📖Digital Product Passport

DPP Terminology Glossary

Plain-English definitions of ESPR and Digital Product Passport terms

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Digital Product Passport terms, explained

55 terms from the ESPR, the Battery Regulation, GS1 and ISO standards, in plain English. Each entry names where the term comes from, so you know what carries legal weight.

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55 of 55 terms

Backup copy of a DPPESPR: A copy of a passport held by an independent third-party service provider, so the information stays available if the economic operator stops trading or goes insolvent.
Battery passportBattery Regulation: The electronic record required for certain batteries under the EU Battery Regulation, reached through a QR code on the battery. It applies from 18 February 2027 to electric vehicle batteries, industrial batteries above 2 kWh and light means of transport batteries.
Battery RegulationEU law: Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, the EU rule on batteries and waste batteries. It sets sustainability, labelling and passport requirements and is separate from the ESPR.
Bill of materials (BOM)Industry usage: A structured list of the parts, materials and quantities that make up a product. It is a common starting point for material composition and substances-of-concern data.
Carbon footprintIndustry usage: The greenhouse gas emissions linked to a product over its life cycle, expressed as carbon dioxide equivalent. A DPP may need it stated with the calculation method used.
CE markingEU law: A mark showing a product meets EU health, safety and environmental requirements. The declaration of conformity behind it is often part of the documentation a passport points to.
Circular economyEU law: An economic model that keeps products and materials in use for longer through durability, repair, reuse and recycling. The ESPR is a key part of the EU's circular economy plans.
Critical raw materialsEU law: Raw materials that the EU considers economically important and at risk of supply disruption. Passports may need to state where they are present.
Customs codeEU law: The commodity code (from the Combined Nomenclature) used to classify goods at the border. A passport can carry it so authorities can tell what product group applies.
Data carrierESPR: A physical or digital means of reading a product's identifier and linking it to its passport. Examples are a QR code, a Data Matrix, an NFC tag or an RFID tag.DPP Data Carrier Selection Guide
Data MatrixISO/IEC: A compact two-dimensional barcode that stays readable at very small sizes. GS1 DataMatrix is widely used for direct part marking and healthcare items.
Data resolverGS1: A web service that receives the identifier read from a data carrier and sends the user to the right information, for example the consumer view or the authority view. A resolver lets you move data without changing the printed code.
Declaration of conformityEU law: A document in which the manufacturer states that a product meets the applicable EU requirements. It is usually referenced from the passport.
Delegated actESPR: A legal act the European Commission adopts to set detailed rules under a framework law. Under the ESPR, a delegated act sets the ecodesign requirements and the passport content for one product group.DPP Product Category Lookup
Destruction of unsold productsESPR: The ESPR restricts businesses from destroying unsold consumer products in certain groups, starting with apparel and footwear, and requires disclosure of how many unsold products are discarded. Check the dates and company-size rules in the regulation.
Digital Link (GS1)GS1: See GS1 Digital Link.
Digital Product Passport (DPP)ESPR: A structured, machine-readable record of a product's identity, composition, durability, repairability and end-of-life information, reachable from a data carrier on the product. It is introduced by the ESPR and applies product group by product group.The Digital Product Passport guide
DPP registryESPR: A central EU register that the Commission sets up so authorities and customs can look up passports. The ESPR sets the deadline for it to be operational, and product identifiers are expected to be registered there.
DPP service providerESPR: A third party that hosts or manages passports on behalf of an economic operator, and may also hold the backup copy.
DurabilityESPR: The ability of a product to keep performing its function over time under normal use. It is one of the product parameters in ESPR Annex I.
EcodesignEU law: Designing products so that their environmental impact over the whole life cycle is reduced. The ESPR widens ecodesign from energy-related products to almost all physical goods.
Ecodesign DirectiveEU law: Directive 2009/125/EC, the earlier framework for ecodesign of energy-related products. The ESPR replaces it and keeps the existing product regulations in force until they are updated.
Economic operatorESPR: The manufacturer, importer, distributor, authorised representative or fulfilment service provider that has obligations under the regulation. Passports must identify the operator responsible for the product.
Environmental footprintIndustry usage: The overall environmental impact of a product measured across categories such as climate, water and resource use, often calculated with a life-cycle assessment method.
ESPRESPR: The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, in force since 18 July 2024. It sets a framework for ecodesign requirements and introduces the Digital Product Passport.ESPR Compliance Roadmap
GS1GS1: The not-for-profit standards organisation behind the GTIN, the barcode system and GS1 Digital Link. Companies get GTINs from their local GS1 member organisation.
GS1 Digital LinkGS1: A standard, also published as ISO/IEC 18975, that puts a GTIN and optional batch or serial number into a web address, so one QR code can serve both the retail checkout and the product's online information.
GTINGS1: Global Trade Item Number, the 8, 12, 13 or 14 digit number that identifies a product model in trade. It is the most common identifier that DPP identifiers are built around.GTIN Check Digit Calculator
InteroperabilityIndustry usage: The ability of different systems, suppliers and authorities to exchange and understand the same passport data, which is why open, standardised formats matter.
ISO/IEC 15459ISO/IEC: The international standard series for unique identifiers. The ESPR refers to it for the unique product, operator and facility identifiers used in a passport.
ISO/IEC 18004ISO/IEC: The international standard that defines the QR code symbol.
Life-cycle assessment (LCA)Industry usage: A method for measuring the environmental impact of a product from raw materials through use to end of life. It is the usual basis for carbon and environmental footprint values.
Machine-readableIndustry usage: Data stored in a structured format that software can read directly, such as JSON or XML, rather than only text in a PDF.
Market surveillance authorityEU law: The national authority that checks products on the market comply with the rules. It can access passport information, including parts that are not public.
Master dataIndustry usage: The core, shared records about products, suppliers and locations that other systems rely on. Passport data should come from governed master data, not from one-off spreadsheets.Single source of truth for product data
NFC (near-field communication)ISO/IEC: A short-range wireless technology that lets a phone read a small tag by tapping it. NFC tags can carry a passport link and survive where printed codes may not.
Product data modelIndustry usage: The agreed structure of attributes, values and relationships that describe a product. A passport data model maps your attributes to the fields a delegated act requires.How to build a DPP data model
Product groupESPR: A category of products for which the Commission sets ecodesign requirements and passport content through one delegated act, such as textiles or iron and steel.
Product information management (PIM)Industry usage: Software and processes that keep product data complete, consistent and ready to publish. A PIM often becomes the source that feeds a passport.How PIM supports DPP workflows
QR codeISO/IEC: A two-dimensional barcode that any smartphone camera can read. It is the most common data carrier for consumer-facing passports.
REACHEU law: The EU regulation on the registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemicals. Its candidate list of substances of very high concern feeds the substances-of-concern data in a passport.
RecyclabilityESPR: How easily a product and its materials can be collected, sorted and recycled at end of life. It is one of the ESPR Annex I product parameters, under design for recycling.
Recycled contentESPR: The share of a product's material that comes from recycled sources. Passports may need it stated along with how it is verified.
RefurbishmentIndustry usage: Restoring a used product to a good working condition so it can be sold again. Passport data helps refurbishers know what they are handling.
RemanufacturingESPR: Rebuilding a used product to a like-new standard, often reusing many of its components.
RepairabilityESPR: How easily a product can be repaired, including access to spare parts, tools and instructions. It is an ESPR Annex I product parameter.
RFID (radio-frequency identification)ISO/IEC: A wireless technology that reads tags at a distance and in bulk without line of sight. UHF RFID tags are common in logistics and apparel supply chains.
Role-based accessESPR: Different audiences see different parts of a passport. For example consumers see basic and care information, repairers see repair data, and authorities see compliance data.
Spare partsIndustry usage: Components that can replace failed parts. Repair-related passport data may list which spare parts exist, for how long and how fast they ship.
Substances of concernESPR: Substances that may harm health or the environment, such as those on the REACH candidate list. The ESPR calls for tracking their presence in products and, where relevant, in the passport.
Supplier data collectionIndustry usage: The process of getting material, chemical and origin information from suppliers in a consistent format, with evidence, so it can go into a passport.How to collect supplier data for DPP
Unique facility identifierESPR: An identifier for a site where the product was made, structured to a standard such as ISO/IEC 15459, so the location can be traced.
Unique operator identifierESPR: An identifier for the economic operator responsible for the product, used so authorities can tell who to contact.
Unique product identifierESPR: An identifier that distinguishes one product, batch or model from another, as each delegated act requires. It is what the data carrier encodes.
UpgradabilityESPR: How easily a product can be improved or kept current, for example through replaceable modules or software updates.

Definitions are summaries for orientation, not legal text. For binding wording, read Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 (ESPR), Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 (Batteries) and the delegated act for your product group.

What this tool delivers

The Digital Product Passport comes with its own vocabulary: ESPR, delegated act, economic operator, data carrier, resolver, GS1 Digital Link. This glossary defines more than fifty terms in plain English and names where each comes from, so you know whether a term is defined in EU law, in a standard or in common industry usage.

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A label shows whether it comes from the ESPR, the Battery Regulation, GS1, ISO/IEC standards, other EU law or industry usage.
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A plain-English map of the EU rules behind the terms.

How ESPR, DPP and the Battery Regulation fit together

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Frequently Asked Questions

What does ESPR stand for?

Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2024/1781. It has been in force since 18 July 2024 and introduces the Digital Product Passport.

What is an economic operator?

The manufacturer, importer, distributor, authorised representative or fulfilment service provider with obligations under the regulation. The passport identifies the operator responsible for the product.

What is a delegated act?

A legal act the European Commission adopts to set detailed rules under a framework law. Under the ESPR each delegated act covers one product group and sets its requirements and passport content.