Destruction Ban for Textiles: What the EU Rule Means for Importers

Since 19 July 2026, large companies in the EU may no longer simply destroy unsold clothing. The Digital Product Passport for textiles is often mentioned in the same breath and easily mixed up with it. Both stem from the same EU regulation but apply at very different times. We separate what is binding today, what is still pending and what it means for small and medium-sized textile importers. Status as of 27 October 2026.

What has applied since 19 July 2026

The ban is set out in the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, ESPR (Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, Article 25). It covers clothing including headwear and clothing accessories, as well as footwear, delimited by CN codes in Annex VII. The size of the company determines the start date (Umweltbundesamt, status 17.07.2026):

• Large companies (more than 250 employees and turnover above €50m or balance sheet total above €43m): ban since 19 July 2026.
• Medium-sized companies: ban from 19 July 2030.
• Small and micro enterprises (fewer than 50 employees, turnover or balance sheet total of up to €10m): exempt, both from the ban and from disclosure.

Most retailers, dropshippers and private-label brands we work with therefore fall under the exemption. For them the rule is not a direct obligation.

When destruction remains permitted

The ban is not absolute. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/296 lists exceptions, for example health or safety risks, infringements of intellectual property rights (counterfeits), production or design defects that cannot be repaired, damaged or contaminated goods, or where donation offers were unsuccessful. According to the Umweltbundesamt, an offer counts as unsuccessful if the goods were offered for donation for at least eight weeks or offered directly to several organisations without anyone accepting them.

Anyone relying on an exception must be able to prove it: keep the documents for five years and submit them electronically to the authorities within 30 days on request.

Disclosure: a separate obligation

Large companies must also disclose how many unsold consumer products they have destroyed, with weight, reasons and disposal route. The first data concerns the 2025 financial year, published no later than twelve months after the end of the financial year. The binding format under Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/2 applies from 2 March 2027 (Umweltbundesamt). This obligation goes beyond textiles and applies to consumer products in general.

Digital Product Passport for textiles: not yet binding

The product passport is something different from the destruction ban. For textiles it requires its own delegated act, which to our knowledge has not been adopted. An industry overview on espratlas.com, which we could not check against a primary source, reports neither a published draft nor an ongoing consultation. The act is said to be planned for the fourth quarter of 2027, explicitly as an indicative date, and because of the transition period of at least 18 months an obligation is hardly to be expected before mid-2029 (espratlas.com, status 10.08.2026).

Other sources give other dates, from 2027 to 2029. We treat all dates as provisional. Only what is published in the Official Journal of the EU is binding.

What this means for importers

Few of our customers are directly affected. Three practical points remain nonetheless:

• Plan quantities and size runs realistically: goods that do not sell become a cost factor. If you order large to reduce the unit price, factor in the remaining stock from the start.
• Clarify early with large customers: if you supply retail chains or brands that count as large companies, expect them to pass these requirements on contractually for returns and surplus stock.
• Keep product data clean: material, origin and labelling have to be correct anyway, see our article on textile labelling. Documenting this today means less effort for a later product passport.

At DS Trading we check material and labelling before shipment as part of quality control and plan quantities together with you, see Services. For a specific order you can reach us via the contact page.