There is no fixed rate for adapting contracts to the digital product passport. The amount is made up of a number of separate items: legal work on existing contracts and general terms and conditions, operational consultation with suppliers and customers about who provides which data, and possibly guidance to structure that process. At most companies, the legal work forms the largest item, not because the text is complicated, but because the number of contracts that need to be reviewed is often larger than expected.
What primarily determines the price is not the size of your company but the size of your supply chain: how many suppliers and customers do you have, how many of those relationships already run through a standard contract, and how many custom agreements are mixed in. A company with three fixed steel suppliers and one procurement model has a smaller job than a company that works with changing parties and renegotiates for each assignment.
Where the amount comes from
The costs fall roughly into three categories. The first is legal: a lawyer or contract manager assesses existing purchase and sales contracts and determines which provisions need to be added or modified, for example regarding who is responsible for providing data for the passport and within what timeframe. The second category is operational: consultation with suppliers about which data they can and are willing to share, and in what format. The third category is project-based: someone within the company must drive, plan and monitor this process. At smaller companies, this is often the same person who also handles procurement; at larger companies, it is a separate role.
These three items together determine the amount, and the distribution varies widely from company to company. A company that already works with clear, standardized contracts needs relatively little legal work. A company that works with many loose agreements will spend more time mapping out what was actually agreed before anything can be changed.
What affects the price in practice
Three factors often play the biggest role. First, the number of contract types: a trading company with ten variants of delivery terms has more work than a processor that works with one standard contract. Second, the extent to which suppliers are already accustomed to providing data digitally and in a structured manner; if that is not yet the case, a discussion about working method comes along with a contract change. Third, whether a template or standard clause already exists that can serve as a basis, or whether everything needs to be drawn up from scratch.
These factors are also the reason why an estimate for one company says little about another. There is no fixed price per contract or per company size, and every provider who claims otherwise is making a statement that is not based on your situation.
What you can do yourself to limit costs
Costs usually mount up when contract adjustments happen ad hoc: per supplier separately, without a common starting point. It helps to first determine what data is needed for the passport and only then look at which contract provision covers it best, rather than the other way around. This creates one standard formulation that you can use in multiple contracts, instead of drafting new text each time. the knowledge base with explanations per topic provides an overview of which data are mentioned in the regulation, so you can conduct that conversation with your legal adviser more specifically.
It is also useful to know in advance roughly where your company stands: do you have many or few contract variants, and how many of them relate to the supply of steel or iron. With a couple of questions that immediately give an indication you will get a first picture from that, without any cost.
When this becomes concrete for you
The obligations from the regulation only become concrete once the first delegated act for iron and steel has been published; this is expected within the European Commission's work plan for 2025-2030, with a transition period thereafter. As long as that act has not been adopted, it is not certain which data will be precisely required and which party must provide them. This is also the reason why adjusting contracts now can be premature, but exploring your own contract landscape is not: you will not have to redo that work once the text is available.
For the precise wording of clauses and the question of what is sensible in your situation, a lawyer or contract adviser is the appropriate party; this explanation is intended to prepare the conversation, not to replace it. More background on how we obtain our information is available on the page on how the information is prepared.
Do you first want to get a picture of how many contracts and suppliers in your case are affected by the digital product passport, before you engage an adviser? Do the free quick-scan or browse through the topics in the frequently asked questions to see which situation comes closest to yours.