Packaging EPR · Austria

Packaging EPR in Austria — a plain guide for small cross-border sellers

Does packaging EPR in Austria apply to you?

If you ship packaged products to consumers in Austria — a box, filler, tape, a label — Austria treats you as a "producer" of that packaging, and you must be set up before you sell. One thing to know up front: unlike many EU countries, a foreign seller shipping to Austrian consumers must appoint an Austrian authorised representative — a locally-based party that acts for you in the system. That sounds heavy, but it is a routine step, and for small quantities Austria has a flat-rate scheme that keeps the cost modest. This guide walks through it. If you also sell to Germany, the setup rhymes with the German one — see our Germany guide.

Who counts as the "producer" in Austria?

The producer is the business that first puts filled packaging on the Austrian market — normally you, selling directly to Austrian customers. Austria splits packaging into household and commercial categories, and you classify your packaging into these when you declare. Most small consumer webshops are mainly in the household category. Selling through a marketplace does not remove this obligation for your own packaging.

Where you register: the authority and the PRO

Two things have to happen, and they are separate:

  1. Register in EDM, the environmental data-management register run through the Federal Ministry / Umweltbundesamt. A foreign company registers here together with its Austrian authorised representative and obtains a GLN confirmation (a global location number that identifies you in the system).
  2. Join an approved collection-and-recycling system (the PRO) — in practice ARA is the common national choice, though other approved systems exist. You upload your notarised power of attorney and EDM confirmation, then classify household versus commercial packaging and submit the required declaration or flat-rate selection.

Authority / register: https://secure.umweltbundesamt.at/edm_portal/ · PRO: https://www.ara.at/en/licensing-service-for-packaging/

Do you need an authorised representative in Austria?

Yes — this is mandatory for a foreign B2C distance seller. If you sell to Austrian consumers and have no establishment in Austria, you must appoint an Austrian authorised representative (AR) before you operate in the system. There are two specific requirements to know:

  • The power of attorney (POA) must be notarised. A notary formally certifies the mandate. German or English is accepted for the document.
  • ARA does not itself act as your AR — it lists partner representatives you can appoint. So the AR and the notarised POA are third-party items, arranged alongside your ARA membership.

If you are a Finnish seller with no Austrian company, this applies to you. We choose an Austrian AR, obtain its quote, prepare and notarise the POA, and connect everything in EDM as part of onboarding — so the mandatory representative is handled, not a hurdle. For the wider picture, see when you need an authorised representative.

AR reference: https://www.ara.at/en/ar

What it costs in Austria (indicative)

There are three separate costs, and we keep them transparent:

  • The small-quantity flat-rate route (indicative). With ARA, small quantities of up to 1,500 kg/year household AND 1,500 kg/year commercial may use a flat-rate scheme with no detailed recurring quantity reports. For a tiny exporter this keeps the licensing side simple and cheap.
  • AR + notary fees. Because the authorised representative and the notarised POA are mandatory here, they are real cost items — quoted by the AR partner and the notary. These are third-party quote items, not fixed prices, so we get the live figures for your case.
  • Material-based fees (above the flat route). If you're above the small-quantity limits, your ARA licence depends on how much of each material you put on the market. As 2026 examples (€/kg, excl. VAT): household paper/cardboard ~0.208, household plastic ~1.040, glass ~0.108, aluminium ~0.480; commercial paper/cardboard ~0.070, plastic film ~0.180, rigid plastic ~0.100, wood ~0.020. We verify your tariff category before quoting.
  • Pakkausvastuu's package fee. A fee based on our package pricing covers our work; the official ARA, AR and notary fees are passed through at cost, with no markup.

Fees, thresholds and deadlines for Austria change yearly. The figures here are indicative — we confirm the current numbers live before you approve anything.

Selling to more markets too? Get a country-by-country quote →

Reporting and deadlines

If you qualify for the small-quantity flat-rate scheme, there are no detailed recurring quantity reports — a big simplification. Otherwise you report to ARA according to your contract and packaging category, normally on an annual cadence. We keep your EDM/GLN confirmation, AR mandate, notarised POA, ARA agreement, tariff version, kg declaration and next deadline in one record so nothing is missed.

How Pakkausvastuu handles Austria for you

Send us your packaging details once. We choose an Austrian authorised representative and get its quote, prepare and notarise the power of attorney, register your foreign company and AR in EDM and obtain the GLN confirmation, join you to ARA (or another approved system), classify household versus commercial packaging, and set up the flat-rate scheme or the right declaration — then track the deadline so you don't have to. The mandatory AR and notary steps are ours to run. You get one clear quote: our flat fee plus the pass-through costs.

Austria packaging EPR: frequently asked questions

Do I need an authorised representative in Austria?

Yes. A foreign B2C distance seller with no Austrian establishment must appoint an Austrian authorised representative, and the power of attorney must be notarised (German or English is accepted). ARA does not act as your representative itself but lists partners — we choose one and handle the notarised POA for you.

Do I need to register for packaging EPR to sell in Austria?

Yes. You register in the EDM portal together with your Austrian authorised representative, obtain a GLN confirmation, and join an approved collection system such as ARA. You should be set up before selling packaged goods to Austrian consumers.

How much does packaging EPR in Austria cost for a small seller?

Small quantities (up to 1,500 kg/year household and 1,500 kg/year commercial) may use ARA's flat-rate scheme, which keeps licensing simple. The authorised representative and notary are separate third-party items, and material-based fees apply above the small-quantity limits. All figures are indicative — we confirm them live at quote. Our fee follows our package pricing, with official costs passed through at cost.

Is there a small-quantity scheme in Austria?

Yes. With ARA, up to 1,500 kg/year of household AND 1,500 kg/year of commercial packaging may use a flat-rate scheme with no detailed recurring quantity reports. This is indicative — we confirm your eligibility live at quote.

Can Pakkausvastuu register me in Austria if I'm based in Finland?

Yes. This is exactly what we do — including choosing your Austrian authorised representative, arranging the notarised power of attorney, and completing the EDM and ARA setup.

This guide is general information for small exporters, not legal advice. Your exact obligations depend on your packaging and sales — get a quote and we'll confirm them for you.

Get your country-by-country quote

Also selling to Germany? Its dual-system setup is a close cousin of Austria's — see our Germany guide. Or send your packaging once and get one clear quote covering every country you sell into. Get a country-by-country quote →

Want the bigger picture first? Read what packaging EPR means for a small business or how EU packaging EPR costs work.

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