Obtaining EU Ecolabel
How to apply to EU Ecolabel
See the video tutorial "Steps on Applying for an EU Ecolabel Licence" for a quick overview of all the information on this page.
Below you will find a full description of each step.
Step 1: Identify the Product Group
You should choose the product group appropriate to the product you manufacture or the service you provide, read the associated EU Ecolabel award criteria carefully and make sure that your product/service falls within the scope of the group applicable to your product. In addition, you should consult the user manual for the product group you have identified, which will help you prepare your application dossier.
For a brief analysis of the criteria, you can consult the factsheets provided for each product group on the European Commission's website. For more information, see the EU Ecolabel General Manual. If you want to find a user manual or factsheet, watch the Video Tutorial "Gathering relevant EU documentation".
Step 2: Pre-registration at ECAT
After reviewing the relevant EU documentation, you should pre-register your product/service in the European EU Ecolabel Product Catalogue or the European EU Ecolabel Tourist Accommodation Catalogue, both referred to as ECAT. All licence holders are responsible for registering their products and services in ECAT to ensure the traceability of the licence once it has been granted.
Please note that you should only pre-register your product if you are ready to submit your product/service application within the next 30 days. For a step-by-step guide, view the following Video Tutorials:
Step 3: Gather documentation to support the application
The documentation sent should be in Portuguese to be considered valid, as this is the official language of the Portuguese competent body.
Your application should include the following elements:
1. An application letter formalizing your EU Ecolabel application, addressed to the Directorate-General for Economic Activities;
2. Filled product or service form;
3. A descriptive document that includes:
a) Presentation of your business model;
b) List of products/services you wish to certify;
c) Description of the target market for your product or service;
d) Information on your turnover;
e) Any additional elements that facilitate the verification of compliance with the criteria defined in the relevant European Commission legislation, including all spreadsheets used in the preparation of the application process, following these instructions:
I. The spreadsheets provided by the European Commission should be filled;
II. In the absence of the European Commission's spreadsheets, the applicant should share the spreadsheets used in the application process;
4. All declarations issued by manufacturers and/or suppliers of raw materials, products, components and/or equipment, in accordance with the European Commission's templates;
5. Safety data sheets for the raw materials/products used in the provision of the service or in the manufacturing process and their respective technical data sheets;
6. All applicable test reports;
7. All applicable traceability and sustainability certificates;
8. Any additional elements that facilitate verification of compliance with the criteria set out in European Commission legislation.
Please refer to the user manuals for information on the applicable EU Ecolabel award criteria.
As a public administration body, DGAE cannot recommend laboratories to carry out the tests required for the application. Although the EU Ecolabel does not require tests to be carried out in laboratories with accredited methodologies, we suggest consulting the EA website: European cooperation for Accreditation.
Step 4: Send the Application Dossier
Once you have gathered all the documentation listed in step 3, you should send the application dossier in both physical and digital format.
The physical format of the application file should be sent to:
A/C da Direção de Serviços da Sustentabilidade Empresarial,
Direção-Geral das Atividades Económicas
Av. Visconde Valmor, n.º 72,
1069-041 Lisboa, Portugal
The digital version of the application should be sent to rotulo.ecologico@dgae.gov.pt. Please note that for the digital version, all calculations should be sent in Excel spreadsheet format.
Step 5: Payment of the Application Fee
The competent bodies charge fees in accordance with the limits and rules set out in Annex III of Regulation 66/2010 of the European Parliament and of the European Council.
Therefore, before your application is examined, you will have to pay the application fee, according to the information shown in the table below. Reductions are available for micro-enterprises, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), companies in developing countries, EMAS-registered companies or those that are ISO 14001 certified.
EMAS-registered applicants benefit from a 30% reduction in the application fee and ISO 14001 certified applicants benefit from a 15% reduction in the same fee. The reductions are not cumulative and the highest reduction always applies. These reductions do not apply to the annual fee.
The final cost of the application and extension fees is based on the number of product formulations you submit in your application and considers the European Commission's definition of product components in the user manuals provided for each product group.
See the table for the cost of the fees applicable in the context of the EU Ecolabel:
Fees should be paid by bank transfer:
Instituto de Gestão de Tesouraria e Crédito Público, I.P. - IGCP, E.P.E.
Using the bank identification code (BIC) 0781.0112.0112.0013.5649.4
After the bank transfer, proof of payment should be sent to DGAE at the following email addresses:
For more information on this subject, see the page on applicable fees.
Step 6: Selection Committee
DGAE will contact the applicant if issues are detected in the application under evaluation, such as missing documentation or the need for further clarification.
The average time taken to evaluate an application, when the application is submitted correctly, is three months.
The application is then submitted to the EU Ecolabel Selection Committee, made up of the Directorate-General for Economic Activities and chaired by the Portuguese Environment Agency, P.I..
Step 7: Payment of the Annual Fee
Once you have been approved by the Selection Committee, you should pay the first annual fee. The amount to be paid will depend on the date the licence was awarded.
On the DGAE's page on applicable fees you can use the formula that allows you to simulate the amount of the annual fee to be paid.
The DGAE will send you a receipt to pay by bank transfer. The bank transfer should be done to:
Instituto de Gestão de Tesouraria e Crédito Público, I.P. - IGCP, E.P.E.
Using the bank identification code (BIC) 0781.0112.0112.0013.5649.4
After making the bank transfer, proof of payment should be sent to DGAE via the following email addresses:
Step 8: Display the EU Ecolabel logo
After completing the previous steps, your organization can use the EU Ecolabel logo on certified products.
The logo should be displayed in accordance with the EU Ecolabel logo guidance document. The licence registration number should be displayed next to the logo, in the format "XX/YY/ZZZ". This registration number contains information on the country code where the licence was granted (XX), the product group (YYY) and the number assigned by the competent body (ZZZ).
