The European Union is redefining how product information is managed, shared and verified. A key part of this transformation comes from Digital Product Passports (DPPs), introduced under the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), and the Battery Passport introduced under the EU Battery Regulation (EU) 2023/1542.
These digital records hold structured data about product identity, performance, sustainability attributes and lifecycle history, enhancing supply chain transparency and supporting the circular economy. While each passport operates within its own regulatory framework, linking battery passports with vehicle-level DPPs offers new opportunities for traceability, compliance and value chain integration across the automotive ecosystem.
In this article, we’ll explore what inter-passport linking means, why it matters for the industry and how the BASE project supports this integration through its Digital Battery Passport framework.
What is a Digital Battery Passport, and What is a Digital Product Passport?
The Digital Battery Passport is a requirement under the EU Battery Regulation for Electric Vehicles (EVs), Light Means of Transport (LMT), and industrial batteries above 2 kWh capacities from 18 February 2027. It must include data on battery composition, recycled content, carbon footprint, safety, compliance and lifecycle events, stored in a machine-readable format accessible via a QR code or similar identifier on the product. The passport must be interoperable with other digital passports required by EU law, enabling seamless data exchange across systems and stakeholders.
A Digital Product Passport (DPP) under the ESPR is a broader regulatory initiative designed to cover product types from electronics to textiles, capturing compliance, sustainability and lifecycle information. Although detailed DPP content is still being defined for many product groups through delegated acts, the regulation sets out principles for how data should be structured, accessed and linked to products using open, interoperable formats.
Why Linking Passports Across Product Layers Matters
Vehicles are complex assemblies that combine mechanical, electrical and digital subsystems, each with its own performance characteristics, sustainability footprint and regulatory obligations. Batteries are among the most critical components, accounting for a significant portion of a vehicle’s environmental impact, safety considerations and material value. Linking the Battery Passport to the vehicle-level Digital Product Passport has several advantages:
Holistic Lifecycle Transparency
A linked passport system allows authorised users to view both vehicle-level and battery-level data within a unified context. Regulators, compliance officers and supply chain partners gain integrated insight into how components contribute to overall sustainability and performance outcomes. For example, information on battery degradation over time can be correlated with vehicle performance history, enabling more comprehensive compliance analysis.
Improved Compliance And Traceability
Manufacturers and importers will face fewer data silos when preparing compliance documentation. A linked passport model reduces the need to maintain separate data systems and ensures component-level information is automatically reflected in broader product compliance reports. This is particularly significant for multinational organisations operating across varied regulatory areas.
Support For Circular Economy Outcomes
Vehicles and batteries have distinct but overlapping circularity challenges. Linking passports helps recyclers and remanufacturers trace components throughout the lifecycle, plan efficient disassembly, recover materials and document compliance with recycled content and recovery targets.
Enhanced Data Quality And Integrity
Inter-passport linkage encourages the adoption of standardised data models and shared formats for recording and exchanging information. Standardisation improves data integrity and reduces the risk of discrepancies when information flows between systems and stakeholders. It also facilitates automated verification methods that can be applied across regulatory domains.
Technical and Regulatory Foundations for Inter-Passport Linking
The Battery Regulation explicitly states that the battery passport must be fully interoperable with other digital product passports required by Union law in terms of technical, semantic and organisational aspects of end-to-end communication and data transfer. This interoperability requirement lays the groundwork for linking data across different regulatory systems.
The broader Digital Product Passport framework established under the ESPR emphasises similar principles of open standards, machine-readable data and interoperable formats for all regulated products. Although the specific content requirements for vehicle-level DPPs are still under development, the legal direction points towards a future where passports across product layers are connected through shared identifiers and data architectures.
In practical terms, this means developing unique identifiers and structured data schemas that can reference both the vehicle and its individual components, including batteries. Central registries and machine-readable data models facilitate queries, updates and verification across linked passports.
Practical Benefits for Industry Actors
For manufacturers, linking passports streamlines regulatory compliance. They can maintain a central data repository that reflects both vehicle-level obligations and component-level requirements, reducing duplication and the risk of inconsistent data.
For service providers and repair shops, linked passport data helps inform safe maintenance, replacement and recycling decisions. Knowing how a given battery fits into the broader vehicle context supports risk management and quality assurance.
For regulators and market surveillance authorities, integrated passports make it easier to verify compliance at both the component and product levels. Access to correlated data improves the efficiency of audits and investigations.
For end-of-life operators, linked passport data enhances remanufacturing and recycling planning by revealing how components were used, how they aged and what materials they contain, reducing uncertainty and improving material recovery rates.
Challenges and Opportunities for Linking Digital Passports
Linking battery passports to vehicle-level DPPs requires coordination across standards development, data governance and digital infrastructure. Challenges include variation in data models, multi-jurisdictional enforcement, and legacy systems that may not easily integrate with modern, interoperable data platforms.
Opportunities include the adoption of open data standards, investments in data platforms that support linked identifiers, and industry collaboration on data governance practices. Regulatory guidance on delegated acts for both battery and product passports will play an important role in establishing common frameworks for linked data.
How Base Supports Inter-Passport Linkage
At the BASE project, we see interconnected digital passports as a key component of a transparent and circular battery ecosystem. Our Digital Battery Passport framework emphasises interoperability, structured data exchange and open standards that align with the broader Digital Product Passport vision. BASE’s approach focuses on creating machine-readable, semantically aligned data models and secure access protocols that make it possible to integrate battery passport data into larger product passports at the vehicle level.
By working with industry partners and applying practical pilots, BASE is helping validate how linked passport systems can improve compliance, enhance lifecycle management and support circular outcomes across complex products like electric vehicles. Our work contributes to shaping interoperable data architectures that can scale as regulatory frameworks mature.
Closing Thoughts
Inter-passport linking represents a significant advancement in how product compliance and lifecycle data are managed within the EU’s regulatory ecosystem. As detailed vehicle-level Digital Product Passport requirements are established through delegated acts under the ESPR, embedding battery passport data within a broader product context will deliver greater transparency, stronger compliance outcomes and improved sustainability.
Organisations that prepare now for interoperable, linked passport architectures will gain a strategic advantage as mandatory requirements take effect and data-driven innovation becomes integral to product lifecycle management in Europe.
The BASE project has received funding from the Horizon Europe Framework Programme (HORIZON) Research and Innovation Actions under grant agreement No. 101157200.
References
EU Battery Regulation (2023/1542) – interoperability and passport data requirements: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1542/2025-07-31/eng
Digital Product Passport and Battery Passport relationship - Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade guidance: https://www.export.org.uk/media/3gilx2dk/the-eu-s-digital-product-passport-new-compliance-requirements-for-manufacturers.pdf
Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) overview: https://commission.europa.eu/energy-climate-change-environment/standards-tools-and-labels/products-labelling-rules-and-requirements/ecodesign-sustainable-products-regulation_en
BASE Project – Understanding the Scope of the Digital Battery Passport: EV, LMT, and Industrial Batteries: https://base-batterypassport.com/blog/technology-7/understanding-the-scope-of-the-digital-battery-passport-ev-lmt-and-industrial-batteries-60
BASE Project – The Digital Battery Passport: Why Europe Must Adopt It by 2027: https://base-batterypassport.com/blog/regulations-4/the-digital-battery-passport-why-europe-must-adopt-it-by-2027-22