Citeo Pro: The Complete Guide to Professional Packaging EPR in France (EPRO)

The single most common mistake we see in non-EU sellers’ French EPR files is registering only for household packaging (Citeo) when part of their catalog actually ships to French professional buyers. The professional packaging stream — EPRO, operated by Citeo Pro — is a separate filing, separate IDU, separate declaration. Missing it is a fast route to a Cdiscount Pro or ManoMano Pro suspension.

This guide is the practical map of EPRO for non-EU producers: who needs it, what it costs, how it sits next to household Citeo, and how to avoid the most common B2B/B2C confusion.

What EPRO is

EPRO stands for emballages professionnels — professional packaging. It is the EPR stream covering packaging that ships to French businesses, professionals or institutions rather than to French consumers.

The legal basis is the same AGEC law (Loi 2020-105) that introduced the household packaging stream. EPRO was added in 2023 as a separate sub-stream, with Citeo Pro as the accredited operator. Each producer placing professional packaging on the French market must register, declare and pay eco-contributions to Citeo Pro under its own IDU.

The IDU prefix for EPRO follows the FR-EPRO- convention, distinct from the FR-EMB- prefix used for household Citeo. Marketplaces verify the prefix matches the sales channel.

Who falls under EPRO

The test is the recipient. EPRO covers packaging accompanying goods shipped to:

• French professional buyers (B2B sales to companies, professionals, institutions).
• French B2B marketplaces (Cdiscount Pro, ManoMano Pro, Amazon Business FR for professional accounts).
• French wholesalers, distributors and retailers for their internal use (not for onward sale).
• French restaurants, hotels, hospitals, schools and other institutional buyers.

What is NOT EPRO:

• Packaging shipped to consumers (B2C). That is household packaging — Citeo, Léko or Adelphe.
• Packaging shipped to French distributors for onward retail. That packaging is treated as household at the point of final consumer sale (the distributor declares it).
• Packaging that stays at the producer’s premises (not "placed on the market" in France).

The decisive question: does the recipient use the product professionally? If yes, EPRO. If no, household.

When a producer needs both EPRO and household Citeo

The most common B2C-plus-B2B pattern: a non-EU brand that sells most of its catalog to French consumers via Amazon FBA and Shopify, but also has a side channel to French restaurants or small businesses via Cdiscount Pro or direct B2B.

In that scenario the producer needs two separate filings:

• Household Citeo (FR-EMB-) for the consumer sales.
• EPRO Citeo Pro (FR-EPRO-) for the professional sales.

Both filings name the same producer. Both run on annual declaration cycles. Both are managed by the same authorized representative under a single mandate covering both streams. From the producer’s point of view it is one operational engagement, two regulatory records.

How EPRO and Citeo differ in practice

Beyond the obvious recipient distinction:

Eco-contribution rate. EPRO rates are typically lower per kilogram of packaging because professional packaging is heavier, simpler in composition, and easier to recycle. Cardboard-heavy industrial boxes pay materially less per kilo than mixed-material consumer packaging.

Declaration granularity. Household Citeo asks for fine declarations by material type and by SKU family. EPRO accepts more aggregated declarations (by aggregate weight per material type per year). Less administrative overhead.

Bonus-malus structure. Household Citeo applies the eco-modulation grid covered in our eco-modulation article. EPRO has its own modulation but with less aggressive multipliers — professional packaging is rarely designed to capture bonuses, so the grid is simpler.

Marketplace verification. Cdiscount Pro and ManoMano Pro verify against the EPRO record specifically. Pasting a Citeo (household) IDU into a Pro account fails verification, even though the eco-organism family is identical. We cover this specific failure mode in our Cdiscount rejection guide.

Cost example for a mixed B2B/B2C producer

Producer profile: non-EU brand shipping €600,000/year to French consumers (Amazon, Shopify) and €200,000/year to French restaurants (Cdiscount Pro). Packaged goods with mixed cardboard + plastic packaging.

• Authorised representative covering both EMB and EPRO: €490 × 2 + €249 × 2 × 12 = €6,464 Year 1 → €5,976 Year 2+.
• Citeo membership (household): ~€250/year.
• Citeo Pro membership (EPRO): ~€150/year.
• Eco-contribution household (on ~5,000 kg packaging): ~€1,800/year.
• Eco-contribution professional (on ~1,500 kg packaging): ~€350/year.
• Total Year 1: ~€9,000. Year 2+: ~€8,500.

See /pricing for the published flat-fee structure.

Common operational mistakes

Three patterns that come up regularly when reviewing non-EU producer files.

Mistake 1 — Single Citeo filing when EPRO is needed. The producer’s sales team knows there is a B2B channel; the EPR file does not. Result: Cdiscount Pro account flagged, ManoMano Pro suspended.

Mistake 2 — EPRO filing when household is needed. Less common but happens when a producer thinks "we sell to businesses on Cdiscount Pro" without checking that the same SKUs also ship to consumers on the main Cdiscount platform. Result: household IDU missing, consumer-side listings deactivated.

Mistake 3 — Same IDU declared for both channels. Producers sometimes file once and try to apply the IDU to both B2C and B2B verifications. The marketplace verification fails because the IDU prefix does not match the channel. Two filings are required.

The diagnostic checklist for any producer with B2B exposure to France: list every channel through which French sales reach an end-recipient, identify whether each recipient is consumer or professional, and ensure an IDU exists for each side of that split.

FAQ

How do I know if my packaging falls under EPRO or Citeo (household)?

The test is the recipient. Packaging that ultimately reaches a French consumer (a person buying for personal use) falls under household packaging (Citeo, Léko, Adelphe). Packaging that reaches a French professional buyer (a business using the product in its activity) falls under EPRO. A single packaging item shipped to a B2C marketplace is household; the same item shipped via a B2B distributor for resale is also household; the same item shipped to a French restaurant for kitchen use is professional.

If I sell on Cdiscount Pro, do I need EPRO or Citeo?

Cdiscount Pro is the B2B platform. Sales through it default to professional and require an EPRO IDU. Pure household-category sales (consumer electronics, personal care) sold via Cdiscount Pro to small businesses may need both — the line is blurry. If your catalog mixes B2C and B2B routes, the safest answer is to file both Citeo and EPRO dossiers. We cover the Cdiscount-specific case in our Cdiscount EPR rejection guide.

Is EPRO more or less expensive than household Citeo?

EPRO is generally slightly less expensive in eco-contribution per kilo because professional packaging tends to be larger volume, simpler material composition (cardboard heavy), and easier to recycle. The representative and registration fees are identical to household packaging in our flat €490 setup + €249 per month structure. The savings come from the eco-contribution itself, not from the representative side.

Cover both B2C and B2B in one mandate

We file Citeo (household) and Citeo Pro (EPRO) under a single representative mandate. €490 setup + €249/month per stream, /pricing. Talk to us at /contact with your channel mix — written quote in 24 hours.