Marketplaces: new regulatory requirements

Following the publication of the AGEC law - Anti-Waste for a Circular Economy law - in the Journal officiel n°0035 of February 11, 2020, marketplaces (marketplace) now have their own regulatory obligations. Who is concerned? What do these obligations entail, and how do you comply? Ecomaison takes a closer look.

Which companies are concerned?

All companies that use an electronic interface - marketplace, platform, portal or similar device - to sell remotely or deliver products covered by the EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility) principle on behalf of a third party. Under the AGEC law, marketplaces are responsible, in place of third-party sellers using the platform, for providing or contributing to waste prevention and management. 

What information is required?

• From January 2022, each marketplace must fulfill EPR obligations for its own products (unique identifier and declaration), as well as for those of its third-party sellers if the latter have not done so. 
• When third-party sellers have fulfilled their obligations, the marketplace must keep a record of the supporting documents in a register for the attention of the administrative authority. 
• Marketplaces also play a role in providing information about trade-ins. 

5 steps to compliance

• Step 1: The marketplace signs a service contract with Ecomaison to obtain its unique identifier and an account enabling it to make its quarterly declarations.
• Step 2: As a Marketplace, you are obliged to keep a register of your third-party sellers, with their details, unique identifiers, quantities marketed by category (according to Ecomaison codes) and trade-in terms. 

Please note: this register of third-party sellers must be made available to Ecomaison for one-off audits.Similarly, for annual audits and market control, you must keep the register of sales by third-party vendor available.

• Step 3: If the third-party seller places products on the market without the marketplace having the unique identifier of the marketer, the marketplace must then determine the product code and eco-tax applicable to the product, and insert its unique identifier.  

• Step 4: At the end of each quarter, the marketplace submits its declaration file to Ecomaison's Espace-services. At the same time, a summary invoice of the amount to be paid is sent electronically to the marketplace. Details of declared products, by third-party vendor, are also available in the Espace-services.
• Step 5: For products sold under EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility), the marketplace has another obligation - to provide information on take-back options. In practice, the buying process on the marketplace must enable the customer to be informed. In addition, as a marketplace, you must ensure that all your third-party sellers offer customers a take-back solution for used objects/products.

Third-party vendor membership: what are the obligations?

• When signing up, the third-party seller must inform Ecomaison of its status as a third-party seller before signing the contract. The start of the contract will be set at the next quarterly reporting period: January 1, April 1, July 1 or October 1. 
• For the companies concerned, Ecomaison is responsible for regularizing the membership of third-party sellers over the previous three years.  
• In the event of late adhesion, the signing of the contract implies its retroactive application for the quantities of products put on the market during the last three calendar years preceding the year of signature of the contract, within the limit of the date on which the adherent marketer became a marketer, and during the months between January 1st of the year of signature of the contract and the date of signature of this one, and relating to the perimeter of approval. 
• When a third-party seller joins, he declares and pays the retroactivity (minus the declarations made by the marketplace).

How do I get a unique identifier?

• As a producer or marketer, you must first sign a contract with Ecomaison. Ecomaison will register you with ADEME - the public body that issues the unique identifier (SYDEREP number).  
• Ecomaison will send you all the data relating to this unique identifier.  
• For its part, ADEME will publish the list of registered marketers and their identifiers.  
• Last step: you must display the unique identifier in theGTC document or, in its absence, inany other contractual document (this obligation also applies to websites). 

How do I apply the product code and eco-tax?

As a marketplace, you can apply the eco-tax scale using the code generator. What's more, a simplified list of less than 100 codes can be supplied to you - just contact our teams. It's a practical tool that will enable you to easily apply the (increased) tariff in the event of missing information on detailed product characteristics.