Detergents are among the most widely used groups of chemical products in households and industry. Although to the end user they may seem like “ordinary cleaning products”, fo

On 8 December 2025, the European Council approved the final text of the new Regulation on detergents and surfactants. The new rules will replace and amend Regulation (EC) No 648/2004, which was last updated in 2012. According to the legislators, the new provisions are intended to facilitate the sale of detergents on EU markets while at the same time protecting human health and the environment.

The new regulation is expected to increase user safety, have a positive impact on environmental protection, and enable better market surveillance, in particular with regard to the import of products from outside the European Union.

The adoption of the text represents the final step in the legislative process at the level of the European Council. However, the regulation must still be approved at a plenary session of the European Parliament. The new rules will apply 3.5 years after the regulation enters into force, which should allow businesses sufficient time to adapt to the new requirements.

What will change?

The updated regulation is intended to include provisions that will simplify the information provided to consumers and make the labelling rules for this group of products simpler and more transparent for businesses.

The new regulation is also expected to address changes resulting from technical progress, including the use of microorganisms in cleaning products. In addition, it will promote environmentally beneficial solutions, such as the sale of detergents via refill stations.

From a documentation perspective, the most significant change appears to be the introduction of the concept of a Digital Product Passport (DPP) for detergents and surfactants. At this stage, however, detailed guidance on the exact content of this document is not yet available. The proposal approved by the Council indicates that the format and content of the Digital Product Passport should be aligned with the Commission’s proposal set out in the Regulation establishing a framework for setting ecodesign requirements for sustainable products (ESPR – Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation).

Digital Product Passport

The ESPR requirements (Regulation (EU) 2024/1781) are relatively general with regard to the DPP and indicate primarily that detailed rules will be adopted in the form of delegated acts. As a result, it is currently difficult to assess precisely what information will be required in the Digital Product Passport for detergents. The European Council proposal, available at the following link: https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-8904-2023-INIT/en/pdf, does not yet include Annex VI, which is intended to specify the information required in the DPP.

Based on the ESPR, it can be assumed that the DPP will certainly need to include company details, information enabling the unambiguous identification of the product, and data relating to the product’s compliance with applicable EU legislation. The Digital Product Passport will have to be made available to entities in the European Union free of charge. The lack of detailed requirements makes it difficult to clearly assess how complex the preparation of this document will be; however, it appears likely that, alongside safety data sheets and labels, it may become one of the most important regulatory obligations to be fulfilled before placing a product on the market.

We will continue to monitor legislative developments and provide ongoing updates on the requirements arising from the new regulation, in particular with regard to the Digital Product Passport.

r manufacturers, importers and distributors they represent a distinct category with extensive regulatory obligations. Placing them on the EU market requires compliance with three key legal acts: REACH, CLP and the Detergents Regulation (EC) 648/2004.

This means that in addition to the standard requirements applicable to chemical products—such as preparing a safety data sheet and developing a compliant label—manufacturers face an additional layer of obligations that must be considered when designing a product and preparing it for market placement. It is worth starting with the most fundamental question: which products fall within the scope of the Detergents Regulation.