PPWR Empty Space Rules: The 50% Cap Explained
Learn how PPWR Article 10 and Article 24 regulate empty space in packaging. The 50% maximum empty space ratio applies from January 2030 to e-commerce.
Two Articles, Two Phases: How the PPWR Tackles Oversized Packaging
The EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation -- Regulation (EU) 2025/40 -- addresses the problem of oversized packaging through two separate but complementary provisions. Understanding both is essential because they apply at different times, to different packaging types, and with different enforcement mechanisms.
Article 10 establishes a general minimisation obligation. It requires that all packaging weight and volume be limited to the minimum necessary for the product's safety, hygiene, and consumer acceptance. This provision applies from 12 August 2026.
Article 24 introduces a hard numerical cap: a 50% maximum empty space ratio for grouped packaging, transport packaging, and e-commerce packaging. This provision applies from 1 January 2030 -- or three years from the entry into force of the implementing acts adopted under Article 24(2), whichever is later.
These two articles work together to create a phased approach. From August 2026, you must eliminate obviously wasteful packaging design. From January 2030, you must prove your packaging meets a measurable threshold.
Article 10: General Minimisation from August 2026
Article 10 sets the baseline. From 12 August 2026, all packaging placed on the EU market must meet these qualitative requirements:
- Weight and volume must be reduced to the minimum amount necessary to ensure the functionality of the packaging, including product safety, hygiene, and integrity during transport
- Deceptive design is prohibited. Double walls, false bottoms, and oversized lids designed to make the product appear larger than it is are explicitly banned
- Empty space in sales packaging must be limited to what is necessary for product protection
This is not a numerical test. There is no percentage threshold in Article 10. Instead, it requires that you demonstrate your packaging is not unnecessarily large or heavy given the product inside. Enforcement authorities will assess this qualitatively, looking at whether a reasonable packaging design would use less material.
What Article 10 means in practice
If you ship a phone case in a box that could hold a laptop, Article 10 already prohibits this from August 2026. You do not need to wait for the 50% rule. The general minimisation requirement is broad enough to catch egregious cases of overpackaging even without a specific empty space percentage.
For sales packaging specifically -- the primary packaging that the consumer encounters on the shelf -- the separate obligation under Article 10 applies from 12 February 2028. This covers cosmetics boxes with excessive inserts, food trays with raised false bottoms, and similar deceptive designs.
Article 24: The 50% Hard Cap from January 2030
Article 24(1) introduces the specific numerical requirement. The exact text reads:
"By 1 January 2030 or 3 years from the entry into force of the implementing acts adopted pursuant to paragraph 2, whichever is the latest, economic operators who fill grouped packaging, transport packaging or e-commerce packaging shall ensure that the maximum empty space ratio, expressed as a percentage, is 50%."
Which packaging types are covered?
The 50% rule applies to three categories:
| Packaging Type | Examples | Subject to 50% Rule? |
|---|---|---|
| Grouped packaging | Multipacks, shrink-wrapped bundles | Yes |
| Transport packaging | Corrugated shippers, palletised cartons | Yes |
| E-commerce packaging | Mailer boxes, poly bags, shipping cartons | Yes |
| Sales packaging (primary) | Product boxes, bottles, blister packs | No -- Article 10 general minimisation only |
This distinction matters. If you sell a product in a retail box and ship that box directly to the consumer without an outer carton, you are using sales packaging as e-commerce packaging. In that specific case, Article 24 provides an exception -- sales packaging used directly as the shipping package is not subject to the 50% cap.
Correcting the 40% myth
Multiple online sources cite a 40% empty space limit. This figure originates from a single law firm alert published by Greenberg Traurig and has been repeated across compliance blogs without verification. The regulation text says 50%. Every authoritative source -- the Official Journal of the European Union, the European Commission's own summaries, and the text of Regulation (EU) 2025/40 itself -- confirms the 50% figure. Do not design your packaging around a 40% target based on secondary sources.
What Counts as Empty Space
This is where many businesses get the calculation wrong. Under Article 24, void fill materials do not count as product. They count as empty space.
| Counts as Empty Space | Counts as Product |
|---|---|
| Air cushions | The product itself |
| Bubble wrap | Product components (cables, manuals) |
| Foam inserts | Items listed on the packing slip |
| Polystyrene chips | Accessories sold as part of the product |
| Crumpled paper fill | Required regulatory inserts (leaflets) |
| Shredded cardboard | -- |
| Inflatable void bags | -- |
The principle is straightforward: if the material exists solely to fill empty space in the box, it is empty space. The fact that you inserted a physical object into the void does not make it "product." An air cushion takes up volume, but it is not a product -- it is evidence that the box is too large.
Products that settle during transport
Article 24 includes an exception for products that naturally settle or shift during transport -- such as granular goods, cereals, or powders. If your product occupies 60% of the container at filling but settles to 45% during shipping, you are assessed on the fill level at packing, not at delivery. This exception is narrowly defined and does not apply to solid goods packed with void fill.
How to Measure Empty Space
The European Commission must publish a detailed calculation methodology by 12 February 2028 under Article 24(2). Until that implementing act is published, the regulation does not specify exact measurement procedures. However, the general framework is clear:
Empty space ratio = (Total internal packaging volume - Volume of products) / Total internal packaging volume x 100
Practical measurement steps
- Measure the internal volume of your shipping container. For a rectangular box, this is length x width x height of the internal cavity.
- Measure the volume of the product(s) inside. For irregular shapes, use water displacement or 3D scanning.
- Subtract product volume from packaging volume. The remainder is empty space -- including all void fill.
- Divide by total internal volume and multiply by 100. If the result exceeds 50%, the packaging fails.
Example calculation
You ship a product measuring 20 x 15 x 10 cm (3,000 cm3) in a box measuring 40 x 30 x 20 cm (24,000 cm3). You fill the remaining space with air cushions.
- Total internal volume: 24,000 cm3
- Product volume: 3,000 cm3
- Empty space: 21,000 cm3
- Empty space ratio: 21,000 / 24,000 = 87.5%
This packaging would fail the Article 24 test by a wide margin. The air cushions, despite physically occupying the space, count as empty space.
Exceptions to the 50% Rule
Article 24 provides specific exceptions:
Reusable packaging in a certified reuse system under Article 27. If your transport packaging participates in a documented reuse scheme, it is exempt from the 50% cap.
Sales packaging used directly as e-commerce packaging. If you ship the product in its retail box without adding an outer shipping carton, the retail box is sales packaging, not e-commerce packaging, and is therefore not subject to Article 24.
Products that settle during transport, as described above.
These exceptions are narrowly construed. Using a slightly oversized reusable crate does not automatically exempt you -- the reuse system must meet the certification requirements of Article 27.
Timeline: What to Do and When
| Date | Requirement | Legal Basis |
|---|---|---|
| 12 August 2026 | General packaging minimisation. No unnecessary weight or volume. No deceptive design. | Article 10 |
| 12 February 2028 | Sales packaging minimisation (qualitative). Commission publishes empty space calculation methodology. | Article 10 / Article 24(2) |
| 1 January 2030 | 50% maximum empty space ratio for grouped, transport, and e-commerce packaging. | Article 24(1) |
Recommended actions now
Audit your current packaging. Measure the empty space ratio across your top-selling SKUs. If any exceed 50%, start redesigning now -- tooling changes and supplier negotiations take months.
Standardise box sizes. The most common cause of excessive empty space is using too few box sizes. Moving from 3 box sizes to 8-10 sizes, matched to product dimensions, can dramatically reduce empty space without increasing complexity.
Talk to your fulfilment partner. If you use a 3PL, they choose the box. Make sure your service agreement specifies packaging minimisation requirements, and ask what box sizes they offer.
Document everything. Under Article 10, you need to demonstrate that your packaging is the minimum necessary. Keep records of your packaging rationale, alternatives considered, and test results.
The PPWR empty space rules are a two-phase regulatory shift. The general minimisation obligation is already imminent. The hard 50% cap gives you until 2030, but the businesses that start measuring and optimising now will avoid costly last-minute redesigns.
Start your PPWR compliance check today to assess your packaging against both Article 10 and Article 24 requirements.