France was among the first European countries to build a mature system of extended producer responsibility (in French REP, Responsabilité Élargie du Producteur). For household packaging the reference eco-organisation is Citeo. If you sell on Shopify and ship to French customers, here too the packaging you use makes you subject to a declaration and contribution obligation.
The good news is that the French system is, in many ways, the most straightforward of the three main EU markets: an annual declaration, everything online, and a simplified route designed specifically for small volumes. The news to watch is that from 1 July 2026 a new stream dedicated to professional (B2B) packaging comes into force, whose declaration rules are still being defined. Let's go through it in order.
How packaging EPR works in France
The mechanism is the classic EPR one: whoever places packaging on the French market contributes financially to the system that manages its collection and recycling. Citeo is the eco-organisation to which producers (including foreign online sellers shipping to France) declare their packaging and pay the eco-contribution.
Unlike Germany, there is no double obligation split between a register and a private system: the relationship is centralised on Citeo through its portal.
The declaration is annual
The frequency in France is annual. At the start of the year you declare the packaging you placed on the market the previous year. It's a more relaxed cadence than Italy's and Germany's potentially quarterly or monthly rhythm: a single declaration a year, in arrears.
That doesn't mean the work disappears: to declare correctly you must still have tracked, throughout the year, how much packaging you shipped and of what type. The formal step is simply concentrated into a single annual appointment.
The unit of measure: UVC
The French system thinks in UVC — consumer sales units (in French UVC, Unité de Vente Consommateur). It is essentially the number of units sold to the final consumer, each with its packaging. Counting in UVC, alongside the weights by material, is the basis on which the declaration is built and the contribution calculated.
For an e-commerce business this means tracking not just the weight of packaging, but also the number of units placed on the French market — a figure that comes naturally from orders.
Where you declare: the Espace Client
As in Italy, in France you don't upload any file. The declaration is made online through Citeo's Espace Client, the producer's reserved area. The portal includes a built-in assistance system that helps spot errors and inconsistencies as you fill in, reducing the risk of getting the data wrong.
Here too, then, the value of a tool like EPR Pack Report lies not in producing a file to import, but in arriving at the form with the correct figures: UVC and weights by material, already calculated from the Shopify orders destined for France.
The flat rate for small producers: €80
This is one of the most interesting features of the French system for modestly sized merchants. Small producers placing fewer than 10,000 UVC per year can opt for a flat-rate contribution of €80, with a simplified declaration completed in a few clicks.
In other words: if your shipping volume to France is limited, you can avoid the detailed analytical calculation and settle your position with a fixed amount and a minimal procedure. It's a relief designed precisely so as not to discourage small sellers from being compliant. It still matters to know whether you are above or below the 10,000 UVC threshold — another reason to keep your unit count always up to date.
The development to watch: the REP emballages professionnels from 1 July 2026
There's an important regulatory development to keep an eye on. From 1 July 2026 a new REP stream for emballages professionnels comes into force in France, i.e. packaging destined for the B2B (business-to-business) channel, until now treated differently from household packaging.
At the time of verification, the declaration rules for this new stream are not yet fully defined. For anyone who also sells to professional customers in France, it's a development to reassess after it takes effect, especially if a structured import format for declarations were to emerge in future.
Our advice: if your business is mainly B2C (selling to the final consumer), the picture described above remains your reference. If, however, you have a significant share of B2B sales to France, note in your diary to check the updates after July 2026.
Household and professional packaging: the distinction that matters
To understand where you sit, it helps to keep in mind the distinction between household packaging — that of products destined for the final consumer, historically Citeo's scope — and professional packaging (B2B), the subject of the new stream arriving. For the vast majority of Shopify stores selling to consumers, it's the household scope that counts: the shipping box, the mailer, the fillers and the packaging of the product that arrives at the French customer's home.
If your activity is entirely B2C, the picture doesn't change with the 2026 development; if instead you also ship to professional customers, that's where you'll need to watch the updates.
UVC and weight: two figures to track together
A practical point often overlooked: in France knowing the weight of packaging by material isn't enough, you also need the number of UVC. They are two different quantities describing the same flow of shipments — how many pieces you sold and how much their packaging weighs — and they must be kept aligned throughout the year.
Reconstructing them by hand in December, fishing orders and weights out of different sources, is the easiest way to reach the declaration with uncertain figures. Tracking them automatically order by order, distinguishing shipments destined for France, eliminates this work right before the deadline.
The penalties
The French penalty framework is set out in the Code de l'Environnement. The three main cases for an online seller are:
- Failure to join an eco-organisation (and therefore the absence of the IDU, the unique identifier): an administrative fine of up to €30,000 (art. L541-9-5).
- Failure to declare the volumes placed on the market: an administrative penalty of up to €7,500 per tonne or per unit of product concerned (art. L541-10-11).
- Absence of the IDU on the terms and conditions of sale (CGV) or contractual documents: an administrative fine of up to €30,000.
The general principle holds: the declaration is an obligation and non-compliance exposes you to penalties that, on undeclared volumes, are calculated per tonne. Better to set the process up correctly from the start, using the annual cadence to arrive prepared.
Summary: Citeo at a glance
| Aspect | How it works in France |
|---|---|
| Eco-organisation | Citeo |
| Frequency | Annual (start of year, on the previous year) |
| Reference unit | UVC — consumer sales unit |
| How you declare | Online via Espace Client — no file to upload |
| Small producers | €80 flat rate below 10,000 UVC a year, simplified declaration |
| B2B development | New emballages professionnels stream from 1 July 2026 (rules to be defined) |
| Penalties | Up to €30,000 (no membership/IDU) · up to €7,500 per undeclared tonne |
What to do now
If you ship to France, the path is clear: register with Citeo, check whether you qualify for the flat rate below 10,000 UVC, and organise the tracking of UVC and weights during the year to arrive ready for the annual declaration. If you also sell to the professional channel, keep an eye on the new B2B stream from July 2026.
Do you sell in multiple markets? Compare the rules in the comparative EPR guide for selling across multiple EU countries, or dig into LUCID and VerpackG in Germany and CONAI in Italy.
EPR Pack Report calculates UVC and weights by material from your Shopify orders and keeps them ready for filling in the Espace Client. The declaration and legal responsibility, however, remain with you: we remove the manual work, not the obligation.