The short answer
No, the date itself is not changing this year, because that date is not yet fixed. The European Commission is working out the ecodesign requirements regulation (ESPR) product group by product group, and aluminium semi-finished products are among the groups included in the work programme 2025-2030. For this group, a delegated act is expected in 2027. Only in that act will it be stated from when a digital product passport for aluminium becomes mandatory, and for whom exactly. Until that act is published, any date you encounter anywhere is a plan, not an obligation.
What can change, however, is the plan itself. The Commission can revise a work programme, move a product group forward or backward in the schedule, or announce that a delegated act will come later than expected. This happens more often in multi-year processes of this kind and is different from changes to rules that already apply. For aluminium, there is currently no new obligation to comply with, but a process to keep track of.
Why is the date not yet fixed
The ESPR itself is the framework regulation: it sets out how the system works, which terms apply and what roles there are. For each product group separately, the Commission then works out a separate delegated act, and only in that act is the concrete obligation stated: from when, for which products, and with which data. This elaboration takes time because the Commission must first have the sector researched, consult market participants and have the text reviewed before it is adopted. For aluminium, that process is ongoing; the work programme states 2027 as the time when the act is expected.
Once that act is published, there is usually a transition period after that before the obligation actually comes into force. On that basis, 2029 is currently being assumed as the year in which companies with aluminium semi-finished products may need to be able to show a passport. This is an estimate based on the current work programme, not a fixed date. As soon as the official text mentions a different date, it will be adjusted here, not before and not after.
What this means for you, even without a fixed date
For a director of an installation company, an HR manager or an office manager encountering this for the first time, the most important question is usually not exactly when, but whether this applies to your company. This depends on what you do with aluminium: do you process profiles, castings or packaging aluminium yourself, or do you buy a finished product that includes aluminium. These two situations work out differently within the regulation. the knowledge base where this has been worked out for each situation provides an overview for each role, without you having to read the full regulation.
Even without a fixed entry date, it can be useful to have a rough idea of where you stand now. Not because anything needs to happen this year, but because gathering data and making arrangements with suppliers and software providers usually takes longer than companies anticipate beforehand. With a few questions you immediately see an indication of your situationwithout requiring an account.
How to follow changes without becoming a lawyer yourself
The official source remains the text on EUR-Lex: the ESPR regulation itself and, once published, the delegated act for aluminium. We keep track of that process and update existing pages as soon as anything changes, including the source. This is deliberately designed that way: a platform that says information should be traceable cannot hide that traceability somewhere.
How we collect and keep that data up to date is explained on the page where the information comes from. If you have a question about your own, specific situation, that is something for a lawyer or the competent supervisory authority; we can explain the regulation and the work plan, but cannot make a statement about your business in particular.
Stay informed without having to search for it yourself
As long as the delegated act for aluminium has not been published, this remains primarily a matter to follow, not to take action on now. If you still want to know roughly where you stand, do the free quick-scan or browse through the frequently asked questions about the product passport for the questions that other entrepreneurs have already asked about it.