Textile Apparel and the Digital Product Passport (DPP)

Textile-specific DPP requirements will be defined through the same future delegated act that will introduce the ecodesign requirements themselves. These textile-specific DPP requirements build on the horizontal DPP requirements and standards being put in place for products that will soon be subject to Ecodesign requirements and, where relevant, for all products required to have a DPP under legislation other than the ESPR.

The DPP would support greater transparency across textile value chains by making relevant product information more accessible and comparable throughout a product's lifecycle. In the context of the ESPR, the DPP forms part of the EU's broader efforts to promote more sustainable, circular and resource-efficient products.   

Why textile apparel?  

The textile sector plays an important role in EU value chains and in circular economy policies. The EU retains a central role in the worldwide textile sector. Overall, in the EU, 194,000 textile companies generate an annual turnover of €166 billion (52% for textiles more broadly and 48% for clothing). However, also in the EU, the consumption of textiles now accounts on average for the fourth highest negative impact on the environment and on climate change and third highest for water and land use from a global life cycle perspective.  

Textiles apparel is the largest textile product subgroup in terms of apparent consumption (4.85 bn kg in 2019) compared to home/interior textiles (3.28 bn kg) and technical textiles (3.55 bn kg).  

The DPP is expected to improve access to information on textile apparel products. It will provide a platform for businesses to demonstrate objectively how sustainable and circular their products are, while giving consumers access to trustworthy information to guide their purchasing decisions. In this way, the DPP will support more sustainable patterns of production and consumption.  

Information contained on the DPP will also prove itself useful for downstream economic operators, potentially facilitating repair, reuse and recycling, also here with important environmental benefits.   

Key requirements

The DPP will be accessible both in online points of sale and through a data carrier on the product itself, such as a QR code, providing access to the ecodesign information and, for authorities, to the conformity assessment information required under the applicable legislation.  

Depending on the final requirements of the delegated act, information may include, beyond sustainability-related product information, documentation relevant for compliance and traceability, as well as ancillary information such as:  

• Product identification and characteristics;  
• Fibre composition (as required under the Textile Labelling Regulation), where relevant for the DPP;  
• Information supporting use, repair and maintenance;  
• Information relevant to reuse, resale, disassembly, refurbishment and disposal at end-of-life and recycling;  
• Origin information;  
• Identification of relevant economic operators;  
• The exact information requirements will be defined through the relevant delegated acts and supporting technical specifications.

Who is the subject of DPP requirements?

DPP requirements will apply primarily to economic operators placing textile apparel products on the EU market or putting them into service in EU territory – these operators are required to make a DPP, as prescribed by EU law, available for such products. Depending on the economic circumstances, these operators may be manufacturers, producers or importers.

Other economic operators, such as distributors and dealers, are required to ensure a DPP is available for those products they distribute or deal with in the EU market. 

Some supply chain actors, notably suppliers of products or service providers, may be subject to specific requirements to provide relevant information that is available to them. 

Indicative implementation timeline*  

• Q4 2027: Planned adoption of the ESPR Delegated Act for textiles  
• Following adoption: Additional guidance, technical specifications and implementation measures will be developed to support the introduction of DPP requirements for textile products.  

*Implementation timelines may evolve as legislative and technical work progresses.