Europe Adopts Circular Economy Legislation for the Automotive Sector
by Diana Radovan, Director, Sustainability Policy
Key Summary
• The EU has adopted new legislation that embeds circular economy principles into law for the automotive sector.
• New vehicles must be designed so parts and components can be easily removed for reuse, recycling, remanufacturing, or refurbishing.
• Plastics in vehicles must contain 20% recycled content within six years and 25% within ten years, with future targets planned for steel and aluminum.
• Manufacturers will pay for collection and treatment of end of life vehicles, and exports of end of life vehicles outside the EU will be banned.
• With 285.6 million vehicles on EU roads and 6.5 million reaching end of life this year, circularity becomes a legal obligation to strengthen resource security and reduce environmental impacts.
The EU recently embedded circular economy principles into law. These new rules require industry to integrate reuse, recycling, and resource efficiency directly into design and end-of-life management for the first time.
Key highlights are:
Circular by design:
New vehicles must allow easy removal of parts and components for reuse, recycling, remanufacturing, or refurbishing.
Mandatory recycled content:
Within six years, 20% of plastics in vehicles must be recycled material, rising to 25% within 10 years (with future targets for steel and aluminum).
Extended producer responsibility:
Manufacturers will cover the costs of collecting and treating end-of-life vehicles.
Export restrictions:
Clearer rules on distinguishing between used and end-of-life vehicles, with bans on exporting the latter outside of the EU.
The new rules will fundamentally reshape the lifecycle of cars in Europe. There are 285.6 million vehicles on EU roads, of which 6.5 million will reach their end-of-life this year.
Through this measure, circularity is no longer a voluntary sustainability goal, but a legal obligation. This shift aims to strengthen Europe’s resource security, reduce environmental impacts, and create a more sustainable automotive industry.
Contact me at DianaRadovan@electronics.org for more information.
The rules require reuse, recycling, and resource efficiency to be integrated directly into vehicle design and end of life management.
New vehicles must allow easy removal of parts and components so they can be reused, recycled, remanufactured, or refurbished.
Within six years, 20 percent of plastics in vehicles must be recycled material, increasing to 25 percent within ten years.
Manufacturers will be responsible for covering the costs of collecting and treating end of life vehicles.
There will be clearer rules distinguishing used vehicles from end of life vehicles, and exporting end of life vehicles outside the EU will be banned.