(1)

The communication of the Commission of 11 December 2019 on the European Green Deal sets out Europe’s growth strategy that aims to transform the Union into a fair and prosperous society, with a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy, where there are no net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 at the latest and where economic growth is decoupled from resource use. In order for the Union’s product policies to contribute to lowering carbon emissions on a global level, it needs to be ensured that products marketed and sold in the Union are sourced, manufactured and treated at their end-of-life in a sustainable manner.

(2)

The automotive sector is an important contributor to the use of energy and material resources by the Union, and hence to the generation of greenhouse gases. The production of vehicles in third countries that are placed on the Union market contributes to the generation of global greenhouse gases, which in turn has a negative environmental impact on the Union. A shift from the use of fossil fuels in vehicles to zero emission mobility, as provided for in the ‘Fit for 55’ package, is one of the prerequisites for reaching the climate-neutrality goal by 2050. It will reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases from the automotive sector linked to the use phase of vehicles. The automotive industry is one of the largest users of primary aluminium, steel and plastics, linked to the manufacturing of new vehicles placed on the Union market. This can represent a significant environmental impact, linked to the energy required for the extraction and processing of these materials. The environmental footprint linked to the manufacturing of new vehicles could increase with the ongoing electrification of the fleet, the ongoing growth in size and weight of the vehicles, as well as due to more widespread use and complexity of electronics in future models, which both require a considerable amount of critical and strategic raw materials and precious metals, such as copper and rare earth elements. The result of those changes is that the production phase could have a larger environmental footprint than the use phase of vehicles, and that European industry could become more and more reliant on imports of critical raw materials and vulnerable to supply disruptions, to the detriment of its competitiveness. In addition, the current requirements in Union law on waste management result in a suboptimal recovery of resources from end-of-life vehicles, and there is a high potential to increase the quantity and quality of parts, components and materials to be repaired, re-used, remanufactured, refurbished, retrofitted or recycled from vehicles during the use phase and from end-of-life vehicles. To address these environmental impacts and contribute to the decarbonisation of the sector, and support competitiveness by increasing the resilience of the automotive industry, it is necessary to improve the functioning of the single market and enhance the transition of the automotive industry to a circular economy. This is in line with the communication of the Commission of 11 March 2020 on a new Circular Economy Action Plan – For a cleaner and more competitive Europe which called for a revision of the current rules to promote more circular business models by linking design issues to end-of-life treatment, consider rules on mandatory recycled content for certain materials, and improve recycling efficiency. This is also in line with Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 of the European Parliament and of the Council (3). The Council and the European Parliament also stressed the need for new Union rules on those matters, replacing the existing rules on type-approval of vehicles when it comes to re-usability, recyclability and recoverability and on end-of-life vehicles.

(3)

Directive 2000/53/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (4) sets up harmonised treatment requirements for end-of-life vehicles and targets for vehicles’ reuse and recycling as well as reuse and recovery. It establishes obligations on collection of end-of-life vehicles, as well as obligations for economic operators, in particular restricting the use of heavy metals in vehicles. It also creates basic rules on extended producer responsibility, requiring vehicle producers to cover part of the costs of collection of end-of-life vehicles.

(4)

The Commission’s evaluation of Directive 2000/53/EC highlighted that it has been effective in delivering many of its initial objectives, especially the elimination of cadmium, lead, mercury and hexavalent chromium from vehicles, an increase in collection points for end-of-life vehicles and the attainment of the recovery and recycling targets. However, the evaluation found that that Directive insufficiently addressed important issues linked to the collection of end-of-life vehicles and that it was no longer adapted to ensuring a high quality of treatment of these vehicles.

(5)

Directive 2005/64/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (5) regulates the type-approval of vehicles in relation to their reusability, recyclability and recoverability, so that these vehicles could meet the targets established in Directive 2000/53/EC at their end-of-life phase. However, Directive 2005/64/EC has not been effective in improving substantially the re-usability, recyclability and recoverability of new vehicles and is not adapted to the features of new vehicles, which have considerably changed since the entry into force of Directive 2005/64/EC.

(6)

Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council (6) introduced a comprehensive type-approval and market surveillance system for motor vehicles, trailers, and for systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles with a view to ensuring the proper functioning of the single market and in order to offer a high level of environmental performance. There is a need for a separate regulatory act for the purposes of the EU type-approval procedure laid down in Annex II to that Regulation. It is therefore necessary to lay down provisions and requirements on the circularity of vehicles which are in the process of obtaining EU type-approval. To ensure the compliance of vehicles with those requirements it is necessary to ensure their verification in the EU type-approval process. The administrative provisions of Regulation (EU) 2018/858, including the provisions on market surveillance, corrective measures, safeguard clauses, and penalties, apply to type-approvals issued in compliance with the requirements of this Regulation.

(7)

It is important to distinguish between existing type-approvals and new type-approvals. It is therefore necessary to clarify which provisions apply to new vehicle types under Regulation (EU) 2018/858. It should therefore be clarified that amendments to the type-approval do not systematically require an extension of type-approval under that Regulation.

(8)

In order to improve the functioning of the single market, while ensuring a high level of protection of the environment, it is essential to harmonise the conditions for the type-approval of vehicles when it comes to their reusability, recyclability and recoverability, the production stage of vehicles, the assessment of the status of the vehicle and the export of used vehicles. In order to contribute to the objectives of preserving, protecting and improving the quality of the environment, protecting human health, and the prudent and rational utilisation of natural resources, it is essential to lay down rules regarding the management of end-of-life vehicles, taking into account the design of the vehicle, as well as measures aiming to prevent illegal dismantling such as better traceability in the case of transfer of ownership of used vehicles. The most efficient way of facilitating the transition of the automotive sector to a circular economy is therefore to establish a uniform regulatory framework at Union level, covering in an integrated and consistent manner the design, manufacturing, placement on the market in the Union and end-of-life treatment of vehicles. This is also essential for the development of the Union market for secondary raw materials which are included in new vehicles placed on the market, as well as to avoid barriers to trade and distortions of competition, ensure legal clarity and improve the environmental performances of all of the economic operators involved in the design, production and end-of-life treatment of vehicles. In order to achieve those objectives, Directives 2000/53/EC and 2005/64/EC should be replaced by a Regulation, based on Article 114 and Article 192(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

(9)

In the outermost regions referred to in Article 349 TFEU, Member States should be able to adapt producers’ obligations in order to guarantee a service and cover the costs of managing end-of-life vehicles with regard to the characteristics of those regions.

(10)

Directives 2000/53/EC and 2005/64/EC apply only to passenger vehicles (M1) and light commercial vehicles (N1), which constitute approximately 85 % of all vehicles registered in the Union. The remaining vehicles, namely two- and three-wheel vehicles, quadricycles, lorries, buses and trailers, are not subject to any Union legislation concerning their eco-design and management at their end-of-life phase. Therefore, in order to ensure a comprehensive circularity framework for all vehicles registered in the Union, including their environmentally sound treatment, as well as to prevent fragmentation of the single market, this Regulation should apply not only to vehicles of categories M1 and N1, but, partially, also to certain L-category vehicles, heavy-duty vehicles and their trailers (M2, M3, N2, N3 and O). There is a lack of comprehensive information regarding the treatment of such vehicles at their end-of-life in the Union, which prevents applying the same regime to them as the one applying to vehicles of categories M1 and N1 upon the entry into force of this Regulation. However, the requirements regarding the collection of end-of-life vehicles, their mandatory delivery to authorised treatment facilities for treatment as well as their depollution, the mandatory removal of certain parts and components for reuse and recycling prior to shredding and the conditions for landfill of non-inert waste from shredding should apply to L-category vehicles and heavy-duty vehicles and their trailers (M2, M3, N2, N3 and O). To facilitate treatment of these end-of-life vehicles, their manufacturers should be required to provide information on the removal and replacement of parts, components and materials from such vehicles. Also, the provisions governing the extended producer responsibility should apply to those vehicle categories, covering the costs of their collection and depollution at their end-of-life.

(11)

As not all Member States require the registration of L1e, L2e or L6e-category vehicles, it is necessary to give Member States the possibility to exempt those vehicle categories from requirements linked to registration.

(12)

Problems with exporting used vehicles concern not only passenger vehicles (M1) and light commercial vehicles (N1), but also, as studies show, larger vehicles. Therefore, these provisions should also apply to heavy-duty vehicles and their trailers (M2, M3, N2, N3 and O).

(13)

Vehicles designed and constructed or adapted for use by the armed services only as well as vehicles designed and constructed for use by the armed services, civil defence, fire services, forces responsible for maintaining public order and emergency medical services should be excluded from the scope of this Regulation. Those vehicles serve specialised operational functions and are subject to specific technical requirements, and their design, construction and use differ significantly from those of vehicles intended for general road transport. The application of general circularity requirements for vehicle design and end-of-life management to such vehicles would therefore not be appropriate and their exclusion from the scope of this Regulation is consistent with the specific nature of their functions.

(14)

In order to preserve Europe’s cultural heritage, vehicles of historical interest should be excluded from the scope of this Regulation and should not be subject to the obligations related to transfer of ownership or export, or to end-of-life requirements. Similarly, vehicles which are recognised by a Member State as having special cultural interest should be excluded from the scope of this Regulation. This can cover for instance vehicles in the possession of collectors or museums, custom-built vehicles or racing vehicles, provided that the competent authorities recognise their relevant special cultural interest. However, the requirements of this Regulation, such as for example circularity design requirements, should apply to those vehicles before they are considered vehicles of historical interest or vehicles of special cultural interest. Furthermore, when those vehicles are no longer considered by the Member States to be vehicles of historical interest or vehicles of special cultural interest, they fall back into scope of this Regulation and requirements such as obligations related to transfer of ownership, export or end-of-life, should apply.

(15)

To avoid excessive administrative burden and to ensure that the scope of this Regulation covers the needs of the internal market, other types of vehicles, such as of L-category vehicles produced in small series or certain cycles designed to pedal of L1e-A and L1e-B-category, should remain outside the scope of this Regulation.

(16)

Special purpose vehicles are designed to perform a specific function and require special bodywork arrangements which are not entirely under the control of the manufacturer. This complicates the calculation of reusability, recyclability and recoverability rates. For special purpose vehicles of category M1 and N1, the costs of collection, depollution, mandatory removal for parts and components and treatment should be covered by producers within the extended producer responsibility scheme. For special purpose vehicles of categories M2, M3, N2, N3 and O only a limited set of rules should apply. Provisions on substances of concern in vehicles should apply to special purpose vehicles of categories M1 and N1, as it is the case under Directive 2000/53/EC. Other parts of a special purpose vehicle that have been type-approved in multi-stage type-approval should be covered to the same extent as the category of the vehicle concerned. Special purpose vehicles of all categories except M1 and N1 that are produced by a small-volume manufacturer should not be covered by this Regulation.

(17)

Motor caravans and trailer caravans are distinct from conventional vehicles or trailers, as their primary function is accommodation rather than transportation. Those caravans are built with non-automotive components, such as wood, furniture, water systems and household electrical systems, which are outside the scope of vehicle recycling facilities. Many trailer caravans are permanently fixed in place as holiday homes, used for seasonal accommodation, and remain functional for decades. Given their special-purpose nature, distinct material composition, and ongoing use, trailer caravans should be excluded from the scope of this Regulation. Motor caravans, which are often unregistered, should not be classified as end-of-life vehicles as long as they continue to be used as housing. Motor caravans have in their base vehicles parts and components that are also used in other vehicles and should therefore be subject to the same obligations once they are no longer used for housing purposes.

(18)

One of the biggest practical challenges related to the application of Directive 2000/53/EC concerns the determination whether or not a vehicle has become an end-of-life vehicle, in particular in cases of transboundary shipments of vehicles. Despite the issuance of guidance on that issue, such assessment remains problematic. It is therefore necessary to provide legally binding precise criteria allowing to determine an end-of-life vehicle. Those criteria should be used by all relevant competent authorities, economic operators and vehicle owners dealing with end-of-life vehicles. It is however also necessary to provide for exemptions in order to preserve the possibility for Member States to determine situations in which individual vehicles should not fall under the scope of this Regulation due to their status as a vehicle of special cultural interest for as long as they maintain that status. In addition, competent authorities of a Member State should be able to exempt a vehicle from the status of end-of-life vehicle when the vehicle concerned is subject to repair, upon request from its owner.

(19)

The evaluation of Directive 2000/53/EC concluded that the provisions in that Directive on the design of vehicles aimed at facilitating their dismantling and the uptake of recycled materials had a very limited impact on the design and manufacturing of new vehicles, as they were not sufficiently detailed, specific and measurable.

(20)

Addressing the design of all vehicles placed on the Union market as well as their end-of-life phase requires the setting up of harmonised circularity requirements verified at the type-approval stage. Designing and manufacturing vehicles to ensure that their parts and components are reusable, and the materials that they contain are recyclable, is essential to avoid that these parts, components and materials cannot be properly valorised when a vehicle reaches the end of its life. Therefore, manufacturers and their suppliers should integrate design strategies that improve reusability and recyclability at an early stage in the development of new vehicles. Accordingly, new vehicle types should continue to be constructed so as to be reusable or recyclable to a minimum of 85 % by mass and reusable or recoverable to a minimum of 95 % by mass, as already provided for in Directive 2005/64/EC. In order to ensure that the calculation of the reusability, recyclability and recoverability rates is done in a uniform manner and can be monitored, a new methodology for calculation and verification of the rates of reusability, recyclability and recoverability of a vehicle should be established. That methodology should better reflect the actual potential of a new vehicle to be recycled, reused and recovered at the end-of-life, while taking into account the ongoing technological progress. In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to establish such methodology, taking into account international standard ISO 22628:2002. Until such methodology is established, the rates of reusability, recyclability and recoverability should continue to be calculated in accordance with international standard ISO 22628:2002, as in Directive 2005/64/EC. The Commission should endeavour to ensure that the relevant UNECE (United Nations Economic Commission for Europe) methodology is updated accordingly, in order to avoid inconsistencies with the Union methodology and to reduce the burden on manufacturers.

(21)

The automotive supply chain involves a large number of suppliers, including many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in different regions and with diverse organisational structures. While manufacturers should collect information throughout the supply chain on the materials used in vehicles and establish and implement procedures to verify the accuracy of such information, they should take into account the capacities of SMEs. SMEs often have limited administrative resources, fewer technical tools and, in some cases, no established systems to generate or verify detailed environmental or material-composition data. Those constraints can affect the availability and completeness of the information that SMEs are able to provide. Accordingly, when assessing manufacturers’ procedures for collecting and verifying supplier information, the specific situation of SMEs in the supply chain should be duly considered.

(22)

Ensuring the reparability of vehicles throughout their lifespan is a fundamental pillar of a truly sustainable and circular automotive economy. Vehicles should not be prematurely classified as end-of-life when they remain repairable, as this would lead to unnecessary waste, economic inefficiencies, and an undue burden on vehicle owners.

(23)

Vehicles should be designed and manufactured in a way as to limit the presence of substances of concern. In its communication of 14 October 2020 on Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability – Towards a Toxic-Free Environment, the Commission stated that substances of concern are to be minimised and substituted as far as possible, phasing out the most harmful ones for non-essential societal use, in particular in consumer products. Accordingly, substances of concern as constituents of materials used in vehicles or of any of the parts or components of vehicles should be minimised as far as possible to ensure that vehicles, as well as materials recycled from vehicles, do not have an adverse effect on the environment or human health, throughout their life-cycle.

(24)

Directive 2000/53/EC already restricts the use of lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium in vehicles and provides exemptions where such substances are permitted to be used in certain applications. This Regulation should take over those existing rules. However, in order to ensure the coherence of legislation on chemicals, restrictions regarding placing on the market and use of other substances in vehicles should be addressed under Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council (7). Similarly, restrictions on the use of substances regulated by Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 of the European Parliament and of the Council (8) should be respected based on provisions of that Regulation.

(25)

To facilitate compliance with this Regulation and provide guidance on the presence of substances of concern in vehicles and in their parts and components, including those which hamper reuse and recycling of materials, or have adverse effects on health or on the environment, it is appropriate for the Commission to carry out an assessment and mapping of such substances. To that end, the Commission, assisted by the European Chemicals Agency established under Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (the ‘Agency’), should prepare a report on the presence of substances of concern in vehicles. That report should identify the extent to which such substances hinder reuse and recycling or adversely affect health or the environment, without duplicating assessments already required under other Union legislation. On the basis of its findings, the Commission should consider and take appropriate follow-up measures, including, where relevant, the adoption of delegated acts to establish information requirements and restrictions for substances of concern that negatively affect the reuse and recycling of materials for reasons not primarily related to chemical safety.

(26)

Directive 2000/53/EC provides exemptions to the restrictions on the use of lead and cadmium in batteries used in vehicles, which are taken over by this Regulation. However, the use of substances in batteries is comprehensively regulated in Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 of the European Parliament and of the Council (9). Therefore, such substances should be addressed in, and eventually their restrictions and related exemptions transferred, as appropriate, to that Regulation by means of an amending provision set out in this Regulation.

(27)

In order to take account of scientific and technical progress, the power to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should continue to be delegated to the Commission in respect of amending exemptions from restrictions on the use of lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium in vehicles under this Regulation. Modifying or deleting such exemptions should be preceded by an assessment of the socio-economic impacts of such change, which is absent in Directive 2000/53/EC, including consideration of the availability of alternative substances and the impacts on the environment and on human health across the lifecycle of vehicles. Before adopting such a delegated act, the Commission should consult relevant experts and stakeholders in order to take into account socio-economic impacts and impacts on the environment and on human health. To ensure effective decision-making, coordination and management of the technical, scientific and administrative aspects of amending this Regulation with respect to restrictions on use of substances in vehicles, the Agency should assist the Commission in such assessment.

(28)

To increase circularity in the automotive sector, vehicles should progressively be designed and manufactured in such a way which incorporates recycled materials instead of primary raw materials, while maintaining the safety performance of vehicles. The use of recycled materials allows for a more resource-efficient use of materials, decarbonises production and reduces negative environmental impacts related to the use of primary raw materials. Increased circularity for the vehicles manufactured in third countries that are placed on the Union market will also contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions globally, including in the Union. It also strengthens the Union’s strategic autonomy and competitiveness by reducing raw material and energy dependencies linked to the supply of primary raw materials, particularly by contributing to retain valuable critical raw materials within the Union and at the same time reinforcing the market for secondary raw materials. Although there are no requirements concerning the use of recycled content on a global level, many manufacturers have already incorporated recycled materials in their vehicles. Establishing targets and uniform provisions on how to calculate the recycled content will provide legal certainty and contribute to creating fair competition between manufacturers. The requirements should apply to all manufacturers intending to place vehicles on Union’s market, including through online market places, irrespective of where they are based. Acknowledging the importance of global value chains in the automotive sector, this Regulation should allow for sourcing the secondary raw materials from outside the Union.

(29)

In view of the low recycling rate for plastics, especially from end-of-life vehicles, and the overall negative impacts of other forms of treatment of plastic waste, it is appropriate to increase the uptake of recycled plastics in vehicles. To that end, a mandatory target for plastic recycled from post-consumer waste should be included in new vehicles. Accordingly, each vehicle type should contain plastic recycled from post-consumer plastic waste with progressively rising percentages. Of this recycled content target for plastics in vehicle types, 20 % should be achieved by including plastics recycled from end-of-life vehicles. The selection of plastics covered in the scope of targets is based on the recyclable types of plastics that are specified in the dedicated Joint Research Centre study entitled ‘Towards recycled plastic content targets in new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles – Technical proposals and analysis of impacts in the context of the review of the ELV Directive’ and the impact assessment of this Regulation. In those documents, thermosets other than polyurethane foams in seats and elastomers are not considered in the calculation of the targets, given that thermosets are particularly challenging to recycle. Many common elastomers, thermosets and crosslinked materials do fulfil the polymer definition as referred to in the definition of plastics set out in Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006. Elastomers, including thermoplastic elastomers, which can be reprocessed into thermoplastics, are included within the scope of the recycled content targets for plastics provided for in this Regulation. However, recycled content targets for elastomers in tyres are being considered, as tyres are a priority product under Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 of the European Parliament and of the Council (10) and therefore not covered by the scope of this Regulation. In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of that obligation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to establish methodology for the calculation and verification of the share of plastics recycled from post-consumer waste, and of post-consumer waste from end-of-life vehicles. To allow recycling methods other than mechanical recycling, including chemical recycling, and to contribute to the attainment of the recycled content targets, it is necessary to establish additional rules for the calculation, verification and reporting of recycled plastic content. In such cases, it is necessary to introduce so-called mass balance accounting in line with mass balance accounting methodologies applicable to plastics recycling, taking into account the characteristics of dedicated recycling technologies for plastics, such as in heterogeneous shredded automotive waste. Where the lack of availability or excessive prices of specific recycled plastics makes compliance with the minimum percentages excessively difficult, the Commission should be empowered to supplement this Regulation by laying down temporary derogations to the recycled plastic content targets.

(30)

The promotion of the use of recycled plastic in vehicles is based on the premise that the recycled content itself was produced in an environmentally sustainable way, so that the carbon footprint is reduced and the circular economy is encouraged. To that end, certain safeguards need to be put in place in order to ensure that the way in which recycled content is obtained does not cancel out the environmental benefits of using such recycled content in vehicles. It is therefore necessary to address the related environmental concerns in a non-discriminatory manner with regard to both domestically produced and imported recycled plastic. To that end, in order to be counted towards the recycled content targets set out in the Regulation, recycled plastics should be subject to equivalent conditions with regard to requirements for the protection of human health, climate and environment, including on emissions and waste management, regardless of whether the recycling process happens within or outside the Union.

(31)

The conditions applicable to material recycled in third countries, including the audit requirements, should only apply from 14 August 2030 and the Commission should more comprehensively assess the expected impact of those conditions in the light of the evolution of the market situation and of trade relations and should report its assessment to the European Parliament and to the Council by 14 August 2028

(32)

In order to achieve the targets for the integration of recycled content under this Regulation, the Commission should publish, by 14 August 2032, a review of the state of technological development and environmental performance of biobased plastic and of elastomers derived from the reprocessing of tyres in vehicles, and, where appropriate, present a legislative proposal with sustainability requirements and targets.

(33)

The automotive sector is one of the biggest users of steel and the current uptake of recycled steel in new vehicles remains low. In order to contribute to lowering the carbon footprint linked to the production of new vehicles and support the move of the automotive industry towards climate neutrality, a minimum share of steel recycled from post-consumer steel waste and, where relevant, ferrous scrap in new vehicles should be set. The power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should therefore be delegated to the Commission in respect of establishing a minimum share of steel recycled from post-consumer steel waste and, where relevant, ferrous scrap including flat and long carbon steel and possibly stainless-steel product families, to be present in and incorporated into vehicle types. The establishment of a future target should be preceded by a dedicated study by the Commission covering all relevant technical, environmental and economic factors linked to the feasibility of such target, including impacts on other steel using sectors and global greenhouse gas emissions. It is important to distinguish between various steel product families within the vehicle, as they are produced using different technologies that have various constraints for the utilisation of ferrous scrap regarding their ability to tolerate copper content and other tramp elements. In order to supplement certain non-essential elements of this Regulation, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of establishing a methodology for the calculation and verification of the share of steel recovered from post-consumer steel waste and, where relevant, ferrous scrap present in and incorporated into the vehicle type.

(34)

The automotive sector is also one of the biggest users of aluminium, representing more than 40 % of Union total demand, and the use is increasing. The current uptake of recycled aluminium in new vehicles is low. In order to contribute to lowering the carbon footprint linked to the production of new vehicles and support the move of the automotive industry towards climate neutrality, reduce energy consumption and costs, and enhance resilience by reducing dependencies on primary raw materials supplies, it is appropriate to increase the uptake of recycled aluminium in vehicles. To that end, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of establishing a minimum share of aluminium and its alloys recycled from post-consumer waste in vehicle types and, if applicable, from pre-consumer waste, present in and incorporated into vehicle types. The establishment of a future target should be preceded by a dedicated study by the Commission covering all relevant technical, environmental and economic factors linked to the feasibility of such target. In order to supplement certain non-essential elements of this Regulation, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of establishing a methodology for the calculation and verification of the share of aluminium and its alloys recovered from post-consumer waste and, if applicable, from pre-consumer waste present in and incorporated into the vehicle type.

(35)

There is a potential to increase the use of recycled content in vehicles for other materials commonly used by the automotive industry for which markets for secondary raw materials are underdeveloped, the footprint linked to the production of primary raw materials is high or recycling levels are limited, while sorting and recycling technologies are improving. It is therefore appropriate for the Commission to assess the desirability, feasibility and impacts of setting out targets on recycled content of neodymium, dysprosium, praseodymium, terbium, samarium, nickel, cobalt, boron used in permanent magnets as well as for magnesium and its alloys.

(36)

In order to boost the underdeveloped markets for secondary raw materials, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of establishing a minimum share of magnesium and its alloys, neodymium, dysprosium, praseodymium, terbium, samarium, nickel, cobalt or boron recycled from post-consumer waste that shall be present in and incorporated into the vehicle types. In order to supplement certain non-essential elements of this Regulation, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission to establish methodology for the calculation and verification of the shares of those materials recycled from post-consumer, and where relevant, pre-consumer waste in vehicle types. The methodology is necessary to clarify the definitions of post-consumer scrap and pre-consumer scrap. This is relevant to incentivise the improvement of quality and the retainment of value for post-consumer waste fractions. In order to promote decarbonisation via the use of more recycled content, clear definitions are necessary to incentivise the recycling of post-consumer scrap, while minimising the use of pre-consumer scrap, which usually carries the same carbon footprint as the primary raw material.

(37)

In line with the requirements of Regulation (EU) 2024/1252, and considering that it is necessary to establish in this Regulation provisions on recycled content in vehicles and information on the removal of parts and components containing permanent magnet materials in vehicles, those provisions should apply as the sector specific implementation of the provisions contained in Regulation (EU) 2024/1252. This will ensure streamlining and integrating various obligations related to information on the removal of such parts and components under this Regulation with those for other parts and components. The obligations relating to labelling in Article 28 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1252 apply.

(38)

In order to ensure that batteries are recycled in accordance with the requirements of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, and that e-drive motors, which contain important quantities of rare earth elements, can also be replaced and recycled, it is necessary to introduce design requirements for new vehicle types, ensuring that these batteries and their battery packs and e-drive motors can be removed in a readily manner by authorised treatment facilities or repair and maintenance operators during any phase of the life-cycle of a vehicle. The Commission should also encourage the development of standards for design and assembly techniques that facilitate the maintenance, repair and repurposing of batteries and battery packs. More broadly, to maximise the potential for replacement, reuse, recycling, remanufacturing or refurbishing of vehicle parts and components, and to minimise waste, vehicles should be designed in a manner that enables the removal of as many parts and components as possible. The notion of technical feasibility should be interpreted in a manner that supports and facilitates those objectives, while recognising that, in certain cases, safety or functional requirements of a part can justify alternative solutions that limit the removability of a part or component. In such instances, manufacturers should demonstrate the necessity of such a choice. In order to take into account technical and scientific progress, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of amending this Regulation by revising the list of parts and components that are to be designed for removal and replacement from vehicles. In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this design requirement, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission.

(39)

The type-approval system laid down in Regulation (EU) 2018/858 requires manufacturers to construct their vehicles, systems, components and separate technical units in conformity with an approved vehicle type. To ensure that manufacturers comply with the circularity requirements that are applicable to them at type-approval stage and which are laid down in this Regulation, and that type-approval authorities can verify compliance, it is necessary for manufacturers to include the information required for the type-approval procedure in the information folder. To increase transparency and ensure that the required type-approval information is presented in a manner coherent with the requirements in other legislation governing type-approval requirements for vehicles, the Commission should amend the rules established in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/683 (11) which standardise the documents and information to be included into the information folder and thus specify the administrative requirements for type-approval.

(40)

In order to ensure that manufacturers of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles put in place actions to ensure that they meet the circularity requirements under this Regulation, and to incentivise them to improve the circularity of the vehicles, they should draw up a comprehensive circularity strategy. The circularity strategy should be prepared at the manufacturer level and updated every five years. A copy should be provided to the type-approval authorities as well as to the Commission. Although provided to the type-approval authorities, the circularity strategy should not be linked to the type-approval process. To ensure broader oversight and scrutiny, the Commission should make the manufacturers’ circularity strategies, as well as their updated versions, publicly available, with due regard to the safeguarding of any confidential information. The Commission should prepare and publish, at least every six years, a report on the circularity of the automotive sector based on, among other information, the circularity strategies provided by the manufacturers.

(41)

In order to increase transparency on the use of recycled materials by the automotive sector and provide incentives to increase recycled content levels, manufacturers should be required to provide technical documentation showing the percentage of recycled materials present in new vehicle types which are submitted for type-approval. That requirement should apply to a selection of materials for which an increase in recycled content level in vehicles would bring about particularly important environmental benefits. The mandatory declaration should be submitted to the type-approval authority together with other documents as part of the application for type-approval.

(42)

Access to up-to-date information and timely communication between manufacturers and waste management operators across the automotive value chain are essential to maximise reuse, remanufacturing and refurbishment of parts and components of a vehicle and to ensure high-quality recycling of end-of-life vehicles. Therefore, manufacturers should provide to waste management operators and repair and maintenance operators unrestricted, standardised and non-discriminatory access to information, including via existing tools used by the automotive industry, enabling safe removal of certain parts, components and materials present in a vehicle. Manufacturers should not be obliged to provide such information to repair and maintenance operators where that information has already been made available pursuant to other Union legislation. The information should provide guidance for the waste management operators, publishers of technical information and repair and maintenance operators on the steps required to access and remove electric vehicle batteries and their battery packs, including on the tools or technologies enabling their safe discharge, and e-drive motors. The information should also provide clear instructions on the use of tools or technologies for that access and removal. It should help to identify, locate and remove the parts, components and materials, that should be depolluted and removed from the vehicle prior to shredding, as well as parts and components, containing the critical raw materials in permanent magnets referred to in Regulation (EU) 2024/1252. Manufacturers should also make available rescue and emergency response guidance information to emergency services. It is important that intellectual property rights are duly respected, ensuring that access to technical information does not compromise proprietary technologies or trade secrets. This should be done through communication platforms established by manufacturers and the information should be provided free of charge, excluding non–prohibitive administrative costs. The type-approval authorities should verify that the required information has been submitted by the manufacturers. Taking into account the need to support the vehicles retrofitting as a way to reduce emissions, extend vehicle lifespans, and promote sustainability, manufacturers should also ensure a proper cooperation with retrofit operators.

(43)

Access of aftermarket operators to information on the removal of parts and components from end-of-life vehicles, including with a view to the future replacement of those parts and components, should be guaranteed to safeguard consumer choice and ensure the efficient use of resources. It is therefore necessary to ensure that waste management operators and publishers of technical information are provided with the information necessary for safe and effective removal of such parts and components from the end-of-life vehicles. Furthermore, such information should be provided to operators pursuing an activity involving the repair and maintenance of vehicles, where they do not qualify as waste management operators and only in cases where such provision of information is not already covered by other Union legislation.

(44)

While digital coding is increasingly used to control different parts and components in vehicles, the evaluation of Directive 2000/53/EC identified that such coding could impede the reuse, remanufacturing and refurbishment potential of certain parts and components. It is therefore essential that manufacturers are requested to provide information allowing professional waste management operators and repair and maintenance operators to overcome the problems posed by these digitally coded parts and components in a vehicle, where such coding prevents repair, maintenance or replacement operations in another vehicle.

(45)

Manufacturers and their suppliers should use component and material coding standards, which were established initially by Commission Decision 2003/138/EC (12), for labelling and identification of vehicles’ plastic and elastomer parts, components and materials. They should ensure that all parts and components of vehicles are marked in accordance with other applicable Union legislation, in particular concerning labelling of batteries and of permanent magnets included in vehicles that they place on the market. In order to take into account the technical and scientific progress, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of amending the Annex specifying how parts and components of vehicles should be labelled.

(46)

In order to facilitate the end-of-life treatment of vehicles, manufacturers should provide, via digital tools, accurate, complete and up-to-date information on the safe removal and replacement of vehicle parts and components. A digital circularity vehicle passport should therefore be developed and made available as a data carrier for such information, in a manner that is consistent with other digital information tools and platforms that already exist or are in further development in the automotive sector on the environmental performance of vehicles and aligned with corresponding provisions in Regulations (EU) 2023/1542, (EU) 2024/1781 and (EU) 2024/1257 (13) of the European Parliament and of the Council. In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to lay down the technical design and operation requirements for the passport and rules on location of the data carrier or other identifier enabling accessing the passport on the vehicle. When laying down the rules for the digital circularity vehicle passport, the Commission should take into account the need for the high level of security and privacy, including on vehicles’ operating data to prevent cybersecurity threats.

(47)

In order to ensure that producers and other economic operators are subject to the same rules across the Member States, it is necessary to lay down harmonised rules for waste management of end-of-life vehicles. This should lead to a high level of protection of the environment and human health across the Union. It would also result in further harmonisation of the quality of waste management services provided by economic operators and in facilitating the functioning of the market for secondary raw materials.

(48)

In order to guarantee the safe and environmentally sound treatment of end-of-life vehicles, any establishment or undertaking intending to perform waste treatment operations for these vehicles should obtain an authorisation from the competent authority. The authorisation should be granted only if the establishment or undertaking has the capacity needed to carry out the end-of-life treatment operations for vehicles in a manner that complies with applicable Union and national law, including the specific treatment requirements established in this Regulation. Additionally, only authorised treatment facilities should have the competence to issue certificates of destruction in accordance with this Regulation.

(49)

Where producers or producer responsibility organisations conclude contracts with authorised treatment facilities for the purpose of fulfilling their producer responsibility obligations, these contracts should be in compliance with the principles of competition law and should not include provisions that have the purpose or effect of restricting or distorting competition, in particular within the meaning of Articles 101 and 102 TFEU. Such contracts should be fair, transparent and should not contain discriminatory terms and conditions. In order to facilitate compliance with those requirements, Member States should be able to provide a model contract.

(50)

Directive 2000/53/EC establishes a basic obligation for vehicle producers to cover part of the costs of collection of end-of-life vehicles. Building on this obligation, in line with the polluter-pays principle and consistent with the general minimum requirements for extended producer responsibility schemes set out in Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (14), it is appropriate to lay down at Union level requirements on the responsibilities of manufacturers relating to the management of end-of-life vehicles. Producers should have extended producer responsibility for the vehicles that they make available on the market for the first time within the territory of a Member State once they reach their end-of-life phase. The extended producer responsibility should cover the obligations to ensure that the vehicles made available by the producers on the market in a Member State are collected and treated in accordance with this Regulation and that waste management operators treating such vehicles meet the recycling targets established by this Regulation.

(51)

In order to facilitate monitoring of compliance of producers with their extended producer responsibility obligations, Member States should establish a register of producers or use an existing register. The registration requirements should be harmonised across the Union to facilitate registration, in particular where producers make vehicles available in different Member States. The register should also be used for the purpose of reporting to competent authorities on the performance of extended producer responsibility obligations. The features and procedural aspects linked to such register should also be consistent with the register of producers established by Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, in order to enable producers of vehicles and producers of batteries to use one and the same register. In order to facilitate the registration of producers in all Member States, the Commission should establish a website containing the links to all national registers.

(52)

Under Article 30 of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council (15), providers of online platforms allowing consumers to conclude distance contracts with traders are to ensure that traders can only use those online platforms to promote messages on, or to offer, products or services to consumers located in the Union if, prior to the use of those platforms for those purposes, the providers of those platforms have obtained certain information, where applicable to the trader. In this context, vehicles constitute products. The register of producers established under this Regulation can constitute a public register for the purpose of compliance with Article 30(1), point (d), of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065. A self-certification by the trader to commit to offering only products or services that comply with the applicable rules of Union law pursuant to Article 30(1), point (e), of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 can also cover the extended producer responsibility requirements laid down under this Regulation. Finally, for the purposes of Article 30(2) of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065, where the information in the register of producers is not publicly accessible, Member States should ensure that providers of online platforms are granted access, free of charge, to that information, in order to make best efforts to assess whether the information is reliable and complete.

(53)

Where a producer makes vehicles available on the market for the first time within a territory of a Member State in which that producer is not established, that producer should designate an authorised representative for the extended producer responsibility. If more than one producer is represented in a Member State by one authorised representative, that authorised representative should provide the name and the contact details for each of the represented producers separately.

(54)

Producers should be able choose whether they will exercise their extended producer responsibility obligations individually or collectively, by means of producer responsibility organisations taking responsibility on their behalf. Nevertheless, Member States should be able to require that a producer be represented by a producer responsibility organisation. In such cases, producers should not be required by the Member State to be represented by a specific producer responsibility organisation, since there should be flexibility as regards how many producer responsibility organisations can be present in a Member State. This should also be the case in Member States with state-run producer responsibility organisations which can be subject to more specific arrangements under national law. While Member States’ legal frameworks allow different governance structures, producer responsibility organisations should in principle operate to ensure that fees collected from producers are used exclusively to fulfil the obligations relating to collection and treatment of end of life vehicles for the organisation and financing of waste-management obligations. All producer responsibility organisations should ensure the confidentiality of data provided to them by producers. In order to ensure that the interests of all economic operators are properly taken into consideration and to avoid a situation in which waste management operators are placed at a disadvantage in the decisions taken in extended producer responsibility schemes, for example producer responsibility organisations could at least once a year conduct a structured consultation with interested stakeholders and publish on their website a summary report of that consultation, setting out the principal comments received together with an explanation of how those comments have been addressed. Waste management operators should be granted observer status in the governing bodies of the producer responsibility organisations, namely in their executive boards, in order to improve the overall governance and efficiency of the system, while respecting the need to avoid conflict of interest. In addition, waste management operators should be selected by producer responsibility organisations in a non-discriminatory procedure based on transparent award criteria.

(55)

Producers should finance part of the costs of collection and treatment of end-of-life vehicles necessary to meet the requirements established in this Regulation, in particular obligations aimed at ensuring higher quality of secondary raw materials retrieved from vehicles. The exact level of the costs of such operations that should be covered by producers should be determined taking into account the revenues of authorised treatment facilities and other waste management operators gained from sale of used spare parts or components and of secondary raw materials retrieved from end-of-life vehicles. To this end, the competent authorities, in cooperation with producers and waste management operators, should monitor the average costs of collection, recycling and treatment operations as well as the level of financial contributions paid by the producers in order to ensure that a fair allocation of costs between all interested operators is in place.

(56)

The financial contribution of producers should also cover the cost of educational campaigns aimed to inform the public and increase the collection of end-of-life vehicles, as well as of the establishment of the notification system for issuance and transfer of certificates of destruction and gathering and reporting of data to the competent authorities. In addition, since this Regulation introduces changes regarding the financial responsibility of producers for the collection of end-of-life vehicles covered by Directive 2000/53/EC, appropriate provisions should be made to take into account the transition from Directive 2000/53/EC to this Regulation.

(57)

Producers who choose to fulfil their extended producer responsibility obligations individually should also provide a guarantee to be used to cover the costs of management of end-of-life vehicles. Such guarantees should be used in particular in cases where the producers concerned become insolvent or permanently cease their operations.

(58)

Where a producer exercises its extended producer responsibility obligations collectively within a producer responsibility organisation, the financial contributions paid by the producer should be modulated based on harmonised criteria. Such criteria should create economic incentives for the manufacturers to increase circularity in the design and production of new vehicles, taking into consideration the amount of primary and recycled materials in a vehicle, the extent to which it contains parts, components and materials which are difficult to remove, dismantle, reuse or recycle, as well as the amount of hazardous substances that it contains. In order to avoid distortion of the single market, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of supplementing this Regulation by establishing detailed rules on how the criteria for the modulation of the financial contributions paid to producer responsibility organisations should be applied.

(59)

Certain Member States have already established extended producer responsibility structures and waste management systems, which are the basis for relevant national authorisations and contractual arrangements, when implementing Directive 2000/53/EC. Those Member States should be able to continue to use those structures and systems, provided that they comply with this Regulation.

(60)

Vehicles often become end-of-life vehicles in a Member State other than the Member State where they were placed on the market. As long as a producer within the meaning of this Regulation can be identified in the Member State where the vehicle becomes an end-of-life vehicle, that producer should cover the related costs of collection and treatment. However, as it is not always possible to identify a producer in the Member State where the vehicle becomes an end-of-life vehicle after it has crossed a border, it is also necessary to introduce rules on a cross-border cost allocation mechanism which should apply only to that specific situation and only for vehicles in category M1 and N1. Those rules should ensure that the costs of collection and treatment incurred by the waste management operators in the Member State where the vehicle becomes an end-of-life vehicle are covered. The obligations stemming from the cross-border cost allocation mechanism, including the appointment of authorised representatives in each Member State, should not apply to importers or distributors, to avoid administrative burden for such operators. Each manufacturer of vehicles in categories M1 and N1 should be obliged to appoint an authorised representative for the cross-border mechanism in each Member States, notify the competent authorities about the designations and set up mechanisms for cross-border cooperation with relevant waste management operators. Manufacturers should be able to mandate a producer responsibility organisation to act as their authorised representative for the cross-border mechanism. For manufacturers established outside of the Union, it should be possible to appoint the manufacturer’s single representative in the Union referred to in Article 13(4) of Regulation (EU) 2018/858 to fulfil the obligations for the cross-border mechanism and to establish cross-border cooperation mechanism. Introducing such a cross-border mechanism contributes to creating a level playing field between the authorised treatment facilities across the Union.

(61)

In order to ensure compliance with these obligations and to avoid distortion of the single market, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of establishing further detailed rules on the obligations of the producers, Member States and waste management operators and the features of the cross-border mechanisms.

(62)

A key prerequisite for the sound treatment of end-of-life vehicles is that all end-of-life vehicles are collected. This Regulation should therefore impose certain obligations linked to the collection primarily on the producers and, secondarily, on the Member States. Producers should ensure that all end-of-life vehicles that they have made available on the market for the first time in the territory of a Member State are collected. To that end, producers or producer responsibility organisations should set up or participate in setting up the collection systems and Member States should adopt all necessary measures to ensure that the collection systems are in place and that those systems enable meeting the objectives of this Regulation. The collection systems should enable vehicle owners and other vehicle holders to deliver the vehicle to an authorised treatment facility or collection point without unnecessary efforts or costs. This means in practice that such systems should appropriately cover the whole territory of each Member State and ensure adequate availability of authorised treatment facilities or collection points. They should also allow for collection of all brands of end-of-life vehicles, as well as of waste parts from repair of vehicles.

(63)

End-of-life vehicles should be treated only in authorised treatment facilities, thus such facilities play a vital role in collection of the end-of-life vehicles. Nevertheless, in order to facilitate collection and ensure adequate availability of facilities collecting end-of-life vehicles, this Regulation provides for a possibility for establishing collection points. The role of such points would be limited to collecting end-of-life vehicles, storing them in proper conditions and transporting them to the authorised treatment facility. Operating such a point requires a specific permit. Collection points should be required to deliver all collected end-of-life vehicles to authorised treatment facilities.

(64)

In order to effectively collect all end-of-life vehicles it is necessary to inform the public on the existence of collection systems. Vehicle owners should be aware that they can in principle deliver an end-of-life vehicle, with or without the electric vehicle battery, to a collection point or authorised treatment facility free of charge, unless essential parts such as the e-drive motor, engine or multiple large pieces of the bodywork are missing, in order to curtail illegal dismantling activities. In the case of a missing electric vehicle battery, the vehicle owner should prove that the battery has been handled by a professional operator in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2023/1542. In order to prevent the illegal dismantling of valuable parts and components from end-of-life vehicles and promote the collection of complete end-of-life vehicles, the free of charge delivery of end-of-life vehicles could be linked to the provision of financial incentives. The educational campaign by producers or producer responsibility organisations should also present the consequences for the environment and human health of improper collection and treatment of end-of-life vehicles.

(65)

The authorised treatment facility should issue a certificate of destruction to the last vehicle owner upon delivery of the end-of-life vehicle. This is necessary to ensure a proper supervision of management of end-of-life vehicles. The minimum requirements for such certificates are currently laid down in Commission Decision 2002/151/EC (16) and the content of that Decision should be included in this Regulation, with the necessary adaptations. Such certificates should be issued in an electronic format to last owners of end-of-life vehicles, and provided by the authorised treatment facilities to the relevant authorities of the Member State through an electronic notification procedure for the purpose of cancelling the registration of the vehicle. The electronic notification system should enable the transmission of the certificate of destruction and allow for a copy of the electronic notification to be provided to the last vehicle owner as well as to any economic operator acting on behalf of that owner.

(66)

Notwithstanding the obligation in Directive 2000/53/EC to transfer all end-of-life vehicles for treatment to an authorised treatment facility, there is a very significant share of vehicles whose whereabouts are unknown, and which might have been either illegally treated or exported as end-of-life vehicles, or whose status is not properly reported to the Member States registration authorities. Such vehicles are referred to as ‘missing vehicles’. Member States should strengthen their cooperation so as to reduce the number of missing vehicles. Recognition of certificates of destruction issued in another Member State and the obligation to inform the authorities of the Member States, where the vehicle is registered, that a certificate of destruction is issued, should allow for better tracking of end-of-life vehicles’ whereabouts.

(67)

To ensure effective collection of end-of-life vehicles, explicit obligations should be addressed to vehicle owners. They should deliver their vehicle, when it reaches the end-of-life phase, to collection points or authorised treatment facilities. When vehicles are damaged and insurance companies are involved in declaring them a technical or economic total loss, the insurance company or any other automotive expert acting on its behalf should also assess whether or not the vehicle is an end-of-life vehicle in accordance with this Regulation. In the case of abandoned vehicles, the relevant authorities should set out rules for declaring a vehicle as an end-of-life vehicle and proceed in accordance with this Regulation. Abandoned vehicles could include, for example, vehicles left unattended or illegally on public property, or vehicles that have been parked on private property without the consent of the owner of the property, or vehicles that have not been reclaimed after a notification by competent authorities to the vehicle owner.

(68)

In order to ensure a uniform and environmentally sound treatment of end-of-life vehicles in the Union, it is essential to ensure that the authorised treatment facilities accept and treat all end-of-life vehicles, parts, components and materials, including waste parts from repairs of vehicles, in compliance with the conditions set out in their permits, as well as in accordance with the requirements set out in this Regulation, the best available techniques, and Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (17). For the purposes of compliance with the removal requirements, the quality requirements and the material recovery targets, the complete treatment of an end-of-life vehicle can, but does not need to be, carried out by a single waste management operator or within a single installation.

(69)

In view of the key role of authorised treatment facilities in managing end-of-life vehicles in a way that does not adversely affect the environment or human health and contributes to the achievement of circular economy objectives of the Union, it is necessary to lay down obligations applying to such facilities and covering all their activities, from acceptance and storage of an end-of-life vehicle until its final treatment.

(70)

In order to ensure traceability of their activities, including quality of scrap or other relevant input materials, the authorised treatment facilities should document the treatment operations performed and electronically store the record thereof for a minimum of three years, and be able to present it, upon request, to relevant national authorities.

(71)

The depollution of an end-of-life vehicle is the first step towards preventing damage to the environment, human health and risks to work safety. It is therefore essential that an end-of-life vehicle undergo the necessary depollution operations within 30 days following its delivery to the authorised treatment facility, before the end-of-life vehicle is treated any further. During that phase, waste oils should be collected and stored separately from the other fluids and liquids, and be further treated in accordance with Directive 2008/98/EC. Refrigerants should be treated in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2024/573 of the European Parliament and of the Council (18). In addition, the parts, components and materials containing lead, cadmium, mercury and hexavalent chromium should be removed from the end-of-life vehicle, to avoid adverse effects on humans or the environment.

(72)

In order to ensure a proper implementation of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, all batteries incorporated in vehicles are to be separately removed from an end-of-life vehicle and stored in a designated area for further treatment.

(73)

In order to maximise the potential of reuse, remanufacturing and refurbishment of parts and components, and preserve a high value for the secondary materials which derive from end-of-life vehicles, certain parts and components should mandatorily be removed from an end-of-life vehicle prior to shredding. Those parts and components should be removed in a manual dismantling process, a semi-automated or automated disassembly process in a non-destructive way. It should be possible to deviate from the requirement on mandatory non-destructive removal of parts and components, when an authorised treatment facility demonstrates that the manual dismantling, semi-automated or automated disassembly in a non-destructive way entails disproportionate economic costs that cannot be compensated by the revenues expected from the reuse, remanufacturing or refurbishment of these parts and components. In such a case, it should be possible for these parts and components to be removed in a destructive way for the purposes of separation of relevant materials prior to shredding. Parts and components can be exempted entirely from mandatory removal, if they are designated as such in this Regulation, if the authorised treatment facility demonstrates that post-shredder technologies separate materials from the parts and components concerned as efficiently as manual, semi-automated or automated processes, and that the criteria and limit values of this Regulation are met. In order to take into account technical and scientific progress, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of amending the relevant Annex.

(74)

Once the authorised treatment facilities have removed parts and components from an end-of-life vehicle, they should carefully assess and determine whether those parts and components are fit for reuse, remanufacturing or refurbishment, based on objective criteria linked to the technical features of the parts and components and the requirements of vehicle safety.

(75)

Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 sets out rules on the sustainability, performance, safety, collection, recycling and second life of batteries as well as on removal information about batteries for economic operators. The potential for a second life of batteries should be taken into consideration in this Regulation by excluding the electric vehicle battery from the essential parts or components, so as to allow for handing over the vehicle for treatment, free of charge, without the electric vehicle battery, on condition that the last vehicle owner provides documentation which proves that the battery has been handled by a professional operator in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2023/1542.

(76)

Recognising the potential of remanufacturing and refurbishment in the automotive sector, and their contribution towards circular economy, it is necessary to provide legal clarity to the economic operators involved in this sector. It should therefore be clarified that parts and components removed from an end-of-life vehicle or from repair and maintenance operations, which are suitable for immediate reuse, or further remanufacturing or refurbishment by professional operators, should not be considered waste. In order to respect the waste hierarchy and to boost the circular use of spare parts, the transfer of these parts and components, excluding batteries, between economic operators should not be restricted. Parts and components removed from end-of-life vehicles should be properly checked, cleaned and, where necessary, tested by an authorised treatment facility so that they could be immediately reused without any other pre-processing, or in other cases be suitable for further remanufacturing or refurbishment. Parts and components not suitable for reuse, remanufacturing or refurbishment should be considered as waste and their export should be subject to Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 of the European Parliament and of the Council (19). The relevant national authorities should be in a position to request documentation from the authorised treatment facility that removed the part or component concerned, where that authorised treatment facility confirms, via a dedicated assessment, the technical suitability of the relevant parts and components for remanufacturing, refurbishment or reuse.

(77)

In its evaluation of Directive 2000/53/EC, the Commission found that used spare parts and components are offered to the public by unidentified providers and often come from illegal activities. Therefore, new requirements should be established concerning the trading of used, remanufactured or refurbished parts and components. Such parts and components should, above all, be marked with a label indicating the name of the component or part, and the contact information of the authorised treatment facility which removed the component or part, and be appropriately protected against damage during transportation, loading and unloading of the parts and components. The authorised treatment facility which removed the component or part should have available a copy of the invoice or contract related to the transfer of these parts, in the event that the competent authority requests such documentation.

(78)

Where the end-user is a consumer, the business-to-consumer sale of used, remanufactured or refurbished parts and components would be covered by Directive (EU) 2019/771 of the European Parliament and of the Council (20). That Directive requires goods sold to be in conformity with the sales contract and stipulates the liability of the seller and consumers’ remedies in the event of lack of conformity, such as free repair or replacement of the goods. Since removed parts and components fit for reuse or refurbished parts and components constitute second-hand goods within the meaning of Directive (EU) 2019/771, the seller and the consumer can agree on a shorter liability or limitation period that is not less than one year if the Member State concerned has provided for such a possibility. The economic operators concerned are encouraged to provide commercial guarantees on the reused, remanufactured and refurbished parts and components to consumers and to their customers in business-to-business transactions.

(79)

In the interests of road safety and protection of the environment, certain components and parts which have been removed from end-of-life vehicles should not be reused, remanufactured or refurbished. Such parts and components should not be used for the construction of new vehicles or in vehicles that have already been placed on the market, except where the conducted technical assessment demonstrates their conformity with applicable vehicle requirements. Those parts should only be installed by a qualified repair and maintenance operator.

(80)

In order to encourage the development and proper functioning of the market for reusable, refurbished and remanufactured parts and components and retrofitting of vehicles in the Union, Member States should be encouraged to incentivise at national level the reuse, refurbishment, and remanufacturing of parts and components, whether they are removed during the use or at the end-of-life phase of a vehicle, as well as the retrofitting of vehicles. Those incentives should be reflected in the waste prevention programmes which Member States are required to establish pursuant to Article 29 of Directive 2008/98/EC. The Commission should facilitate the exchange of information among Member States by sharing their best practices on the incentives taken at national level, with a view to monitoring their effectiveness.

(81)

In its evaluation of Directive 2000/53/EC, the Commission found that the definition of recycling in that Directive is too broad and not consistent with Directive 2008/98/EC, as it considers ‘backfilling’ to be a recycling operation. Therefore, this Regulation should align the definition of recycling with Directive 2008/98/EC by excluding backfilling from its scope.

(82)

The recycling of all plastics from end-of-life vehicles should be continuously improved, and it is important to ensure a sufficient supply of recyclates to meet the demand for recycled plastics in vehicles. It is therefore necessary to lay down a specific recycling target of 30 % of plastics from end-of-life vehicles. This target would be complementary to the reuse and recycling target of 85 % and the reuse and recovery target of 95 % of end-of-life vehicles by average weight per vehicle and year. To facilitate the implementation of those requirements by waste management operators, a transitional period of three years is needed. In the meantime, the current target for the reuse and recycling of 85 % as well as reuse and recovery target of 95 % of end-of-life vehicles, as established by Directive 2000/53/EC and based on the definition of recycling in that Directive, should continue to apply. The weight of the plastic recycled and the total weight of plastics for the specific recycling target of plastics should exclude elastomers, thermosets other than polyurethane foams used for cushioning and plastics that contain or are contaminated by any substance referred to in Article 7 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 when the thresholds of Annex IV to that Regulation are exceeded.

(83)

It is important to increase the recovery of high-quality secondary materials by improving the shredding processes of end-of-life vehicles. Therefore, end-of-life vehicles, their parts, components and materials should be allowed to be processed in a shredder in combination with other waste, including packaging waste and waste electrical and electronic equipment, only if specific criteria and the quality requirements for output fractions are fulfilled.

(84)

To further increase the quality of treatment of end-of-life vehicles, it should only be possible to landfill waste fractions resulting from shredded end-of-life vehicles, where the fractions which contain non-inert waste do not exceed the limit values set out in this Regulation.

(85)

End-of-life vehicles are classified as hazardous waste and cannot be exported to non-OECD countries. It should still be possible for depolluted end-of-life vehicles to be treated outside the Union, provided that those depolluted end-of-life vehicles are shipped in compliance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1157.

(86)

Where an end-of-life vehicle is shipped from the Union to a third country, the exporter should provide documentary evidence approved by the competent authority in the destination country confirming that the treatment conditions are broadly equivalent to the requirements of this Regulation, and to environmental and human health protection requirements laid down in other Union legislation, in line with Regulation (EU) 2024/1157.

(87)

In order to ensure that end-of-life vehicles are treated in an environmentally sustainable manner, it is important to establish clarity on a vehicle’s status throughout its entire life, particularly in situations when there is a need for distinguishing used vehicles from end-of-life vehicles. A vehicle owner that intends to transfer the ownership of a used vehicle within the Union should in certain circumstances be required to present documentation that the vehicle is not an end-of-life vehicle. That documentation should demonstrate that the vehicle is roadworthy or provide an assessment in accordance with this Regulation, which contains criteria for determining whether a vehicle is an end-of-life vehicle. That assessment should be carried out in a cascading manner, from binding criteria to indicative criteria. As soon as one binding criterion is met, the vehicle concerned should be considered an end-of-life vehicle. If no binding criteria is met, the indicative criteria should be checked. If one of those indicative criteria apply, a further technical assessment would be necessary to determine the repairs needed to obtain a roadworthiness certificate. Based on that technical assessment, the vehicle owner should have the possibility to decide whether the vehicle should be discarded. If, within five years following that technical assessment, the vehicle owner does not obtain a roadworthiness certificate, the vehicle concerned should be considered an end-of-life vehicle. For the period of those five years, the technical assessment should constitute documentation that the vehicle is not an end-of-life vehicle. The end-of-life assessment should be carried out by an independent automotive expert, but it would be up to each Member State to decide how exactly such independent automotive experts should be appointed. The independent automotive experts should be professionals with specialised knowledge in the field of automotive technology, repair and maintenance or vehicle value assessment, appointed to provide unbiased expertise, without conflicting interests with the parties involved. To avoid excessive burdens for natural persons who are not economic operators and to target primarily the situation of a majority of potential end-of-life vehicles, the documentation requirement should only apply to such vehicle owners in specified circumstances. Such cases should concern the sales of vehicles that were declared to be an economic total loss by an insurance company or where the sale is concluded entirely by means of an online platform, without a physical handover of the vehicle between the seller and buyer or any person acting on their behalf.

(88)

It is necessary to ensure that where an insurance company or any automotive expert acting on its behalf carries out an assessment of damage to a vehicle involved in an accident, such an assessment should, in particular, involve a verification of whether the vehicle qualifies as an end-of-life vehicle, in accordance with the criteria laid down in this Regulation. In order to tackle illegal activities and ensure the proper identification of end-of-life vehicles, the competent authorities of Member States should be empowered, in case of doubt as to the status of a used vehicle, to request documentation from the vehicle owner to confirm that the vehicle is not an end-of-life vehicle. Such documentation should be either an end-of-life assessment conducted in accordance with this Regulation or a valid roadworthiness certificate. Competent authorities can make use of this prerogative irrespective of whether the vehicle has been involved in an accident or not. This empowerment is also applicable to special purpose vehicles, which otherwise should not be subject to the rules governing the status of vehicles. Member States should be able to exempt vehicles of L1e, L2e, and L6e-category from the rules on status of the vehicle in national legislation. The power to adopt acts under Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission to amend the criteria in this Regulation for determining whether a vehicle is an end-of-life vehicle by removing criteria according to which a vehicle is considered an end-of-life vehicle where technological advancements in the areas of traceability, repairability and safety provide sufficient justification for such a deletion.

(89)

In order to ensure that the internal market is not undermined and given that the export of used vehicles raises important environmental and public health challenges as documented by the UN Environmental Programme, it is appropriate to lay down specific requirements regarding the export of used vehicles. Such requirements should be based on objective criteria according to which a used vehicle is not an end-of-life vehicle and is to be roadworthy pursuant to Directive 2014/45/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (21). This should ensure that only used vehicles which are suitable to be driven on the Union roads can be exported to a third country. To allow customs authorities to verify that those requirements are met upon export, any person exporting a used vehicle should be required to provide those authorities with the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) and a statement confirming that the used vehicle is not an end-of-life vehicle and that it is considered roadworthy.

(90)

It is important to establish a mechanism where the compliance of used vehicles with the export requirements can be effectively verified without impeding the trade between the Union and third countries. An electronic system should therefore be established by the Commission, enabling authorities in the Member States to exchange and verify information in real time on the VIN and the roadworthiness status of used vehicles to be exported. In view of its existing features and functionalities linked to the sharing, between vehicle registration authorities, of information relating to vehicles registered in the Union, the MOVE-HUB, a message exchange platform, has been developed by the Commission for the exchange of messages to interconnect Member State national electronic registers. Member States should be able to use the European Car and Driving Licence Information System (EUCARIS) to connect to the MOVE-HUB electronic system. The platform currently facilitates the interconnection of all of the following: road transport undertaking registers (ERRU), the driving licence registers (RESPER), the professional driver training registers (ProDriveNet), the notification of vehicle roadside inspection failures (RSI) and the tachograph driver card registers (TACHOnet). Therefore, the functionalities of the MOVE-Hub should be further extended to enable the exchange and verification of information on the VIN and the roadworthiness status of used vehicles to be exported. To allow customs authorities to verify electronically and automatically whether a used vehicle to be exported complies with the export requirements, the electronic system operated by MOVE-HUB should be interconnected to the EU Single Window Environment for Customs, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2022/2399 of the European Parliament and of the Council (22). That Regulation provides for a comprehensive framework of automated controls, which apply to a specific Union non-customs formality. Therefore, this Regulation should set out the main elements which are to be controlled, while the technical measures of the implementation of this control would be laid down under Regulation (EU) 2022/2399.

(91)

In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of export requirements, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to develop the necessary electronic systems and make them operational with national systems.

(92)

Competent authorities of Member States should collaborate with one another to ensure an effective implementation of the requirements governing the export of used vehicles and to provide mutual assistance. This assistance should include information exchange to verify the status of vehicles prior to their export, including confirming registration information in the Member State where they were previously registered. Cooperation should entail, inter alia, providing access to relevant documents and information, including inspection findings, while adhering to applicable data protection law governing the requested authority. Furthermore, in pursuit of comprehensive cooperation, competent authorities of Member States should cooperate with authorities from third countries.

(93)

It is important that customs authorities are able to carry out controls on used vehicles to be exported in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (23). A significant share of used vehicles leaving the Union are destined to countries where import requirements are established or could be established, such as requirements in relation to the age of the vehicle or to its emissions. It is important that customs authorities are able to verify electronically and automatically, via the EU Single Window Environment for Customs, whether a used vehicle to be exported complies with those requirements, when the information on these requirements is officially notified to the Commission by the third countries concerned. To facilitate compliance, the Commission should publish and update on a dedicated online portal the notified specific conditions linked to the protection of the environment or road safety imposed by third countries. In order to protect the environment and road safety in third countries, the power to adopt delegated acts in accordance Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of setting those requirements.

(94)

To prevent the risk of vehicles being exported without the required documents indicating the VIN and the roadworthiness of the vehicle, and of non-compliance with export requirements being detected only when the vehicle has already left the Union, the application of the procedures of entry in the declarant’s records and of the self-assessment set out in Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 should not be allowed. Those procedures would prevent customs authorities from conducting real-time controls through the EU Single Window Environment for Customs, which would increase the risk of breaching the Union rules on the export of used vehicles.

(95)

In its evaluation of Directive 2000/53/EC, the Commission considered the lack of requirements on mandatory inspections as a shortcoming of that Directive. Therefore, this Regulation should impose on Member States certain obligations related to detecting illegal activities in the area of collection, treatment and export of end-of-life vehicles and their parts and components, as well as set out minimum requirements concerning the frequency of inspections, their scope and characteristics of facilities subject to such inspections. The competitiveness of the authorised treatment facilities in relation to the illegal operators would thus be safeguarded and a continued compliance with conditions of permits and requirements on the collection and treatment of end-of-life vehicles would be ensured.

(96)

In order to ensure the effective enforcement of this Regulation, it is necessary that Member States establish inspection strategies designed to detect illegal activities in the collection, treatment and export of end-of-life vehicles, as well as their parts and components. Such strategies should provide for the actions set out in this Regulation to safeguard compliance and contribute to the prevention of unlawful practices in the sector. Member States should carry out inspections each calendar year. Such inspections should cover both legally operating entities and suspected illegal activities. The minimum number of inspections to be conducted annually in each Member State should correspond to no less than 10 % of authorised treatment facilities and collection points operating within that Member State. It needs to be emphasised that inspections carried out under this Regulation should be complementary to inspections on the shipment of end-of-life vehicles, which are comprehensively regulated in Regulation (EU) 2024/1157.

(97)

Member States should establish cooperation mechanisms at national and international level so that inspections can take place in an efficient manner with the objective of facilitating the prevention and detection of illegal treatment and export of end-of-life vehicles and addressing the issue of missing vehicles. Such mechanisms should allow for the exchange of vehicle registration data, necessary for tracking the vehicles and checking if they have been properly treated when they reach the end-of-life phase. In order to foster cooperation across the Union on those topics, the Commission and Member States should actively use relevant existing agencies, such as the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol), established by Regulation (EU) 2016/794 of the European Parliament and of the Council (24), as well as enforcement networks dedicated to address environmental crime across the Union.

(98)

All necessary enforcement measures should be taken by the Member States to tackle illegal treatment of end-of-life vehicles, in order to prevent damages to the environment or human health due to such activities. Any establishment or undertaking treating end-of-life vehicles without a valid permit, or in breach of conditions or requirements set out in the permit, should therefore be subject to penalties. Also other measures, such as withdrawing the permit or suspending the operations of an operator, should be considered by Member States to ensure effective compliance with this Regulation.

(99)

Member States should lay down rules on penalties applicable to infringements of this Regulation and ensure that those rules are implemented. The penalties should be established in particular for violations of the provisions on export of used vehicles, on delivery of end-of-life vehicles to authorised treatment facilities or collection points and on trading used, remanufactured or refurbished parts and components. The penalties provided for should be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.

(100)

Establishing reporting obligations is necessary to ensure proper implementation, monitoring and evaluation of Union legislation and to provide markets with up-to-date transparency information. Correct and valid data is indispensable for the Commission to assess whether the measures provided for in this Regulation function properly and to propose, where necessary, further adjustments aimed at ensuring environmentally sound treatment of end-of-life vehicles or at streamlining the implementation of this Regulation. With a view to limiting the burden linked to reporting, only data which are indispensable for the purposes of the implementation of this Regulation should be reported, and reporting should be facilitated through digital tools. Based on those elements, it should be specified which data is to be reported by economic operators to the relevant authorities and by Member States to the Commission. In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of reporting requirements, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. The implementing acts, which should replace Commission Decision 2005/293/EC (25), should also lay down a methodology for calculating and verifying whether the reuse, recycling and recovery targets have been attained.

(101)

The competent authorities of the Member States play an important role in verifying compliance with the obligations established under this Regulation relating to the collection and management of end-of-life vehicles, including better tracking by those authorities of the vehicles’ whereabouts and combating illegal handling of end-of-life vehicles. Member States should thus require that waste management operators and other relevant economic operators provide the competent authorities with data allowing them to better monitor how the provisions on collection and management of end-of-life vehicles are being implemented.

(102)

In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those implementing powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council (26).

(103)

When adopting delegated acts under this Regulation, it is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making (27). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.

(104)

Annex II to Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 of the European Parliament and of the Council (28), which lists Union harmonisation legislation without provisions on penalties, should be amended to delete Directives 2000/53/EC and 2005/64/EC from that list as it is necessary that the current Regulation contains penalty provisions.

(105)

It is necessary to ensure that the type-approval related provisions and requirements of this Regulation are verified during the EU type-approval process. Regulation (EU) 2018/858 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(106)

Missing vehicles have been recognised as one of the major implementation challenges of Directive 2000/53/EC. The absence of an efficient system allowing for real time exchange of information between Member States on the registration status of vehicles hinders traceability and has been identified as a reason for the high number of ‘missing vehicles’ in the Union. To address this, the Commission proposed a revision of Council Directive 1999/37/EC (29) on the registration documents for vehicles. That revision should require Member States to record electronically, for vehicles registered on their territory, data allowing to properly document the reasons for the cancellation of a registration of a vehicle, especially if a vehicle has been treated as an end-of-life vehicle in an authorised treatment facility, re-registered in another Member State, exported to a third country outside the Union or stolen. Moreover, to prevent the illegal dismantling or export of vehicles that have been temporarily de-registered, the vehicle owners should be obliged to promptly report any changes in their ownership to the national vehicle registration authority. Those amendments complement and build on the existing requirements for Member States to electronically record data on all vehicles registered on their territory.

(107)

In view of the need to ensure a high level of environmental protection and to take scientific progress into account, the Commission should submit to the European Parliament and to the Council a report on the application of this Regulation and its impact on the functioning of the single market and on the environment. The Commission should include in its report, inter alia, an evaluation of the provisions on the design of new vehicles, including the targets for re-usability, recyclability and recoverability, on the management of end-of-life vehicles, including the recycling targets, and on penalties as well as an assessment of the need and feasibility of further extending the scope of the provisions applicable to L-category vehicles, heavy-duty vehicles, vehicles that are type-approved in multi-stage type-approval and to motor caravans, and including trailer caravans within the scope of this Regulation. That evaluation should focus not only on aspects concerning treatment of end-of-life vehicles, but also on the relevance and added-value of laying down design requirements and evaluate the extent to which the issue of missing vehicles has been solved, including estimates on the number of missing vehicles and the impact of the measures regarding the export of used vehicles, and the need to include further measures addressing the issue of the traceability of vehicles. In that respect, that evaluation should review the effectiveness, interoperability and reliability of national vehicle registration systems and their cross-border exchange of information in ensuring the accurate identification, status and traceability of vehicles throughout their lifecycle. The Commission should also review the state of technological development and environmental performance of biobased plastic content in vehicles and of elastomers derived from the reprocessing of tyres in new vehicles and could present a legislative proposal to lay down relevant targets, where appropriate. For elastomers derived from the reprocessing of tyres, priority should be given to assessing the extent to which they can be integrated into the existing targets for recycled plastic content.

(108)

The report from the Commission should also include an evaluation of the measures concerning the provision of information on substances of concern present in vehicles and whether the traceability of such substances need to be improved. It should also evaluate whether there is a need to introduce measures addressing the substances that can affect the treatment of vehicles when they reach the end-of-life phase, in order to align it more closely with Regulation (EU) 2024/1781.

(109)

The Commission should also evaluate, based on the declarations made by manufacturers, whether manufacturers are on track to comply with the recycled plastic targets. The assessment should particularly evaluate the availability of suitable plastic recycling technologies, the sufficient availability of recycled plastic, the level of quality of recycled plastic compared to the level of safety required and the technical and economic difficulties to reach the target. Where appropriate, the assessment should be accompanied by a legislative proposal from the Commission to amend the relevant provisions of this Regulation.

(110)

It is necessary to provide for sufficient time for economic operators to comply with their obligations under this Regulation, and for Member States to set up the administrative infrastructure necessary for its application. The application of this Regulation should therefore be deferred.

(111)

In order to allow Member States to take the necessary administrative measures regarding establishment of collection systems, while keeping continuity for economic operators and waste management operators, the repeal of Directive 2000/53/EC should be deferred.

(112)

This Regulation does not change the rules on restrictions on the use of lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium in vehicles established under Directive 2000/53/EC or the exemptions from those restrictions. However, it lays down clearer rules on how compliance with those restrictions, as well as with other circularity requirements, are to be verified during the type-approval process. In order to ensure that manufacturers have sufficient time to comply with those rules, their application should be deferred. Therefore, provisions of Directive 2000/53/EC concerning restrictions on the use of lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium should remain in force until the rules in this Regulation become applicable, in order to ensure continuity and to assure that vehicles placed on Union’s market do not contain such substances, in cases other than provided for in that Directive.

(113)

This Regulation also provides clearer provisions on extended producer responsibility than those laid down in Directive 2000/53/EC. As the establishment of such schemes and the necessary national provisions on authorisation of producers and producer responsibility organisations requires some time, the application of those provisions should be deferred. The corresponding provisions of Directive 2000/53/EC should remain in force until the provisions in this Regulation become applicable in order to ensure continuity with regard to the producers financing the costs of collecting end-of-life vehicles.

(114)

This Regulation contains new requirements on the treatment of end-of-life vehicles, in particular on the removal of parts and components for the purpose of promoting their reuse, remanufacturing or refurbishment as well as increasing the quality of recycling processes. Waste management operators require time to adjust to those new requirements and their application should therefore be deferred. The corresponding provisions of Directive 2000/53/EC should remain in force until the requirements in this Regulation become applicable in order to ensure continuity with regard to treatment of end-of-life vehicles.

(115)

In order to ensure continuity, the obligations under Directive 2000/53/EC on reporting and the related obligations for the transmission of data to the Commission should remain in force until the new calculation rules and reporting formats are adopted by the Commission under this Regulation.

(116)

The application of all provisions concerning L-category vehicles and vehicles of categories M2, M3, N2, N3 and O should be deferred in order to provide sufficient time for operators to comply with the new requirements. This is particularly important with respect to permits for authorised treatment facilities that are capable of conducting depollution and further treatment of such vehicles.

(117)

In the interest of clarity, rationality and simplification, since the rules on type-approval of motor vehicles with regard to their reusability, recyclability and recoverability are all contained in this Regulation, the repeal of Directive 2005/64/EC should be deferred. This provides sufficient time for manufacturers to ensure that the vehicle types they design and construct comply with the circularity requirements and for type-approval authorities to implement the new rules.

(118)

Since the objectives of this Regulation, namely to contribute to the functioning of the single market, to prevent and reduce the adverse impacts from management of end-of-life vehicles and to ensure a high level of protection of the environment and human health, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States but can rather, by reason of the need for harmonisation, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(119)

On 1 February 2020, the United Kingdom withdrew from the European Union. The Withdrawal Agreement (30) was concluded between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, on the one part, and the United Kingdom, on the other. It was approved by Council Decision (EU) 2020/135 (31) and entered into force on 1 February 2020. The Withdrawal Agreement provides for a transition period which ended on 31 December 2020. At the end of the transition period, Union law ceased to apply to the United Kingdom, whilst the Protocol on Ireland / Northern Ireland (the ‘Windsor Framework’) (32), which forms an integral part of the Withdrawal Agreement, became applicable. In accordance with Article 5(4) of the Windsor Framework and point 9 of Annex 2 to the Windsor Framework, Directive 2005/64/EC, as well as legal acts of the Union implementing, amending or replacing that Directive, apply to and in the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland. This Regulation replaces Directive 2005/64/EC and would therefore apply to and in the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland. Considering the scope of the Windsor Framework, it is therefore appropriate to stipulate that certain provisions of this Regulation should not apply to and in the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland,