What the EU Digital Product Passport Will Mean for Clothing Brands

Imagine picking up a sweater in a shop, scanning the code on its care label, and seeing what it is made of, where it was woven, dyed and sewn, and how to repair it. That is the idea behind the EU’s Digital Product Passport. For clothing it is coming, but it is not law yet. The textile rules are still being written, and the first obligations are not expected before about 2029.

That gives brands time. This guide covers what has been decided, what is still open, what a clothing passport is likely to hold, and the few things worth doing now. One of them is already required in France.

Updated 1 November 2026. The first version of this article, published in March 2026, said passports start in 2026 and gave dates for textiles that were too early. This version corrects the timeline and sticks to what has actually been decided. Sources are listed at the end.

What is a Digital Product Passport?

A Digital Product Passport (DPP) is a digital record about a product that anyone can reach from the product itself, usually by scanning a code. It is meant to follow the product through its life: from the brand to the shopper, then to repairers, resellers and, at the end, recyclers.

It comes from the EU’s Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, in force since 18 July 2024. ESPR is a framework. It does not list the passport fields for clothing. Those come in a separate act for each product group, called a delegated act. For textiles, that act has not been adopted, and no draft has been published.

Where things stand for clothing

Why about 2029? Under ESPR, the requirements of a delegated act apply at least 18 months after it enters into force. If the textile act is adopted at the end of 2027, clothing passports would not be required before 2029. The Commission itself says its timeline may change.

What about “passports start in 2026”? You may have read that, including here. No passport under ESPR applies in 2026. The first mandatory passports, from 18 February 2027, are for batteries used in electric vehicles and light transport and for industrial batteries over 2 kWh. They come from a separate law, the Batteries Regulation.

What a clothing passport is likely to hold

Nothing is final. The best guide today is the JRC study published in May 2026. It is a proposal, not the rule, and it suggests fields such as:

• Fibre composition and the main components of the garment.
• Substances of concern: which ones, where they are, and how much.
• Recycled and organic content.
• Durability: how robust the piece is, with test results.
• Care, repair and warranty information.
• End of life: how the piece can be resold, recycled or disposed of.
• Environmental footprint.

Each field would have an access level. Some would be public, for shoppers. Some would be for people with a “legitimate interest”, such as repairers and recyclers. Some would be for authorities only.

The study also suggests requiring a passport per production batch, with one per single piece left optional. That question is still open, and it matters for how you label: one code per style, per batch or per piece.

The code on the label

A passport needs a way in from the product, called a data carrier. The rules don’t pick one technology. The harmonised standard on data carriers (EN 18220) covers QR codes, Data Matrix codes and RFID tags. The standard on identifiers (EN 18219) asks for an identifier that is a web address, or that leads to one. GS1 Digital Link is one accepted way to do that, not the only one.

Two things follow for clothing:

• The code should open a web page you can keep updating. A code that holds fixed text can never change once printed. A code that points to a web address can: you print the label once and update what is behind it as the rules land.
• It has to stay with the garment. A hang tag goes in the bin on the first day. A code on the care label, a woven patch or a printed inside label stays for the life of the piece, which is the whole point of a passport.

What changes for brands

The passport is the brand’s responsibility, not its software supplier’s. Under ESPR and the registry rules:

• Whoever places the product on the EU market registers the passport: the brand, or the importer for goods made outside the EU. They stay fully responsible for it, even when someone else does the registration for them.
• The passport is stored by the brand or by a passport service provider, and a backup copy must be held by an independent service provider.
• It must stay available for the product’s expected life, even if the brand closes.
• Service providers may not sell or reuse your data. Rules for these providers, possibly including certification, are expected in a later act.

So be wary of any tool sold today as making clothing “DPP-compliant” or “passport-ready”. The textile requirements don’t exist yet, and no certification for passport tools exists either.

What you can do now

1. Check France’s rules, which apply today. Under the AGEC law (article L. 541-9-1 of the French Environment Code and décret n° 2022-748), larger brands selling clothing in France must already publish, for each product, information such as:

• the countries where the fabric was woven, where it was dyed or printed, and where the piece was made;
• the share of recycled material;
• whether it releases plastic microfibres when washed, for pieces that are more than 50% synthetic;
• whether it contains substances of very high concern.

The obligation has been phased in by company size, based on turnover and the number of units sold. Check the thresholds in the décret for your brand.

2. Watch what you claim. Since 27 September 2026, the EU rules against greenwashing (Directive (EU) 2024/825) ban vague claims such as “eco-friendly” that you cannot back up, and sustainability labels that are not based on a certification scheme or set up by a public authority. This applies to your product pages and labels now, passport or not.

3. Gather your product data in one place. Most brands keep composition, origin and care details across spreadsheets, tech packs and supplier emails. Put them together per style, and start asking suppliers for the country of each production stage and for recycled content. Composition, care and recycled content are in the JRC proposal, and countries of origin are already required in France.

4. Decide where the code goes. Choose whether you want a code per style or one per piece, and put it somewhere that stays with the garment.

5. Follow the official page. The European Commission keeps a page on the textile passport and its timeline. It is listed in the sources below.

Where BasiQR fits

BasiQR puts a small code on your care label that opens a page in the shopper’s browser, with no app. Today that page shows what you choose: materials, care, origin, size and fit, the story of the piece, and a check that it is genuine. You set the fields for each collection, so you can add the information France asks for now, and change it later without reprinting a label.

What BasiQR doesn’t do yet is export a passport. When the EU publishes the textile act and its data format, we plan to add an export of your product data in that format, for you to hand to the passport service provider you register with. You can see it on our pricing page, marked “Coming”. Until the rules are final, we won’t call anything “compliant”.

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FAQ

Is a digital product passport mandatory for clothing?

Not yet. The EU has not adopted the textile rules. The Commission plans to adopt them in the last quarter of 2027, and they would apply at least 18 months after they enter into force, so not before about 2029.

Which products need a passport first?

Certain large batteries: those for electric vehicles and light transport, and industrial batteries over 2 kWh, from 18 February 2027. That comes from the EU Batteries Regulation, not from ESPR.

Does a passport have to use a QR code?

No. The rules are technology-neutral. A QR code, a Data Matrix code or an RFID tag can carry it, as long as it leads to a web address.

Where does passport data have to be stored?

With the brand or a passport service provider, plus a backup copy at an independent provider. No particular storage technology is required. The passport must stay available for the product’s expected life.

Can software make my brand passport-compliant today?

No. There are no textile requirements to meet yet, and no certification for passport tools. What you can do is gather your product data, put a code on the label that lasts, and meet France’s AGEC rules if they apply to you.

Is there anything I must do for clothing today?

In the EU, large companies may no longer destroy unsold clothing and footwear, and the greenwashing rules apply to your product claims. In France, larger brands must already publish the AGEC product information listed above.

Sources

• Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (EUR-Lex)
• ESPR and Energy Labelling Working Plan 2025–2030, COM(2025) 187 (EUR-Lex)
• Digital Product Passport for textiles and apparel (European Commission)
• The Digital Product Passport Registry is now live, 20 July 2026 (European Commission)
• Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1778 on the passport registry (EUR-Lex)
• JRC study on the Digital Product Passport for textiles, May 2026 (Joint Research Centre)
• Décret n° 2022-748 on consumer information about products’ environmental features (Légifrance)

This article explains the rules as we understand them on 1 November 2026. It is not legal advice.