The EU Regulation 2026/1738 on circularity requirements for vehicle design and on management of end-of-life vehicles, commonly referred to as the End-of-Life Vehicle Regulation, has become law following its publication in the Official Journal of the EU on 24 July. The regulation will come into force on 13 August. It includes recycled content mandates, design requirements for new vehicles, criteria for when a vehicle is considered an end-of-life vehicle, a ban on the export of end-of-life vehicles and a requirement that they are treated at an authorised treatment facility, a transfer of ownership framework, and a cross-border extended producer responsibility scheme.
While the text is materially the same as that voted through by the EU Council and the EU Parliament, there are some minor differences in implementation dates for recycled content targets, changes in the timetable for the review of bio-based plastics and tyre elastomers, and a difference in the date when imports from third countries will be allowed to count towards targets.
Recycled content mandates
The End-of-Life Vehicle Regulation includes mandatory recycled plastic content targets for new vehicles. A minimum 15% recycled content will be required for each new vehicle type that is type-approved from 1 September 2032. A minimum 25% recycled content will be required for each new vehicle type that is type-approved from 1 September 2036.
Vehicle type approval is confirmation issued by a governing authority that production samples of a vehicle or vehicle part will meet mandatory safety, environmental and conformity standards.
At least 20% of these recycled content targets will need to be sourced from end-of-life vehicles. This equates to 3% recycled content sourced from end-of-life vehicles by 1 September 2032, and 5% recycled content sourced from end-of-life vehicles by 1 September 2036.
Only post-consumer derived material will be allowed to count towards targets. For the purposes of the regulation, post-consumer waste is defined as, "waste that is generated from products that have been placed on the market or supplied for distribution, consumption or use in a third country in the course of a commercial activity, whether in return for payment or free of charge".
"ICIS estimates that 0.5-0.6 million tonnes of recycled plastics will be required by 2040 to meet ELVR targets. Recycled polypropylene is expected to account for around 70% of total recyclate demand, reflecting its widespread use in automotive components and the expected relative availability of suitable recycling feedstocks," ICIS plastic recycling analyst Mia McLachlan said.
Chemical recycling and material eligibility
Chemical recycling will be accepted as counting towards the target using a mass-balance accounting approach. The European Commission will need to adopt an implementing act to establish calculation and verification methods for the recycled content targets, including mass balance, by 31 August 2028.
Nevertheless, while used car parts will be allowed to count towards recycled content targets, elastomers from tyres will not be allowed to contribute towards recycled content targets, at least not initially. This is likely to concentrate any additional chemical recycling demand on plastic-derived pyrolysis oil grades in Europe.
Tyre elastomers and bio-based plastics
By 31 December 2033 the European Commission will be required to publish a review of the technological development and environmental performance of bio-based plastics and elastomers from tyres and, "where appropriate", present legislative proposals for sustainability requirements and targets, including the possibility of them counting towards recycled content targets.
Derogation powers and imports
The European Commission could delay or temporarily revise down plastic content targets, "Where the lack of availability or excessive prices of specific recycled plastics makes compliance with the minimum percentages excessively difficult." The regulation contains no guidelines for the interpretation of "excessively difficult".
Recycled material from a third country, countries that are not part of the EU, will not be allowed to count towards the minimum recycled content targets until 14 August 2030.
Once these materials are allowed to count, there will be stringent requirements set out in annex XIII, which will likely limit the amount of usable material from overseas. These include that waste is sourced from "a Member State or a country which complies with Union law or equivalent standards as the Member States in terms of protection of the environment and the safety of workers" and is in line with the regulation’s reuse, recovery and extended producer responsibility end-of-life vehicle requirements. The regulation also includes mandatory audit requirements for material from third countries.
Based on focus article by Mark Victory