Current legislation gives shape to the design of EEE and the use of plastics. In Europe, this includes for instance the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, the Ecodesign Directive, the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Directive and Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH). Several plans are in motion in the European Union (EU) to transition towards a CE. Some of these amibitions are:

• Ensuring that plastic waste is kept within Europe for effective plastics recycling and application to new products. This will boost the market for European recyclers.
• Establishing a set of sustainability principles that can be applied to all products and their design, including a digital product passport.
• Facilitating the trade of high quality secondary raw materials, by developing measurement criteria to verify the quality of recycled content.

According to goals set in the European Green Deal, the EU should be climate neutral by 2050. Though the Single Use Plastic (SUP) guidelines presently receive considerable attention, the EU has plans for more plastics. European legislation is therefore expected to evolve these coming years to further drive a transition towards a CE.