What Changed in GS1 Digital Link 1.3
GS1 has released version 1.3 of the Digital Link standard, with updates specifically addressing the requirements of EU Digital Product Passports. While this is a standards update rather than a regulatory change, it has direct implications for any manufacturer generating DPP-compliant QR codes.
Key Updates
- Serial-level identification for batteries — The updated guide mandates that battery DPP QR codes encode not just the GTIN (product model identifier) but also the serial number for individual battery units. This aligns with the EU Battery Regulation requirement for unique passports per battery above 2 kWh. The URI structure is:
https://id.example.com/01/{GTIN}/21/{serial} - Resolver conformance requirements — Resolver services (the servers that receive a GS1 Digital Link URI and return the appropriate passport data) must now support content negotiation, returning different data formats based on the requesting client. A browser receives the human-readable passport viewer; a machine client receives JSON-LD structured data.
- EU Central Registry alignment — The guide includes a new section on how GS1 Digital Link URIs should be submitted to the EU Central DPP Registry, including the registration payload format and authentication requirements.
- Batch-level identifiers for non-battery products — For product categories where individual serialisation is not required (e.g., textiles, tyres), the guide clarifies that batch-level identification using the
/10/{batch}path element is acceptable.
What This Means in Practice
If you are using a DPP platform that generates QR codes automatically, the platform provider should handle these updates transparently. If you are generating QR codes through your own systems, you will need to update your URI construction logic to comply with the 1.3 specification — particularly the serial-level encoding for battery products.
The core principle remains the same: every product placed on the EU market under a DPP regulation must carry a GS1 Digital Link-compliant QR code that resolves to its published passport. Proprietary QR codes, marketing URLs, and static PDF links do not qualify.