Circular Economy: New rules in the EU for the treatment of end-of-life vehicles and circularity requirements for vehicle design

On December 12, 2025, representatives of the European Parliament (EP) and the Council of the European Union (Council) provisionally agreed on a new Regulation concerning the management of end-of-life vehicles and circularity requirements for vehicle design. The Regulation will apply to vehicles to be placed on the European market regardless of where they have been built.

This development needs to be seen in the context of existing rules concerning the treatment of end-of-life vehicles (ELV) and attempts to ensure that new vehicles are designed in a way that supports their re-use, recycling and recovery. These attempts are part of the so-called European Green Deal and the Circular Economy Action Plan.

Pursuant to the new Regulation:

• More vehicle categories will be subject to end-of-life management rules;
• New vehicles need to be designed to facilitate their recycling, re-use and re-manufacturing;
• New vehicles need to contain recycled content, in particular plastics, with specific targets to be phased in over ten years (15% in 6 years, and 25% in 10 years);
• Clearer rules are to be established to distinguish a used vehicle from an ELV;
• Stricter rules on the transfer of ownership of ELV will apply;
• Car manufacturers could be held financially responsible for the treatment of their vehicles regardless of where the vehicle reaches its end of life; and
• The export of used vehicles that are no longer roadworthy will be banned.

The new Regulation is supposed to become effective two years after its entry into force.

The Council and the EP now need to formally endorse the regulation. In order to become effective, the regulation also needs to be published in the EU's Official Journal.