What Data a Battery Passport Must Hold (Annex XIII)
A battery passport is a QR code linked to a digital record that a covered battery must carry. The record starts empty. What fills it is a fixed list of data, and most of that list does not live in the factory that assembled the battery.
That list is Annex XIII. Filling it is the real work of a passport.
At a glance:
- A battery passport must carry the data set out in Annex XIII of Regulation (EU) 2023/1542.
- It covers every EV battery, every LMT battery, and every industrial battery over 2 kWh.
- The data spans identity, carbon footprint, recycled content, due diligence, performance, and recycling.
- Most fields come from across the supply chain, not from the final assembler.
- The same record is shown at three access tiers: public, legitimate interest, and authorities.
Where the requirements come from
The content of a battery passport is not left to the maker. It is set in Annex XIII of the EU Batteries Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2023/1542.
Annex XIII is the part of that regulation that lists the exact fields a battery passport must carry. Think of it as the schema the passport has to fill. It is the same schema for every EV, LMT, and industrial battery over 2 kWh. The battery passport itself is just the shell. Annex XIII is what goes inside it.
What a battery passport must hold
The data falls into a few clear groups. Each group is a field, or a set of fields, that the passport must show.
- Identity and model. Which battery this is: manufacturer, model, and a unique identifier for the individual unit.
- Composition and materials. What the battery is made of, including the critical raw materials it contains.
- Carbon footprint. The declared carbon footprint of the battery, calculated on the set method.
- Recycled content. The share of recycled cobalt, lithium, nickel, and lead in the battery.
- Performance and durability. How the battery performs and how long it is expected to last.
- Supply-chain due diligence. The record behind the raw materials, showing the sourcing was checked.
- Dismantling and recycling. The information a recycler needs to take the battery apart safely at end of life.
None of this is a marketing sheet. Each field is evidence. It has to stay accurate for the life of the battery.
The table below groups the fields and shows where each one usually starts.
| Data group | What it holds | Where the data usually starts |
|---|---|---|
| Identity and model | Manufacturer, model, and a unique unit identifier | The pack maker and the operator |
| Composition and materials | What the battery is made of, including critical raw materials | Cell and material suppliers |
| Carbon footprint | The declared carbon footprint on the set method | Cell manufacturing |
| Recycled content | The share of recycled cobalt, lithium, nickel, and lead | Material suppliers |
| Performance and durability | How the battery performs and how long it lasts | Manufacturer testing |
| Supply-chain due diligence | The record showing the sourcing was checked | Raw-material sourcing up the chain |
| Dismantling and recycling | What a recycler needs to open it safely | The pack designer and maker |
Two fields worth pinning down
Two of these fields cause the most confusion, so it helps to state each one plainly.
The carbon footprint is the battery's declared greenhouse-gas total, calculated on the method set in the regulation. It is not a marketing number. It follows one fixed method, so passports can be compared like for like.
Recycled content refers to the share of recycled cobalt, lithium, nickel, and lead fed back into the battery. It is reported per material. There is no single headline figure that stands in for all four.
The data lives across the supply chain
Almost none of that data sits in one place.
The carbon footprint comes from how the cells were made, often in another country. The recycled-content shares come from the material suppliers. The due-diligence record follows the raw materials back up the chain. The operator that places the battery on the market has to gather all of it and stand behind it.
So a passport is a data-collection exercise long before it is a QR code. It is the same problem CBAM importers face with emissions, and the one EUDR operators face with plot coordinates.
A worked example
Take one EV battery pack. Here is where each field tends to come from.
- The pack assembler sets the identity: manufacturer, model, and the unique unit ID.
- The cell plant, perhaps on another continent, supplies the carbon footprint figure.
- The cathode material supplier reports the recycled cobalt, lithium, and nickel shares.
- The sourcing teams for those materials supply the due-diligence record.
- The pack designer supplies the dismantling and recycling instructions.
Five parties, one passport. The operator collects all five inputs and signs off on the result. Miss one input and the passport is incomplete. That is why the work starts long before the QR code is printed.
What falls outside the passport
The passport does not cover every battery. It applies to three groups: EV batteries, LMT batteries, and industrial batteries over 2 kWh.
A battery outside those groups does not need a passport of its own. A small portable battery in a household device is one example. An industrial battery at or below 2 kWh sits outside the rule too. Getting the scope right matters, because it decides whether the Annex XIII list applies at all.
Who sees what: access tiers
Not everything in the passport is public. Annex XIII data is disclosed at three access tiers.
Legitimate-interest access is the middle tier: it opens more of the record to parties with a defined need, such as recyclers and repairers. Around it sit the public tier below and the authority tier above.
- Public. Anyone who scans the QR code sees the general information.
- Legitimate interest. Parties with a defined need, such as recyclers and repairers, see more.
- Notified bodies and market-surveillance authorities. They see the full record.
| Access tier | Example parties | What they can see |
|---|---|---|
| Public | Anyone who scans the QR code | General information |
| Legitimate interest | Recyclers, repairers, and others with a defined need | More than the public view |
| Authorities | Notified bodies and market-surveillance authorities | The full record |
So a single passport serves a shopper, a recycler, and a regulator from the same QR code. Each one sees only the slice they are entitled to.
How Bindu keeps the data straight
The work is collecting a fixed list of fields from across the supply chain and keeping them accurate per unit.
Bindu holds the passport template built from the Annex XIII fields. It stores the evidence behind each field with an owner and a date. It publishes the passport page the QR code resolves to, with the access tiers applied. The data you gather once becomes the record a buyer, a recycler, or an authority scans. See the battery passport breakdown.
FAQ
What data must a battery passport contain? The information listed in Annex XIII of the EU Batteries Regulation: battery identity and model, composition and materials, carbon footprint, recycled-content shares, performance and durability, supply-chain due diligence, and dismantling and recycling information.
Source: EUR-Lex: EU Batteries Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, Annex XIII
What is Annex XIII? Annex XIII is the part of the EU Batteries Regulation that lists the exact fields a battery passport must carry. It is the schema every covered battery passport has to fill.
Source: EUR-Lex: EU Batteries Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, Annex XIII
Is all battery passport data public? No. The data is shown at three access tiers: a public view for anyone who scans, more for parties with a legitimate interest such as recyclers, and the full record for notified bodies and market-surveillance authorities.
Source: EUR-Lex: EU Batteries Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, Article 77
Where does battery passport data come from? From across the supply chain. The carbon footprint comes from cell manufacturing, recycled-content shares from material suppliers, and the due-diligence record from raw-material sourcing. The operator placing the battery on the market must gather and stand behind all of it.
Source: European Commission: Batteries
Does a battery passport include a carbon footprint? Yes. A declared carbon footprint, calculated on the method set in the regulation, is one of the required Annex XIII fields for covered batteries.
Source: EUR-Lex: EU Batteries Regulation (EU) 2023/1542, Annex XIII