Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 contains no exemption based on company size for the battery passport obligation. If your business places an LMT battery, an industrial battery above 2 kWh, or an electric vehicle battery on the EU market from 18 February 2027, you need a passport for it. That rule applies whether you have a compliance team of twenty or a compliance team of one. This article explains what the battery passport for SMEs means in practice: which articles apply, what data you must collect, and where the regulation does and does not give smaller operators any relief.
The Core Obligation: Article 77 Applies to Every Operator
Article 77(1) of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 requires that each LMT battery, each industrial battery above 2 kWh, and each electric vehicle battery placed on the market or put into service from 18 February 2027 has a battery passport. The obligation falls on the economic operator placing the battery on the market, which is typically the manufacturer or, for products made outside the EU, the importer.
Article 77(4) adds that the economic operator responsible for the passport must keep it accurate, complete and up to date. There is no turnover threshold, no employee-count threshold, and no grace period for smaller businesses within Article 77. The passport data must be ready before the battery is placed on the market or put into service, because Article 77(1) ties the obligation to the act of placing on the market, not to a later reporting deadline.
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Score Your ReadinessWhere Company Size Does Matter: Article 47 and Due Diligence
The one place where your company’s size changes your obligations is Chapter VII of the regulation, which covers battery due diligence (Articles 47 to 53). Article 47 takes an economic operator outside Chapter VII entirely if its net turnover was below EUR 40 million in the financial year preceding the last financial year, and it is not part of a group whose consolidated turnover exceeds EUR 40 million.
For operators that do fall within Chapter VII, Article 48(1) applies the due diligence obligations from 18 August 2027, a date fixed by Regulation (EU) 2025/1561. This matters for the passport because responsible sourcing information, listed at Annex XIII, point 1(d), follows those due diligence obligations. If Article 47 excludes you from Chapter VII, you are not required to carry out the due diligence that generates point 1(d) data. If you are within Chapter VII, the due diligence obligations, including the Article 52(3) report that point 1(d) draws on, apply from 18 August 2027 under Article 48(1). The non-binding Commission guidance treats this data point as not to be filled at 18 February 2027 and as required from August 2027.
The EUR 40 million threshold in Article 47 is the only size-based exclusion from an obligation that bears on the passport. It does not touch Article 77.
What Data the Passport Must Contain
Annex XIII sets out the information the passport must carry. Point 1 lists information accessible to the public. Point 2 lists information accessible only to persons with a legitimate interest and the Commission. Point 4 lists information and data on the individual battery, also accessible only to persons with a legitimate interest. Article 77(2) sets these access groups.
Several categories of data come from your supply chain, and each has its own legal timeline.
- Carbon footprint. Carbon footprint information follows the dates in Article 7(1). Those dates vary by battery category. For each category the regulation sets a fixed date or a period running from the entry into force of the delegated and implementing acts it refers to, whichever is later.
- Recycled content. Article 8(1) sets the recycled content documentation requirement. It applies from 18 August 2028 at the earliest, and from 18 August 2033 for LMT batteries.
- Hazardous substances. Annex XIII, point 1(b) requires the passport to list the hazardous substances present in the battery, other than mercury, cadmium or lead, meaning substances classified as hazardous under Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008. This is a classification-based requirement, not a REACH SVHC declaration.
- Responsible sourcing. Annex XIII, point 1(d) follows the due diligence obligations under Article 48(1), which apply from 18 August 2027 and only to operators within Chapter VII.
The non-binding Commission guidance document on Digital Batteries Passport data points by category, Version 2.0 of 15 August 2026, maps 71 data points to their legal sources across EV, LMT and industrial batteries. For 18 February 2027, it identifies 47 mandatory data points for EV batteries, 50 for LMT batteries, and 32 for industrial batteries above 2 kWh. The EV and LMT figures each count data point 51 (rated capacity under Annex XIII, point 4(a)), which the guidance marks as the same as data point 11 (capacity) but now dynamic. These figures come from that guidance document, which states it does not extend the rights and obligations in the legislation, and they are not counts set by the regulation itself.
Your Right to Demand Data from Suppliers
Since 18 February 2024, Article 39 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 has required suppliers of battery cells and modules to give manufacturers the information and documentation needed to comply with the regulation, free of charge. If a cell supplier refuses to provide data you need for the passport, Article 39 gives you a legal basis to demand it. Document your requests and the responses you receive, because a written record shows what information and documentation you requested under Article 39 and what you received.
Technical Requirements: Format, Interoperability and the Registry
Article 77(5) sets out how the passport data must be structured. It must be based on open standards, in an interoperable format, transferable through an open interoperable data exchange network without vendor lock-in, machine-readable, structured and searchable. These are not optional design choices. They are legal requirements that apply to every operator regardless of size.
Article 78 adds further requirements: interoperability with other digital product passports, storage by the responsible economic operator or an operator authorised to act on its behalf, continued availability if that operator ceases to exist or ceases its activity in the Union, and a high level of security and privacy.
Article 77(10) requires the unique identifier assigned to each passport to be uploaded to the registry set up under Article 13(1) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1781. A spreadsheet or a PDF document kept on its own is unlikely to meet the Article 77(5) requirement for open standards, an interoperable format and machine-readable, structured, searchable data. The data must sit in a system that meets the Article 77(5) and Article 78 technical standards and connects to that registry.
The regulation does not name any software product. Choosing a system that meets these requirements is your decision. The key question to ask any vendor is whether their system meets the open standards, interoperability and registry-upload requirements in Articles 77(5), 77(10) and 78.
Battery Passport for SMEs: A Practical Sequence
Given the 18 February 2027 deadline, the following sequence reflects what the regulation requires and when.
- Confirm which batteries you place on the market. Article 77(1) covers LMT batteries, industrial batteries above 2 kWh, and EV batteries. If you make or import any of these, the obligation applies to you.
- Check your Article 47 position. If your net turnover was below EUR 40 million in the relevant financial year and you are not part of a group above that threshold, you are outside Chapter VII. You still need the passport, but you are not required to carry out the due diligence that generates Annex XIII, point 1(d) data.
- Map your data gaps against Annex XIII. Work through each point in Annex XIII and identify which data you hold, which you need from suppliers, and which follows a later date (recycled content under Article 8(1), for example).
- Use Article 39 to request supplier data. Send formal written requests to your cell and module suppliers. Keep records of what you asked for and what you received.
- Select a compliant technical system. The system must meet Articles 77(5), 77(10) and 78. Verify that it can upload the unique identifier to the Article 13(1) registry under Regulation (EU) 2024/1781.
- Have the passport ready before you place the battery on the market. Article 77(1) ties the obligation to the act of placing on the market. There is no post-market grace period.
What the Guidance Document Adds (and Does Not Add)
The Commission guidance document on Digital Batteries Passport data points by category, Version 2.0 of 15 August 2026, is a useful reference for understanding how the 71 data points map to Annex XIII and to specific articles. It is aimed at economic operators generally, not specifically at SMEs. It does not create new obligations or remove existing ones. Where the guidance and the regulation appear to differ, the regulation controls. Use the guidance to understand the structure of the data requirements, but always trace each requirement back to the article or annex point it cites.
The EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542 page on this site provides a structured overview of the key articles and their timelines, which can help you build your compliance checklist without reading the full 117-page regulation from scratch.
The Bottom Line for Smaller Manufacturers
The battery passport obligation in Article 77 applies to you from 18 February 2027 regardless of your company size. The only size-based exclusion from a passport-related obligation in the regulation is the EUR 40 million turnover threshold in Article 47, which affects Chapter VII due diligence, not the passport itself. You have a legal right under Article 39 to receive the data you need from your cell and module suppliers at no cost. The technical requirements in Articles 77(5), 77(10) and 78 are fixed and non-negotiable. The data must be ready before the battery reaches the market.
If you want to see how Traceable handles the Article 77(5) and Article 78 technical requirements without requiring a compliance team to manage the infrastructure, register for a free trial and we will walk you through a live passport for one of your battery models. Setup takes less than a day.
