German compliance answers / Compliance guides

Updated 2026-11-0324 guides

German and EU compliance guides for Chinese Amazon.de sellers

Each guide answers one question: what you must do, by when, and what happens if you do not. Every statement links its statute or authority page and the date it was read.

Next statutory dates

Start with these three

• Already have a LUCID number? The changes to report before 12 November 2026Transitional rule of the German packaging law: registered businesses complete changes to their registration by 2026-11-12, and those without a German establishment add their authorised representative. Timeline, fine tier and a checklist.
• German WEEE registration: from authorised representative to registration numberSellers without a German establishment cannot register themselves; they appoint a German authorised representative first. The registration authority stiftung ear's own steps, review time, statutory fees and how to use the number.
• Received a German warning letter (Abmahnung): the first 72 hours and what not to do aloneAn Abmahnung is a pre-litigation warning, not a court summons. What it is, who can send one, what it must contain, how costs work, and a checklist for the first 72 hours. General information, not legal advice.

Which law covers what?

Which law covers what, who must act, and the exceptions.

• What changed under the German battery law BattDG from 2025, and what Chinese sellers doThe new BattDG replaces the old BattG, and the EU Battery Regulation's producer responsibility chapter applies from 18 August 2025. Who registers, the representative, the take-back organisation and the statutory fees.
• GPSR EU responsible person: what the listing, product and packaging must showA seller outside the EU needs an EU-established responsible operator before a product is placed on the market. The law requires the online offer to show four kinds of information; the product or packaging must carry them too. Regulation text cited line by line.
• Why a German warehouse asks for the WEEE number: what ElektroG § 6(2) saysWhile a manufacturer is unregistered, marketplaces, distributors and fulfilment service providers (warehouses) are all forbidden from enabling, storing, packing or shipping its devices. For fulfilment providers the fine cap is also EUR 100,000.
• Does a power bank need WEEE registration, or battery registration only?stiftung ear's guidance "Battery or electrical device?": a plain power bank falls under battery law only; one with a lamp, solar panel, wireless charging, AC socket, radio or alarm clock needs both.
• Why platforms verify sellers: the five items of Article 30 of the EU DSAUnder Article 30 of the EU Digital Services Act a platform must obtain a seller's contact data, ID, payment account, register number and a compliance self-certification before selling to EU consumers, and make reasonable efforts to verify them; if inaccurate it must suspend the service.
• The EU EUR 3 small-parcel duty: ship direct from China or use a German warehouse?Per the European Commission's Q&A: from 2026-07-01 a temporary EUR 3 duty applies to items in small parcels, and a handling fee from November 2026 at the latest. Which costs to compare and which numbers are still open.
• What German and EU compliance costs: only figures with a sourceThe fee schedule for WEEE and battery registration, free LUCID registration, the EUR 3 EU duty and the fine caps. Items without a public price, such as representatives and take-back systems, are stated as such.

How do you do it, step by step?

Step by step, following the registers' own procedures.

• German WEEE registration: from authorised representative to registration numberSellers without a German establishment cannot register themselves; they appoint a German authorised representative first. The registration authority stiftung ear's own steps, review time, statutory fees and how to use the number.
• How LUCID packaging registration works: representative, register, take-back systemShipping packaged goods to German consumers means a free LUCID registration, a take-back system contract and a German authorised representative. Based on the packaging register's own procedure, with statute lines and fine caps.
• Impressum, AGB, Widerrufsbelehrung: the legal texts to have when selling to German consumersWhat the statutes require of the seller information (Impressum), the withdrawal notice and AGB: what to include, how the 14 days run, and when AGB become part of a contract.

What happens if you do not?

What happens if you do not: fine caps, delisting, warning letters.

• Received a German warning letter (Abmahnung): the first 72 hours and what not to do aloneAn Abmahnung is a pre-litigation warning, not a court summons. What it is, who can send one, what it must contain, how costs work, and a checklist for the first 72 hours. General information, not legal advice.
• Why Amazon.de listings are removed: six legal causes and how to fix eachWEEE, batteries, packaging, GPSR, DSA seller data and EPR: for each, which law obliges the platform to act and what you must supply. Amazon's own back-end rules are as stated in the notices in your account.
• Fine caps in the WEEE, battery and packaging laws: who is fined and how muchThe fine caps of ElektroG, BattDG and VerpackDG item by item: EUR 100,000 and EUR 200,000, and the cases where platforms and fulfilment providers are fined too. These are statutory caps, not actual penalties.

You received this sentence. What now?

Look up the exact sentence of an Amazon notice: meaning, legal basis, fix steps.

• Amazon notice: listings may be removed without valid EU Responsible Person and manufacturer information. What now?The notice text from the Amazon Seller Forums: "Your listings may be removed if they don't have valid EU Responsible Person and manufacturer information". Meaning, legal basis and fix steps.
• Amazon e-mail: missing Responsible Person information and removal of your inventory. What do the 30 and 60 days mean?Amazon e-mail text: "you did not declare your Responsible Person information within 30 days ... and did not remove your non-compliant inventory within 60 days". Meaning, basis and fix steps.
• Amazon notice: you need a WEEE-Reg.-Nr. to offer electrical equipment in Germany. What is it and where to submit it?Amazon notice text: "You are required to have a registration number (WEEE-Reg.-Nr.) to offer electrical and electronic equipment in Germany". Meaning, legal basis and how to submit.
• Amazon notice: non-compliant WEEE listings may be deactivated and lose Pan-European services. How to recover?Amazon notice text: "we may deactivate some non-compliant listings ... you will lose access to Pan-European services". Meaning, the representative-list rule and recovery steps.
• Amazon notice: if you cannot prove EPR compliance, non-compliant listings are suspended. What is the packaging EPR number?Amazon text: "In Germany, if you can't prove your compliance with EPR to Amazon, we will be legally obliged to suspend your non-compliant listings". The packaging EPR number is your LUCID number.
• Amazon notice: from 18 August 2025 offers without a valid battery registration number are deactivated. How to submit?Amazon notice text: "If you don't submit a valid registration number, Amazon will be legally required to deactivate your non-compliant offers ... starting from August 18, 2025". How to get and submit the battery number.
• An EPR e-mail asking for LUCID numbers and a shipping address? Amazon has warned about phishingAmazon e-mail text: "some sellers have received phishing emails that appear to be Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Packaging notifications and ask you to provide LUCID numbers and a shipping address". How to tell and what to do.
• Amazon says it enrols you automatically in "EPR – Bezahlung in Ihrem Namen". What is the service?Amazon.de page text: "Amazon registriert Sie automatisch für ... EPR – Bezahlung in Ihrem Namen". Meaning, how the fees arise and how it differs from registering yourself.

Which dates must you remember?

Statutory dates and deadlines, with a calendar file.

• Already have a LUCID number? The changes to report before 12 November 2026Transitional rule of the German packaging law: registered businesses complete changes to their registration by 2026-11-12, and those without a German establishment add their authorised representative. Timeline, fine tier and a checklist.
• The new EU Product Liability Directive 2024/2853: who is liable for defective products placed after 9 December 2026The new directive applies to products placed on the market after 2026-12-09; where the manufacturer is outside the EU, the importer, the authorised representative and, if there is neither, the fulfilment service provider are liable.
• The 2026 German and EU compliance calendar: dates sellers should rememberStatutory dates for GPSR, the battery law, the packaging law, the EUR 3 duty and the new product liability rules, each with its source, plus an .ics file for your phone calendar.

Price and scope at a glance

A plain summary so you see the price and the scope first. The binding terms follow it.

Full price list (with partner fees)Full terms and renewal rules

What to do: three steps

1. Free checkPick a category, 1 minute, no account
2. Read the resultEvery item with its source link and a cost range
3. A partner, if you want onePartners quote you directly

This guide summarises public legal texts and authority pages as general information. It is not legal advice. For your case, ask a licensed German lawyer.