compliance teamThe unique identifier (IDU): one per scheme, published and checkable
Step 1
Join a scheme
Step 2
Receive the identifier
Step 3
Verify the public entry
Step 4
Display it where required
| Control | Evidence to retain |
|---|---|
| Scope | Entity, product, channel, scheme and source |
| External action | Version, date, authorised filer and issued receipt |
| Maintenance | Source data, approval, invoice and next deadline |
You do not request it; your eco-organisation triggers it
A producer that joins collectively is registered through its eco-organisation. Once the membership file is accepted, ADEME generates the unique identifier for that scheme and publishes it on the public register. Producers under an approved individual system receive theirs directly.
ADEME describes the registration information as including the company name, a SIRET for French companies or a VAT number for EU and foreign companies, the address and the categories concerned. There is no separate French tax identifier to buy.
One identifier per scheme, never one for everything
The identifier is per scheme. Packaging, electrical and electronic equipment, batteries, textiles, furniture and the other schemes each produce their own. Submitting a packaging identifier in an electrical-equipment field is a mismatch that a platform can detect.
The public dataset makes the pattern visible: as checked on 18 August 2026 it held 306,657 registrations for 250,775 distinct company registrations, so multi-scheme producers are ordinary rather than exceptional.
Holding it is only half the duty
Article R. 541-173 requires the producer to state its unique identifier in its general conditions of sale, or another contractual document given to the buyer, and to publish it on its website under the same conditions as the legally required online mentions.
Failure to be registered, to complete the register, to supply correct data or to display the identifier sits in its own penalty limb, separate from the general per-unit penalty scale.
Conclusion
Scope comes before a form. Connect the legal entity, product, sales channel and EPR stream to the rule that actually applies.
Evidence must remain traceable. Keep source data, versions, approvals, filings, receipts and every record issued by an external body.
Third-party decisions are never guaranteed. Eco-organisations, the public register and marketplaces control their own procedures, timing and decisions.