New European Regulation On Vehicle Circulation Published

SIGRAUTO calls for an orderly, proportionate and coordinated implementation in Spain

The EU’s new vehicle circularity Regulation will reshape how vehicles are designed, treated and recovered from September 2028. SIGRAUTO says Spain must now develop a coordinated, proportionate implementation plan that protects competition, supports authorised operators, clarifies producer responsibilities and turns new compliance requirements into measurable improvements in reuse, recycling and material recovery.

Aerial view of recovered car doors and body panels arranged at a vehicle recycling facility. — Image credit: Envato Elements

The Official Journal of the European Union recently published Regulation (EU) 2026/1738 on circularity requirements for the design of vehicles and the management of end-of-life vehicles, following the completion of the legislative procedure, including approval by the European Parliament and the Council.

SIGRAUTO welcomes the publication of this new regulatory framework, which represents a significant change in European automotive regulation by addressing vehicle circularity from a more comprehensive perspective: from design, manufacturing, and the incorporation of recycled materials to the collection, treatment, reuse, recycling, and recovery of vehicles at the end of their useful life.

The new Regulation will progressively replace the current Directive 2000/53/EC on end-of-life vehicles and Directive 2005/64/EC on type-approval with regard to the reuse, recycling, and recovery of vehicles. Although the Regulation will enter into force 20 days after its publication, it will not become applicable until 2 years later (specifically, on September 1, 2028), and many of its obligations will have later, staggered implementation deadlines. Therefore, a complex period of analysis, development, and practical implementation is now beginning.

Since the European Commission presented the proposal in July 2023, SIGRAUTO has continuously monitored the dossier, conveying to both European institutions and Spanish administrations the consensus position of the sectors that make up the end-of-life vehicle treatment chain in Spain: vehicle producers, authorized treatment centers, fragmentation and post-fragmentation facilities.

Throughout this process, SIGRAUTO has defended the need for the new European framework to take into account the reality of the Spanish model, based on a wide network of authorized operators, the competitive functioning of the collection and treatment markets, consolidated administrative mechanisms for processing administrative deregistration and traceability with high levels of material recovery.

The Regulation introduces relevant obligations in the areas of extended producer responsibility, collection and delivery of vehicles, treatment, removal of components, fragmentation, reuse targets, recycling and recovery, recycling of plastics from end-of-life vehicles, reporting, traceability, inspections, export of used vehicles and differentiation between used vehicles and end-of-life vehicles.

For SIGRAUTO, the Regulation represents an opportunity to strengthen the circular economy of the automotive sector, improve coordination among stakeholders, and advance towards greater material recovery. However, its implementation in Spain will require significant technical and legal work, as the text contains numerous provisions that require interpretation, national development, common methodologies, delegated acts, and implementing acts from the European Commission.

Among the aspects that will require special attention, SIGRAUTO highlights the need to clarify the extended producer responsibility compliance model, the relationship between individual and collective systems, the role of authorized operators, the scope of contracts between producers or systems and authorized treatment centers, the methodology for monitoring market health, access to reliable data, the application of recycling and recovery targets, the conditions for the mandatory removal of certain parts and exemptions based on fragmentation and post-fragmentation technologies, as well as the criteria for distinguishing between used vehicles and end-of-life vehicles.

SIGRAUTO believes it is essential that the implementation of the Regulation not become a mere bureaucratic exercise in formal compliance. The objective must be to ensure that end-of-life vehicles are managed correctly, that reuse, recycling, and recovery of parts and materials are maximized, and that the positive impact of the sector on the environment and the circular economy is reinforced.

Two years remain before the Regulation comes into effect. Therefore, SIGRAUTO proposes establishing a dedicated working group to implement the Regulation in Spain, with participation from the central government, the autonomous communities, the Directorate General of Traffic, and representative associations from the affected sectors. This group should facilitate the agreement of common interpretation criteria, identify the necessary national decisions, anticipate pending developments, and establish a realistic roadmap for the application of the new European framework.

The experience gained in Spain since the entry into force of Directive 2000/53/EC demonstrates that cooperation between administrations and sectors is essential to translating regulatory obligations into real environmental results. Spain has a well-established end-of-life vehicle management system, with a broad network of authorized treatment centers and shredding and post-shredding facilities, which should be leveraged and strengthened in this new regulatory phase.

SIGRAUTO will continue working, as it has throughout the European legislative process, to help ensure that the new Regulation is applied in Spain with legal certainty, proportionality, environmental efficiency, respect for competition, and full collaboration among all agents in the value chain.

Source www.sigrauto.com/prensa-tv/notas-de-prensa