There is no fine at the moment you start talking to your software supplier about the furniture passport. The regulation lays down what must ultimately be included in the passport, not when you have that conversation. Yet delay does indeed have consequences, and they are mainly practical: time pressure, higher costs, and a greater chance that the passport is not complete on the first attempt.
The reason is simple. A software supplier must adapt systems, build connections and sometimes wait for a new release. That work takes time that does not disappear if you only start on it late. Whoever waits until the date is set typically starts in a period when everyone in the sector is knocking on the same suppliers' doors at once.
Why this conversation does not happen automatically on time
For many companies, the furniture passport still feels like something for later, especially since the mandatory date has not yet been set. The delegated act within the ESPR work plan is expected around 2028; mandatory application lies still further ahead. That is a real uncertainty, but it does not mean that preparatory work can only begin then. Much of what is needed, such as knowing what data you already have and what is missing, is independent of the precise date.
What typically goes wrong if you wait
The first thing that goes wrong is time. Software suppliers plan their development capacity well in advance. Anyone who only comes forward when the deadline is near often ends up on a waiting list or has to make do with a standard solution that does not fit well with their own product line.
The second is completeness. A passport consists of data about materials, origin, repair and recycling. That data often comes from different departments or suppliers. If that collection work only starts once the technology is already running, there is a risk that the passport is delivered with gaps that have to be filled in later.
The third is costs. Rush work is generally more expensive than planned work. Extra hours, rush rates and emergency solutions that have to be replaced later all add up. These are not legal sanctions, but they are real business costs.
What this is not
It is important to keep two things separate. There is no rule stating that you must have spoken to your software supplier by a certain date. The regulation sets requirements for the passport itself and for the moment it must be available, not for the pace of your internal preparation. Supervision and enforcement in the Netherlands and the EU focus on the result: is the passport there, is the content correct, is it accessible. Not on the question of how early you started.
What does play a role, however, is that a late-started project reduces the chance that you will be ready on time when the obligation takes effect. That is not a legal risk in the strict sense, but a practical risk that you can reduce yourself.
What this means for planning
Because the precise implementation date has not yet been set, it is difficult to set a hard deadline on the calendar. A workable approach is to not make the conversation with the software supplier dependent on that date, but on your own data organization. If you know which product categories fall under the furniture regulation, what data you already record and where the gaps are, the conversation with the supplier is much easier to conduct. the knowledge base with explanations by topic provides a brief answer per topic and the location in the official text, so that you can enter the conversation with a sharper picture.
For those who don't yet know where to start, it helps to first determine what role your company plays in the chain and what data belongs to it. get a first indication in a few questions shows you roughly where you stand, without you needing an account right away.
How furnipas.eu fits in
Because furnipas.eu compiles passports from data supplied by the manufacturer or importer, the speed of that process depends heavily on how complete that data already is when the conversation begins. how data flows from submission to passport shows which steps are involved and where time is spent. This makes it easier to estimate when a conversation with your own software supplier, or with a party like furnipas.eu, will be most beneficial.
If you would first like to assess for yourself whether and how this topic applies to your company, the free quick-scan is an accessible first step, just like a look at the most frequently asked questions about the furniture passport.