- Digital Product Passport (DPP)
- A structured, digital set of product data (accessed through a data carrier such as a QR code or NFC tag) that documents a product's materials, environmental footprint, repair and lifecycle information to support sustainability and circularity in the EU single market. Under the ESPR it becomes mandatory for most physical products sold in the EU, rolled out sector by sector.
- ESPR (Regulation (EU) 2024/1781)
- The EU Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, in force since 18 July 2024, which creates a framework for setting ecodesign requirements and mandates the Digital Product Passport for regulated product groups. It replaces the 2009 Ecodesign Directive and extends its scope far beyond energy-related products.
- Ecodesign Directive (2009/125/EC)
- The earlier EU directive that set ecodesign requirements mainly for energy-related products such as appliances and lighting. It is superseded by the ESPR (2024/1781), although its existing implementing measures stay in effect until they are replaced.
- Delegated act
- A legally binding act adopted by the European Commission that sets the detailed, product-specific rules under a framework regulation like the ESPR, including which data a given product group's DPP must contain and the applicable timeline. Each product category, such as textiles or batteries, is governed by its own delegated act.
- EU DPP registry
- A central registry provided for under the ESPR and to be operated by the European Commission, storing the unique identifiers of Digital Product Passports and their data carriers so that market surveillance and customs authorities can verify products and passports remain findable. It is being set up as part of the DPP system rollout and is not yet fully operational.
- Economic operator
- Under EU product law, any manufacturer, authorised representative, importer, distributor, dealer, or fulfilment service provider involved in placing a product on the market. The ESPR assigns DPP responsibilities (creating and keeping the passport up to date) primarily to the operator that places the product on the EU market.
- Market surveillance
- The controls carried out by designated national authorities to ensure products on the EU market comply with applicable rules. Under the ESPR these authorities can query DPP data to verify conformity and take enforcement action against non-compliant products.
- Unique product identifier
- A unique code that identifies a product at model, batch, or item level and links the physical product to its Digital Product Passport. The ESPR requires it to be issued and structured according to recognised international standards so it is machine-readable and unambiguous across the single market.
- Data carrier
- The physical medium (such as a QR code, data matrix, or NFC tag) placed on a product that stores or links to its unique identifier and therefore to its Digital Product Passport. The ESPR requires the carrier to be present on the product, its packaging, or its accompanying documentation.
- GS1 Digital Link
- A GS1 standard that turns a product identifier such as a GTIN into a web URI, so a single QR code can resolve to different resources (a DPP, a product page, or an authentication service) depending on the context. It is a leading candidate standard for encoding DPP data carriers.
- GS1 Web Vocabulary
- A standardised GS1 vocabulary of terms and properties for describing products and their attributes as structured, linked web data. It is typically used together with GS1 Digital Link and JSON-LD so that passport information carries shared, interoperable meaning.
- JSON-LD
- A lightweight, JSON-based format for expressing linked data, letting product information be both human-readable and machine-interpretable with shared semantics. It is widely proposed as a serialisation format for structured, interoperable DPP data.
- NFC
- Near Field Communication, a very short-range wireless technology that lets a smartphone read a chip embedded in a product by simple contact. As a DPP data carrier it provides access to the passport and, with secure chips, enables tamper-evident product authentication.
- NTAG 424 DNA
- A secure NFC chip (from NXP) that generates a fresh cryptographic signature on every read, making each tap independently verifiable and clones detectable. SealTrust uses it to bind a physical product to its DPP and to prove authenticity.
- SUN (Secure Unique NFC message)
- A feature of the NTAG 424 DNA chip, also called Secure Dynamic Messaging, that on each read produces a URL containing a rolling counter and a cryptographic message authentication code. This lets the server confirm the read is genuine and not a copy or a replay, underpinning tap-to-verify authentication.
- QR code
- A two-dimensional barcode that any smartphone camera can scan to open a URL, commonly used as a low-cost DPP data carrier that resolves to a product's passport. Because it is easy to reproduce, on its own it identifies a product but does not prove authenticity.
- RFID
- Radio-Frequency Identification, a wireless technology that reads data from a tag via radio waves at ranges from a few centimetres to several metres depending on frequency; NFC is its short-range subset. In product identification it enables contactless or bulk reading of items, complementing QR and NFC as a potential DPP carrier.
- Blockchain anchoring
- Recording a cryptographic fingerprint (hash) of product or passport data onto a public blockchain so the data's integrity and timestamp can later be verified independently, without trusting a single party. SealTrust anchors on Base, an Ethereum layer-2 network, to make DPP records tamper-evident.
- Substances of concern
- Substances that are hazardous to health or the environment, or that hinder reuse and recycling; the ESPR requires the DPP to make information on their presence in a product traceable through the supply chain. The category covers, among others, SVHCs and other regulated hazardous substances.
- SVHC
- Substances of Very High Concern, a category under the EU REACH regulation for chemicals with serious health or environmental effects (such as carcinogens or endocrine disruptors) placed on a candidate list. Their presence above 0.1 % by weight in an article triggers notification and communication duties relevant to DPP data.
- SCIP database
- The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) database on Substances of Concern In articles as such or in complex objects (Products), where companies must report SVHCs present above 0.1 % in the articles they place on the EU market. It supports waste operators and consumers and feeds substance information relevant to the DPP.
- Recycled content
- The share of a product or material made from recycled inputs, pre- or post-consumer, rather than virgin materials, usually expressed as a percentage by mass. It is a common ESPR ecodesign requirement and a typical mandatory DPP data field.
- Battery passport (Regulation (EU) 2023/1542)
- A mandatory digital passport for certain batteries under the EU Batteries Regulation, required from 18 February 2027 for light-means-of-transport (LMT) batteries, industrial batteries above 2 kWh, and electric-vehicle batteries. It documents composition, carbon footprint, state of health, and supply-chain due diligence, and is often regarded as the first concrete application of the DPP concept.
- EPREL
- The European Product Registry for Energy Labelling, an EU database where suppliers must register energy-labelled products such as appliances and lighting, with their energy-efficiency data, before placing them on the market. It is an existing product database that DPP frameworks may reference or interoperate with.
- Traceability
- The ability to follow a product, its components, and its materials through the stages of the supply chain, from raw material to finished good and end of life. The DPP is designed to make this information accessible and verifiable to the relevant actors.
- Provenance
- The documented origin and chain of custody of a product or its materials: where they were sourced, made, and handled along the supply chain. Verifiable provenance supports both DPP sustainability claims and anti-counterfeiting by evidencing a product's authentic history.
- Anti-counterfeiting
- Measures and technologies that prevent, detect, or prove the difference between genuine products and fakes; secure NFC chips, cryptographic tap verification, and blockchain records let a single scan confirm authenticity. While not the primary aim of the ESPR, it is a strong complementary use of DPP infrastructure.
- Tiered access
- A model in which different DPP data is shown to different audiences (consumers, repairers, recyclers, and authorities) according to their needs and permissions, with commercially sensitive data restricted. The ESPR explicitly foresees differentiated access rights to passport data.
- Circular economy
- An economic model that keeps materials and products in use as long as possible through durability, reuse, repair, refurbishment, and recycling, minimising waste and virgin-resource extraction. The DPP is a core EU tool to enable it by making product information available across the lifecycle.
- Greenwashing
- Marketing that makes a product or company appear more environmentally sustainable than it truly is, through vague, unsubstantiated, or misleading claims. Verifiable DPP data and related EU rules on environmental claims aim to curb it by requiring evidence behind environmental statements.