Recycling of printed matter: paper EPR and sorting information

Regulatory fact sheet, updated on 2 November 2026. General information, not legal advice: legislation changes, so check it at the source.

In brief

• Paper printed matter falls under an extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme (in French REP): whoever places it on the market finances its collection and recycling, through a producer responsibility organisation (éco-organisme).
• For printed matter, the “producer” is in principle the commissioning client (donneur d'ordre: the business or organisation on whose behalf the printed matter is issued), not the printer (Code de l'environnement, the French Environmental Code, article R. 543-207).
• Since 1 January 2024, the scheme has been merged with the household packaging scheme (the “EMPG” EPR); three producer responsibility organisations are approved for it until 31 December 2029: Citeo, Adelphe and Léko.
• Books are excluded from the scheme (Code de l'environnement, article L. 541-10-1, 1°).
• Printed matter intended for households must carry the Triman logo with the Info-tri (article L. 541-9-3), since 2022 with a final deadline of 9 March 2023 according to Citeo.
• Mineral oils are prohibited in the inks of certain printed matter (article D. 543-213).

1. Who pays the eco-contribution?

Code de l'environnement, article R. 543-207 (version in force since 1 January 2021) defines the producer as:

• a) the commissioning client who issues or has issued paper printed matter, including free of charge, intended for end users in France; the commissioning client is the person who originates the promotional, advertising, information or commercial policy, or in whose name it is conducted;
• b) whoever places on the national market graphic papers intended to be printed (copy paper, envelopes, mailing pouches…).

“Paper printed matter” covers any printed paper medium, except sanitary papers and packaging.

Declaration: each commissioning client declares every year to its producer responsibility organisation the tonnage of printed matter issued in the previous year, excluding items sent abroad and printed matter that does not generate household and similar waste (article R. 543-208). Those placing graphic papers on the market make the same declaration (article R. 543-208-1).

Calculation: financial contribution in proportion to weight (article R. 543-211, in force since 1 January 2023).

Source: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/section_lc/LEGITEXT000006074220/LEGISCTA000006177002/

Consequence for the printer: a printer printing for a customer is not, in principle, the producer of that printed matter; it is the customer who makes the declaration. The printer may, however, be concerned for its own printed matter (catalogue, advertising) or if it resells paper under its own brand (article R. 543-208-1: a reseller under its own brand only is considered to be placing the product on the market).

Legislative basis: Code de l'environnement, article L. 541-10-1, 1° (version in force since 24 April 2024, loi n° 2024-364 du 22 avril 2024), which subjects to EPR, within the same 1°, household packaging, “paper printed matter, with the exception of books, issued, including free of charge, by commissioning clients or on their behalf” and graphic papers, intended for end users who produce household and similar waste. Source: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000049464324

• Books: excluded from the scheme (same article, 1°).
• 5-tonne threshold: the specifications of the merged scheme (arrêté du 7 décembre 2023, the order of 7 December 2023, point 5.2.3) list among exempt obligated parties “issuers of less than 5 tonnes” (as well as papers over 224 g/m²). The threshold is not set by articles R. 543-207 to R. 543-213-1, which provide for no minimum tonnage. Source: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jorf/id/JORFTEXT000048543633

2. Producer responsibility organisations

• Since 1 January 2024, the household packaging and graphic paper EPR schemes have been merged (the “EMPG” EPR), with common specifications (arrêté du 7 décembre 2023). Source: https://www.citeo.com/le-mag/les-rep-emballages-menagers-et-papiers-graphiques-fusionnent/
• Approved producer responsibility organisations: Adelphe, Citeo and Léko, approved until 31 December 2029 by orders (arrêtés) of 23 December 2024; OCAPEM is the coordinating body. Adelphe's approval order expressly covers paper printed matter and graphic papers. The commissioning client joins one of them. Sources: https://www.ecologie.gouv.fr/politiques-publiques/emballages-menagers-papiers-graphiques and https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jorf/id/JORFTEXT000050853345
• Rates and declaration: each producer responsibility organisation publishes its annual rates (for Citeo: https://www.citeo.com/en/citeo-rates-for-household-packaging-and-paper/).

3. Sorting information: Triman and Info-tri

Code de l'environnement, article L. 541-9-3 (created by the AGEC Act, loi n° 2020-105 du 10 février 2020, in force since 1 January 2022): any product placed on the market for households and subject to EPR, with the exception of glass beverage packaging, must carry a logo indicating that the product is subject to sorting rules, accompanied by information specifying how to sort it or where to take it. Source: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000041556010

• The logo (Triman) is defined in the annex to article R. 541-12-17.
• Placement (article R. 541-12-21): on the product, with the option of providing it digitally for very small formats (largest face under 10 cm²: logo and information; between 10 and 20 cm²: the information only; thresholds raised to 20 and 40 cm² for cylindrical or spherical products, version in force since 4 July 2022).
• Deadlines: application no later than 12 months after the approval of the producer responsibility organisation (article R. 541-12-18). Citeo states that, for graphic papers, the obligation applies from 1 January 2022 and no later than 9 March 2023. Sources: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/section_lc/LEGITEXT000006074220/LEGISCTA000029967054/ and https://www.citeo.com/le-mag/kit-info-tri-papiers-graphiques/
• Graphic kit: Citeo provides an Info-tri kit for paper (files and terms of use) on the page above.

Does it apply to printed matter? Yes for paper printed matter intended for households, since it falls under an EPR scheme. Who applies it? The producer, i.e. the commissioning client, or the producer responsibility organisation to which it has transferred its obligation; in practice, the printer prints it on the artwork supplied by the customer.

• Printed matter for businesses only (B2B): article L. 541-9-3 only covers products placed on the market “for households”; printed matter intended solely for businesses falls outside its scope.
• Penalty: any breach of the information obligations of article L. 541-9-3 is liable to an administrative fine of up to €3,000 for an individual and €15,000 for a legal entity, imposed under the procedure of the Code de la consommation (the French Consumer Code) (Code de l'environnement, article L. 541-9-4, version in force since 1 January 2022). Source: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000044244398
• Small commissioning clients: To be confirmed with a legal professional. Article L. 541-9-3 provides for no exception based on tonnage, and the 5-tonne exemption in the specifications concerns the financial contribution; no official source consulted expressly states whether a commissioning client exempt from the contribution is still required to apply the Info-tri.

4. Inks: mineral oils

Article D. 543-213 (in force since 1 January 2021): prohibition on using mineral oils containing certain substances (specified by order) for printed matter intended for the public, advertising leaflets and unsolicited catalogues for promotional purposes. Penalty: 3rd-class petty offence (article R. 543-213-1).

Substances and thresholds: arrêté du 13 avril 2022 précisant les substances contenues dans les huiles minérales dont l'utilisation est interdite sur les emballages et pour les impressions à destination du public (order of 13 April 2022 specifying the prohibited mineral oil substances; NOR TREP2211425A), in force since 1 January 2023, with no amendment recorded on Légifrance as of 1 November 2026:

• substances covered: MOAH with 1 to 7 aromatic rings and MOSH with 16 to 35 carbon atoms (article 2);
• until 31 December 2024: prohibited when the ink contains more than 1% MOAH by mass;
• since 1 January 2025: prohibited above 0.1% MOAH by mass, or 1 ppm for MOAH with 3 to 7 rings, and above 0.1% MOSH by mass;
• exception: products for which a European Union provision expressly authorises these inks (article 4); a 12-month sell-off period for products manufactured before each deadline and compliant with the rules then in force (article 5).

Source: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/loda/id/JORFTEXT000045733481

In practice, the printer checks with its supplier that the inks used comply with these thresholds.

5. Outdated notices no longer to be used

• Use the Info-tri currently in force.
• “Ne pas jeter sur la voie publique” (Do not throw on the street): optional wording, not mandatory, which does not replace the Info-tri (see the fact sheet Mandatory notices).

Main sources

• Code de l'environnement, articles R. 543-207 to R. 543-213-1: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/section_lc/LEGITEXT000006074220/LEGISCTA000006177002/
• Code de l'environnement, article L. 541-9-3: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000041556010
• Code de l'environnement, articles R. 541-12-17 to R. 541-12-24: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/section_lc/LEGITEXT000006074220/LEGISCTA000029967054/
• Citeo, Info-tri for graphic papers: https://www.citeo.com/le-mag/kit-info-tri-papiers-graphiques/
• Citeo, merger of the EPR schemes: https://www.citeo.com/le-mag/les-rep-emballages-menagers-et-papiers-graphiques-fusionnent/
• Code de l'environnement, article L. 541-10-1: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000049464324
• Code de l'environnement, article L. 541-9-4: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000044244398
• Arrêté du 7 décembre 2023 (EMPG specifications): https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jorf/id/JORFTEXT000048543633
• Arrêté du 13 avril 2022 (mineral oils): https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/loda/id/JORFTEXT000045733481
• Ministère de la Transition écologique (French Ministry for the Ecological Transition), household packaging and graphic papers: https://www.ecologie.gouv.fr/politiques-publiques/emballages-menagers-papiers-graphiques

General information, not legal advice. Written on 1 November 2026.

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