Q1.1. What is the legal base of the WEEE Directive?
A1.1. The WEEE Directive is based on Article 175 of the Treaty. The purpose of this Directive is, as a first priority, the prevention of WEEE, and in addition, to promote the reuse, recycling and other forms of recovery of such wastes so as to reduce disposal. It also seeks to improve the environmental performance of all operators involved in the life cycle of electrical and electronic equipment, e.g. producers, distributors and consumers, and in particular those operators directly involved in the treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment.
Q1.2. What is the criteria for determining whether a product falls under the WEEE Directive?
A1.2. Criteria for equipment considered to be covered by WEEE Directive as below:
- Equipment, “which is dependent on electric current or electromagnetic fields in order to work properly, and equipment for the generation, transfer and measurement of such currents and fields”
- Equipment which is “designed for use with a voltage rating not exceeding 1000 Volt for alternating current and 1500 Volt for direct current”
- Equipment which falls “under the categories set out in Annex I A ”Excluded from category 6: large-scale stationary industrial tools“
- Equipment listed in Annex I B which “contains a list of products which fall under the categories set out in Annex IA”
- Equipment which is not part of another type of equipment that does not fall within the scope of this Directive
- Equipment which is not covered by “specific Community waste management legislation.”
- Equipment which is not a product which is intended for specifically military purposes
Q1.3. Is my product covered by the WEEE Directive?
A1.3. This FAQ document provides criteria for determining whether a product falls under the scope of the WEEE Directive and does not provide criteria on the categorisation of the products. The document can assist producers in making this assessment. However, the onus to determine if a product falls within the scope of the WEEE Directive is on the producer who is the person best placed to assess the characteristics of his product.
Q1.4. Do the WEEE Directive apply to electrical and electronic products for professional use?
A1.4. The WEEE Directive contains provisions that cover WEEE from households and WEEE from users other than private households. In addition, Article 10(3) does not specifically limit the marking obligation to Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) for private households because in some cases it is difficult to distinguish between households and professional electrical and electronic equipment. Therefore, the marking obligation also applies to EEE for professional use.
Q1.5. Do the WEEE Directive apply to batteries?
A1.5. Batteries incorporated in WEEE will be collected on the basis of the WEEE Directive. However, after collection on the basis of the WEEE Directive, they will be removed from the electronic equipment (Annex II of the WEEE Directive) and they will count for the collection targets of the Battery Directive. They also have to undergo the recycling requirements of the Battery Directive.
Q1.6. Do the WEEE Directive apply to ink cartridges?
A1.6. According to the definition of EEE, the printer itself is EEE because it falls under Category 3 of Annex IB to the WEEE Directive. If a printer is discarded, it becomes WEEE. This means that if an ink cartridge is inside a discarded printer, the cartridge becomes part of the WEEE because it is a consumable which is part of the printer at the time of discarding. Article 4 of the WEEE Directive requires Member States to encourage the design and production of electrical and electronic equipment which takes into account and facilitates dismantling and recovery, in particular the reuse and recycling of WEEE, their components and materials. However, the cartridge itself does not fall under the definition of EEE, but is considered to be a consumable.
Q1.7. Are Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips included in the scope of the WEEE Directive?
A1.7. RFIDs meet the definition of electrical and electronic equipment provided for in the WEEE Directive and can be considered to fall under Category 3 “IT and telecommunication equipment”. Concerning the WEEE Directive, if RFIDs are put on the packaging of the electrical and electronic equipment they are considered to fall outside the scope of the Directive because they are part of a product that is not covered by the WEEE Directive. If they are put on the equipment, the producer of the equipment is responsible for recycling.
Q1.8. Are antennas, cables, fiber optics and waveguides covered by the WEEE Directive?
A1.8. Antennas and cables meet the definition of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) under the WEEE Directive. All cables inside and/or as extensions or connections which are part of the equipment at the time of discarding are considered WEEE. All cables used for fixed installations fall outside the scope of WEEE. Masts and pylons do not meet the definition of EEE. If the products are integrated into a fixed installation they are not considered WEEE. Modular cabling systems for voice, data and video applications fall under Category 3 “IT and telecommunication equipment” of the WEEE Directive.
Q1.9. What is meant by “infected products”?
A1.9. The WEEE Directive applies to the categories listed under Annex IA of the Directive. Annex IB contains a non-exhaustive list of products falling under the categories. Category 8 covers "medical devices with the exception of all implanted and infected products". Infected products are understood to be products that have come into contact with blood or other biological contaminants prior to end-of-life.
Q1.10. What is meant by “video games”?
A1.10. "Video games" are listed under Category 7, Annex IB of the WEEE Directive. Video games are to be interpreted in the sense of hardware equipment. The hardware equipment meets the definition of electrical and electronic equipment under the WEEE Directive. Software equipment (such as cards, CD-roms, etc) does not meet the definition of electronic equipment and can be considered as consumables.
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