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Posted by Graham Boak on September 14, 2026, 02:20:34, in reply to "It is a very well camouflaged act of protectionism "
VAT is not protectionism: it has been the law of the land for home and import producers alike for many years. It replaces the previous Purchase Tax in the UK. It is unclear to me how it is in principle different from the state taxes paid on bills in the US.
Many importers avoid paying the tax so giving themselves an unfair competitive advantage in the UK and elsewhere.
It's a shame that the new rules are particularly onerous on small hobby producers, and certainly that a single set of such information can't be satisfactory for all countries.
But if we are talking about protectionism, motes and beams, guys. 
Previous Message
If you look closely at most (not all) carrier issued international packaging, it is recyclable. Matter of fact Fed Ex packaging states recycle ready.
All the rest is just the EU creating bureaucrat jobs to inhibit imports. I work with Europeans all day long and their concern for the environment and recycling is as much as the Americans. Forgetful mostly but not intentional. The EU is not targeting you but the Chinese who did not just over run European producers they annihilated them included 3D printing producers. Ever wonder why Shapeways after its re-organization still has not achieved reputational notoriety and market share with its industrialized sized printers?
VAT has now been clearly identified as tariff so the EU immediately launched itself to finding other terminology and programs that they could camouflage to further their protectionism. In this the EU must be very very careful. China was the first to speak about EU BS when they hear it. They gave a warning to the EU about programs that inhibit imports. They may not get a second warning. The next action may not come from the U.S. but from China.
If international markets become protectionists then it’s time to refocus and think domestically which is the whole point of VATs/tariffs and now add moronic programs the EU believes it can push onto the world. Another point to think about, if your EU market has grown to such an extent as to threaten the closing of Model Monkey time to think about an EU partner. Involved yes it is but then so is figuring out the dynamics of the 3D printing process.
My two cents Previous Message
Unlike VAT or tariffs, there is no fee that gets paid when a package gets delivered.
This is an environmental regulation, not a customs regulation.
The stated purpose of the regulation is to reduce packaging pollution and minimize raw material use by maximizing the use of recyclable materials.
The PPWR regulation covers:
1. how the package must be marked identifying the materials the package and the packing materials within are made from.
2. whether or not the packing materials are recyclable .
3. how certifying documents must be completed and filed by the shipper and to whom.
4. that the shipper must register with member states' environmental authorities .
5. that the shipper must record the weight of packing materials and submit a report to each receiving EU country annually .
6. that the shipper must pay an annual fee to each receiving country's environmental authority in order to help pay a portion of the recycling costs in that country.
The way the regulation reads, at least how I understand it, is that the documents, reporting and annual fees have to be done by an agent in the EU whom I hire. The filings have to be made annually in each EU country we ship to. I, as the shipper, must account for the weight of each packing material and report that information to the agent who in turn makes the appropriate filings with each EU country.
This is very different from how VAT, GST, tariffs or customs declarations are handled.
What is known is that a US vendor sending non-compliant packaging to the European Union faces immediate border blocks, product sales bans, and future financial penalties enforced by member states. Non-compliant boxes or materials cannot legally enter the EU market. Border agents can refuse entry to shipments missing proper environmental documentation or product tracking files.
Online sales platforms like Amazon or eBay can remove our product listings if I fail to submit valid compliance proofs or local waste registration numbers.
What's not clear at this point is exactly how the PPWR gets enforced and what actually happens if I try to ship to ship packages that are not in compliance (marked properly) to an EU country.
The PPWR directs each country to determine their own actions in response to a non-compliant package. Some reports indicate that most countries are likely to issue a warning for the first offense. Other reports indicate that most countries are likely to reject the package and return it to the vendor at the vendor's expense. Yet other reports indicate that a country may seize and destroy the package.
But at this point, I have yet to see anything authoritative about enforcement from any authoritative source.
More to follow as we learn more.
Thanks again.
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