How EU Importers Can Verify Supplier Battery Compliance Before Taking Liability

Why Importers Cannot Rely on the Manufacturer’s Word

Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 places direct legal duties on importers, not just on manufacturers. If you place a battery from a third country on the EU market, Article 3(1), point (64) defines you as the importer. That definition matters because it determines which obligations attach to you personally. To verify supplier battery compliance before you take on that liability, you need to know exactly what the law requires you to check, when those checks apply, and what happens if a passport turns out to be wrong after you have already placed the battery on the market.

What Article 41(2) Requires You to Check Before Placing a Battery on the Market

Article 41(2) of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 sets out four things an importer must verify before placing a battery on the market. These duties have applied since 18 August 2024.

1. Conformity assessment and technical documentation. You must verify that the manufacturer has drawn up the EU declaration of conformity and the Annex VIII technical documentation, and that the manufacturer has carried out the Article 17 conformity assessment procedure.
2. CE marking and labelling. You must verify that the battery bears the CE marking and is marked and labelled in accordance with Article 13. From 18 February 2027, Article 13(6) requires a QR code on the battery that gives access to the battery passport. Checking the CE marking from that date therefore includes checking that the QR code is present and that the information it leads to is, as Article 13(6) requires, “complete, up to date and accurate”.
3. Accompanying documents. You must verify that the battery is accompanied by the documents required under Articles 6 to 10, 12, 13 and 14, and by instructions and safety information in a language that end users can easily understand.
4. Manufacturer identification and marking. You must verify that the manufacturer has complied with Article 38(6) and (7), which require the battery to bear a model identification and batch, serial or product number, and to be marked with the manufacturer’s name, registered trade name or trade mark and postal address.

Article 41(2) lists no specific checks on passport content. However, under the second subparagraph of Article 41(2), where the importer considers or has reason to believe a battery is not in conformity, the importer must not place it on the market until it is brought into conformity, and where the battery presents a risk, must also inform the manufacturer and the market surveillance authorities of the non-compliance and any corrective action taken.

How to Verify Supplier Battery Compliance with the Passport Itself

Checking that a passport exists is not enough. Under Article 77(4) of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, the economic operator that places a battery on the market must ensure that the passport information is accurate, complete and up to date. As the importer, that duty falls on you from 18 February 2027, when the passport requirement applies to the relevant battery categories.

Annex XIII of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 lists the information that must appear in the passport. Article 77(2) requires the information to be included in the battery passport “to the extent applicable to the category or sub-category of battery concerned”. Annex XIII does not label items as mandatory or optional fields; applicability depends on the battery type. The Commission has published a non-binding guidance document on Digital Battery Passport data points by category (Version 2.0, 15 August 2026), which identifies, for example, 47 mandatory data points for EV batteries and 32 for industrial batteries above 2 kWh for the February 2027 launch. That document is guidance only and does not extend the rights and obligations set out in the Regulation.

A practical approach to verifying passport content before you accept liability is to work through Annex XIII point by point against the battery category you are importing. For example, Annex XIII, point 1(a) brings in Annex VI, Part A, which covers general battery model information accessible to the public. Point 2 covers information accessible only to persons with a legitimate interest and the Commission. Point 4 covers individual battery data, also accessible to persons with a legitimate interest. Comparing the data the QR code returns against the Annex XIII structure for your battery category will show gaps before you place the battery on the market.

Comparing passport data with the physical label is also good practice. Article 13(6) requires the information reached through the QR code to be complete, up to date and accurate, so a mismatch between the label and the passport is a signal that the Article 13(6) standard has not been met.

You may authorise another operator in writing to carry out these checks on your behalf, but the Article 77(4) duty remains yours as the importer that places the battery on the market.

Sample Testing and Ongoing Obligations After Placing on the Market

Article 41(5) requires importers, when appropriate given the risks a battery presents, to carry out sample testing of batteries they have placed on the market, to protect the health and safety of consumers. This duty has applied since 18 August 2024. It is separate from the pre-placement checks in Article 41(2) and applies on a continuing basis.

Article 41(6) sets out what you must do if you consider or have reason to believe that a battery you have already placed on the market does not conform with Articles 6 to 10, 12, 13 or 14. You must immediately take corrective action to bring it into conformity, withdraw it or recall it. Where the battery presents a risk, you must also immediately inform the market surveillance authority of the Member State in which you made the battery available. Because Article 13(6) applies from 18 February 2027, a passport that turns out to be incomplete or inaccurate after that date is a non-conformity with Article 13, which triggers the Article 41(6) duty.

Records You Must Keep and for How Long

Article 41(7) requires importers to keep a copy of the EU declaration of conformity available to national authorities for 10 years after the battery has been placed on the market. It also requires importers to ensure that the Annex VIII technical documentation can be made available to those authorities on request during the same period. Both duties have applied since 18 August 2024.

Article 46(2) requires economic operators to be able to identify, for 10 years, the operators that supplied them with a battery and those to whom they supplied a battery. This traceability duty also applies from 18 August 2024.

Article 41 does not prescribe keeping a record of your passport checks. Keeping one is good practice, because it gives you evidence that you carried out the Article 41(2) verification and the Article 77(4) accuracy check before placing the battery on the market. For a detailed breakdown of all importer obligations under the Regulation, see our guide to EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542: importer obligations.

Penalties and Who Bears Them

Article 93 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 required Member States, by 18 August 2025, to lay down rules on penalties for infringements of the Regulation, notify them to the Commission and make the penalties effective, proportionate and dissuasive. Article 93 sets no knowledge test and no shared liability rule. The penalty, and who bears it, follow the rules of the Member State where the infringement occurs. Because the Article 77(4) passport duty attaches to the importer that places the battery on the market, you cannot transfer that liability to your supplier by contract alone. If the passport is wrong and you placed the battery on the market, you are the operator the Member State’s enforcement authority will look to first.

A Practical Verification Sequence

The following sequence reflects the legal requirements in Articles 41(2), 77(4), 41(5), 41(6) and 41(7) of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542. It is not a substitute for legal advice on your specific situation.

1. Obtain the EU declaration of conformity and confirm the manufacturer has completed the Article 17 conformity assessment and drawn up the Annex VIII technical documentation.
2. Check the CE marking and, from 18 February 2027, scan the Article 13(6) QR code to confirm the passport is accessible.
3. Work through Annex XIII against your battery category to check that the passport covers the applicable items. Flag any gap to the manufacturer before you place the battery on the market.
4. Compare the passport data with the physical label. A mismatch is a signal of non-conformity with Article 13(6).
5. Confirm the accompanying documents required under Articles 6 to 10, 12, 13 and 14 are present and that instructions and safety information are in a language end users can easily understand.
6. Verify that the manufacturer has complied with Article 38(6) and (7).
7. Where you consider or have reason to believe a battery is not in conformity, do not place it on the market until it is brought into conformity, and where it presents a risk, inform the manufacturer and the market surveillance authorities, as required by the second subparagraph of Article 41(2).
8. Retain the declaration of conformity and ensure the Annex VIII documentation is accessible for 10 years, as required by Article 41(7).
9. Record your supplier and customer chain to meet the Article 46(2) traceability duty.
10. After placement, carry out sample testing where appropriate under Article 41(5), and act immediately under Article 41(6) if you discover non-conformity.

If you want to see how a structured platform can support these checks, register for a free trial of Traceable. The pilot gives you hands-on access to the passport verification tools before your February 2027 deadline arrives.