own material, not the box's: plastic tape on a cardboard box is plastics.
Use the same split in your LUCID data report, or the figures will not match the system's (§ 9(1), § 54(1) no. 5): see the data report.
More on LUCID and licensing
- Can a service get me a LUCID number and a packaging licence for Germany?
- Can a marketplace or a service provider register me in LUCID?
- Do I have to license the shipping box, filling and tape too?
- When do I have to report my packaging volumes in Germany?
- I already pay a dual system. Can I keep my operator, and do I pay twice?
- Why is LUCID asking me to appoint an authorised representative?