EU fertilizer products (CE marking) can be legally marketed in Austria in accordance with EU law.

The previous legal basis, Regulation (EC) No. 2003/2003, was replaced by the EU Fertilizer Products Regulation - (EU) 2019/1009 on 16.07.2022.

EU fertilizer products must meet the following requirements for their marketability.

1. The product must meet the requirements for a product function category (PFC)
2. The starting materials must meet the requirements for a component material category (CMC)
3. The product must be labeled in accordance with the labeling requirements of Annex III of the EU Fertilizer Products Regulation
4. The conformity of the fertilizer product must be determined by one of the assessment modules depending on the PFC and the CMC used (declaration of conformity). All accredited conformity assessment bodies can be found on the Single Market Compliance Space homepage of the EU Commission. In Austria, the Austrian Agency for Food Safety GmbH (AGES) is accredited as a conformity assessment body. You can find more information on the conformity assessment of fertilizer products at: https://www.ages.at/pflanze/duengemittel/eu-duengeprodukte-und-konformitaetsbewertung

Please note

Fertilizer products that are labeled as "EC fertilizers" according to the previous legal basis (Regulation (EC) No. 2003/2003) can still be sold, provided that they were lawfully placed on the market before 16.07.2022.

Fertilizer products, with the exception of agricultural fertilizers, may only be placed on the market if they either correspond to a type of the DMVO 2004 (type approval) or have been approved by a decision (individual approval).

If a fertilizer product corresponds to a type approved in the DMVO 2004 in terms of composition, content of ingredients or source materials or any other special provisions, this fertilizer product is generally marketable and no further steps are required (type approval).

If, however, a fertilizer product does not correspond to a type described in the DMVO 2004 due to its composition, content of ingredients or source materials, then an approval (individual approval) is required for this in accordance with Section 9 DMG 2021. This is issued by decision of the BAES.

The application for official approval must be submitted to the Federal Office for Food Safety online.

If changes to a fertilizer product approved in accordance with § 9a DMG 1994 are necessary, an informal application must be submitted by email to the BAES(duengemittel@baes.gv.at). Only the online portal(online application) may be used for changes to a fertilizer product approved in accordance with Section 9 DMG 2021.

Note: According to Section 9 para. 5 Fertilizer Act 2021, the approval of fertilizer products must be granted for a maximum of ten years. When determining the time limit, the expected development of science and technology in particular must be taken into account. The authorization expires at the end of the specified period, but after ten years at the latest. Since the Fertilizer Act 2021 came into force on 1.10.2021, approvals can only be granted for a limited period of time.
Fertilizers, soil additives, growing media and plant aids that have been approved for an unlimited period of time in accordance with Section 9a of the Fertilizer Act 1994 may be placed on the market until 1 January 2025 with the labelling and composition corresponding to the approval. These products are also not listed in the fertilizer register in accordance with Section 10 of the Fertilizer Act 2021.

If changes are applied for in connection with such fertilizer products that require a (re)assessment of the fertilizer product, this will be treated as a new approval in accordance with the Fertilizer Act 2021. This means that the approval can be limited to a maximum of 10 years or the product will be included in the fertilizer register in accordance with Section 10 Fertilizer Act 2021 after (re)approval has been granted.

Fertilizer products that are lawfully marketed in another Member State (e.g. have a valid authorization in one of the EU Member States) are considered marketable within the meaning of Regulation (EU) 2019/515 on the mutual recognition of goods on the Union market (and thus also in Austria). An authorization according to § 9 DMG 2021 is therefore not possible. In principle, no further active notification to the authority is required.

In order to place a fertilizer product on the market in Austria in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2019/515, the following criteria must be observed:

• The product must comply with the relevant regulations applicable in the Member State concerned (base country).
• The product must be made available to the end user in the Member State concerned. This means that the product must be available or purchasable on the market of the base country for the entire period of use of the "mutual recognition".
• If the authority establishes during the course of the traffic control that a product has significant non-conformities such as deficiencies in terms of safety and quality, an assessment of goods may be carried out in accordance with Article 5 of Regulation (EU) 2019/515.
• The labeling must be in German and clearly legible.
• In the event of a possible inspection, a self-declaration ("Declaration of mutual recognition for the purposes of Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2019/515 of the European Parliament and of the Council") and an invoice/delivery bill must be provided at the request of BAES as proof of marketability in the base country *.

As mentioned, no active notification to the Federal Office for Food Safety is required before placing on the market in Austria. However, if there is a need for confirmation of the general marketability of such products, it is possible to submit a voluntary application for an official certificate of marketing authorization under the mutual recognition with evaluation provisions. Such an application can be submitted via the online form "Application for an official certificate of marketing authorization in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2019/515".

Please note that official certificates are subject to a fee.

* If you wish to voluntarily notify the BAES of the above documents in advance, this can also be done in future (programming in progress) via the online portal (note: please currently submit the application by email via duengemittel@baes.gv.at). Through this voluntary notification, the products are noted in the internal control system. The product is neither assessed nor is an official certificate issued. You will only receive an acknowledgement of receipt from the Federal Office. This notification is free of charge.