COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT pursuant to Article 294(6) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union concerning the position of the Council on the adoption of a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on preventing plastic pellet losses to reduce microplastic pollution
Date: 2025-09-23
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment, European Commission
Subjects: carriage of goods, chemicals legislation, environmental impact, handling, plastic waste, plastics, pollution control, prevention of pollution, supply chain

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 23.9.2025  COM(2025) 567 final 2023/0373 (COD)  COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT  pursuant to Article 294(6) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union  concerning the position of the Council on the adoption of a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on preventing plastic pellet losses to reduce microplastic pollution  
 
2023/0373 (COD) 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION 
TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 

pursuant to Article 294(6) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union 

concerning the 

position of the Council on the adoption of a regulation of the European Parliament and 
of the Council on preventing plastic pellet losses to reduce microplastic pollution 

1. 

BACKGROUND 

Date of transmission of the proposal to the European Parliament and 
to the Council 
(document COM(2023) 645 final – 2023/0373 (COD): 

16 October 2023 

Date  of  the  opinion  of  the  European  Economic  and  Social 
Committee: 

14 February 2024 

Date of the position of the European Parliament, first reading: 

23 April 2024 

Date of transmission of the amended proposal: 

N/A 

Date of adoption of the position of the Council: 

22 September 2025 

2. 

OBJECTIVE OF THE PROPOSAL FROM THE COMMISSION 

The  objective  of  the  proposal  is  to  ensure  that  economic  operators  and  carriers  handling 
plastic pellets take the necessary precautionary measures to prevent losses to the environment, 
thereby contributing to the reduction of microplastic pollution. To this end, the proposal sets 
out requirements on best handling practices, mandatory certification and self-declaration, and 
provides for the development of a harmonised methodology to estimate losses. 

3. 

COMMENTS ON THE POSITION OF THE COUNCIL 

The position of the Council as adopted at first reading fully reflects the  provisional political 
agreement  reached  between  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  on  9  April 2025.  The 
Commission supports this agreement, the main points of which are set out below. 

• 

• 

Aspirational  goal  of  zero  plastic  pellet  losses:  The  co-legislators  have  agreed  to 
introduce a reference to the goal of zero plastic pellet losses both in Article 1(1) and 
Recital 13, as the language clearly reflected its aspirational nature.  

Certification  of  small  companies  handling  above  a  certain  threshold:  The  co-
legislators reached an agreement  based on a  one-time certification only, 60  months 
after  the  entry  into  force  of  the  Regulation,  without  any  obligation  of  renewal. 

EN 

1 

  EN 

 
 
 
 
Additionally,  they  agreed  to  increase  the  threshold  of  pellets  handled  per  year  by 
companies from the originally proposed 1000 tonnes to 1500 tonnes. Taken together, 
these  two  provisions  will  still  ensure  a  lighter  regime  for  small  companies  and  a 
reduce the number of companies subject to third-party certification. 

Obligations  regarding  the  transport  of  plastic  pellets  by  sea:  The  co-legislators 
have  agreed  to  introduce  provisions  imposing  obligations  on  actors  involved  in  the 
transport of pellets by sea in freight containers. These provisions are largely inspired 
by  the  recommendations  approved  in  2024  by  the  Marine  Environment  Protection 
Committee of the International Maritime Organization on the same subject and aim 
to make these recommendations legally binding within the Union.   

Assistance  to  stakeholders  by  Member  States:  The  co-legislators  have  agreed  to 
put  greater  focus  on  smaller  and  medium-sized  enterprises  (SMEs)  by  adding  a 
reference  to  ‘certification  of  small  companies’  under  the  point  on  financial  support 
by Member States.  

Information provision in the form of a pictogram: The co-legislators have agreed 
to  introduce  an  obligation  for  manufacturers,  importers,  downstream  users,  and 
distributers placing plastic pellets on the market to provide information in the form of 
a  pictogram  and  a  statement.  The  agreed  text  clarifies  that  the  addressees  of  this 
obligation may fulfil it when providing the information required under Annex XVII, 
entry 78, of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (REACH Regulation). 

Possibility  for  Member  States  to  use  permits  and  Environmental  Management 
Systems  (EMS),  instead  of  self-declaration  or  certification:  The  co-legislators  have 
agreed, in line with the Council’s mandate, to include provisions allowing Member 
States  to  use  permits  and  verified  Environmental  Management  Systems  (EMS) 
instead  of  self-declaration,  certification  or  EMAS,  as  a  valuable  example  of 
simplification while allowing for the same level of compliance.  

Incidents  and  accidents:  The  co-legislators  have  agreed  to  include  additional 
provisions  in  Article  9(1)  to  (i) immediately  inform  emergency  services  where 
relevant;  (ii)  immediately  take  all  possible  measures  to  limit  the  damage;  and  (iii) 
provide,  no  later  than  30  days  after  the  event,  information  on  estimated  quantities 
lost, causes of the loss and measures taken.  

Obligations  for  carriers:  The  co-legislators  have  agreed  to  extended  to  non-EU 
carriers the obligations initially proposed for EU carriers only, namely staff training 
and  the  keeping  of  records  on  estimated  quantities  of  losses  and  total  quantities  of 
plastic  pellets  handled.  Accordingly,  they  have  agreed  to  introduce  an  additional 
obligation for the non-EU carriers to appoint an authorised representative to ensure 
effective enforcement of the Regulation and to delete the obligation to keep records 
of actions taken for all carriers. 

Dates of application: The co-legislators have agreed on a 24-month period for most 
provisions of the Regulation to become applicable after  its  entry into  force, and  an 
extended period of 36 months for the provisions related to the maritime transport of 
plastic pellets. 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

4. 

CONCLUSION 

The  Commission  supports  the  results  of  the  interinstitutional  negotiations  and  can  therefore 
accept the Council’s position at first reading. 

EN 

2 

  EN 

EN 

3 

  EN