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# Technical Documentation

> The file an economic operator must compile to demonstrate that a product meets the applicable legal requirements, and must make available to authorities on request.

## Definition

Technical documentation is the body of design, manufacturing and assessment records that
demonstrates a product complies with the applicable requirements, compiled before the product is
placed on the market and kept available for the period the law prescribes.

## Expanded Explanation

Under the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, technical documentation must contain the
elements set out in Annex IV, including a general description of the product, the results of
assessments and calculations carried out, and the references of any harmonised standards or common
specifications applied. Where a delegated act sets ecodesign requirements, it can add elements
specific to that product group.

Technical documentation is not the Digital Product Passport. The passport publishes a defined subset
of information to defined audiences; the technical file is the underlying justification, held by the
operator and disclosed to authorities on request. The two must agree, because a divergence between a
published passport value and the file behind it is exactly the inconsistency a surveillance check
looks for.

Retention is a legal obligation, not a records-management preference. The operator must be able to
produce the file after the product has left its control.

## Why It Matters

A passport is easy to publish and hard to defend without the file behind it. Organisations that
treat the passport as the deliverable and the technical file as paperwork inherit an evidence gap
that only becomes visible under an information request.

## Legal and Regulatory Context

Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, Article 27 and Annex IV, together with the applicable delegated act.
Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 gives authorities the power to demand it.

## Relationship to Adjacent Concepts

Technical documentation supports the EU declaration of conformity and is produced through the
applicable conformity assessment route.

## Common Misconceptions

#### The Digital Product Passport replaces technical documentation

It does not. The passport is a publication surface for selected information. The technical file
remains a separate obligation with its own content and retention rules.

## Related Terms

* [EU Declaration of Conformity](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/eu-declaration-of-conformity)
* [Conformity Assessment](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/conformity-assessment)
* [Harmonised Standard](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/harmonised-standard)
* [Notified Body](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/notified-body)
* [ESPR](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/espr)

## Related Knowledge Base Articles

* [How Conformity Assessment Works for Digital Product Passports](/docs/knowledge-base/regulations/how-conformity-assessment-works-for-digital-product-passports)
* [How to Manage Evidence for Digital Product Passports](/docs/knowledge-base/implementation/how-to-manage-evidence-for-digital-product-passports)

## Related Articles

* [Conformity Assessment](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/conformity-assessment)
* [EU Declaration of Conformity](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/eu-declaration-of-conformity)
* [Harmonised Standard](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/harmonised-standard)
* [Notified Body](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/notified-body)
* [Presumption of Conformity](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/presumption-of-conformity)
* [Authorised Representative](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/authorised-representative)
* [Corrective Action](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/corrective-action)
* [Market Surveillance](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/market-surveillance)

## See Also

* [Regulations](/docs/knowledge-base/regulations/overview)
* [Governance & Assurance](/docs/knowledge-base/compliance-frameworks/overview)

## References

* Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, Article 27 and Annex IV:
  [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1781/oj](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1781/oj)
* Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 on market surveillance and compliance of products:
  [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2019/1020/oj](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2019/1020/oj)

## About This Article

About This Article

<dl>
  <dt>
    Last Reviewed
  </dt>

  <dd>
    2026-08-09
  </dd>

  <dt>
    Next Scheduled Review
  </dt>

  <dd>
    2027-08-09
  </dd>

  <dt>
    Article Version
  </dt>

  <dd>
    1.0
  </dd>
</dl>

tieback Knowledge is a continuously maintained reference library covering Digital Product
Passports, product traceability, product compliance and related regulations. Articles are
reviewed regularly as legislation, standards and implementation guidance evolve.

## Related Docs

* [Regulations](/docs/knowledge-base/regulations/overview)
* [Digital Product Passports](/docs/knowledge-base/digital-product-passports/overview)
* [Glossary](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/overview)