The QR data carrier is the physical or digital marking on or attached to the tyre that refers to the product passport: a QR code, a burnt-in mark or another readable carrier. The costs of that are a separate item, separate from compiling and hosting the data itself. There is no fixed rate, because the price depends on how the carrier is applied, how durable it needs to be, and at what point in the process that happens.
Anyone looking for what the data carrier costs often thinks this is the same as the cost of the passport. It is not. The passport is the collection of data that must remain accessible for ten years; the data carrier is the label or mark that refers to that data. Both have their own cost items, and both are often offered separately.
Why the data carrier is a separate cost item
Compiling and hosting a passport is largely a software matter: entering data, linking it, keeping it online. The data carrier is something else. It must be physically resistant to weather, wind, storage and use of a tyre, remain readable for years, and be applied in a way that fits the manufacturer's production process or the importer's assortment. That makes it a technical and logistical choice, not merely an administrative one.
The regulation itself prescribes that there must be a data carrier and that it must be durable and remain readable throughout the product's service life. How that requirement is technically fulfilled is up to the parties in the chain. That explains why price quotes can differ significantly: it is about different solutions to the same requirement.
What determines the price of the data carrier
A number of factors recur in the price structure. First, the method of application: a sticker applied afterwards is usually cheaper than a code formed into the rubber during vulcanization, but the latter option is more durable and does not need to be purchased and attached separately.
Second, the volume. Anyone processing thousands of tyres per year pays less per unit than someone importing a limited assortment, simply because setup costs are spread over more units. Third, the point in the chain where the carrier is applied: at the manufacturer, at the importer, or only at delivery to the end user. The further down the chain, the more parties involved and the more that can affect the price.
A fourth factor is whether the data carrier is linked to one fixed passport per model, or to an individual passport per tyre produced. The latter requires more technical expertise — each carrier must be uniquely and flawlessly linked — and that shows in the cost structure.
What is separate from the data carrier: the passport itself
The costs of the passport — compiling the data, hosting it for ten years, and keeping it up to date with changes — run through a different process and are usually charged separately. Anyone comparing a provider would be wise to ask whether a quote covers the data carrier, the passport, or both. That distinction is not always automatically clear in price quotes.
Who bears the costs in the chain
In practice, the choice of data carrier usually lies with the party that puts the tyre on the market: the manufacturer or importer acting as the provider. They determine how and where the carrier is applied, and they bear the costs of it initially. For a fleet manager or installation business that purchases tyres, these costs are usually already factored into the purchase price, although that can vary by supplier. What that means in a concrete contract is something to check with the supplier or, if desired, have reviewed by a lawyer.
What you can find out now already
Even without the delegated act being definitively established, you can already map out what role your company plays in the chain and which choices for a data carrier suit that role. see in a few questions which role fits your company provides an initial direction there, completely free of charge. Those who want to know how pricing for passport and data carrier works in practice can find it on the page with an overview of rates and what they include more guidance. For background on how data is compiled into a passport, the explanation about where the information comes from is a good starting point, and the broader explanation per subject is collected in the knowledge base, sorted by situation.
The exact date on which the obligation comes into force has not yet been established: the ESPR work plan mentions 2027 for the delegated act, and as soon as that is published, it will be added here. If you want to get insight now into what will change for your company, take the free quick-scan or browse through the topics in the knowledge base.