Systems for packaging waste have very similar provisions in Australia to those in Europe, as Australian states and territories have principal responsibility for the environment, and several states have adopted product stewardship policies for packaging waste.
The regulatory base is set out in the National Environment Protection (Used Packaging Materials) Measure 2011 (NEPM). This obligates companies who sell or produce packaged goods to come up with ways to design more recyclable, compostable or reusable packaging. It also underpins the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation’s work, which is to promote shared responsibility, recycling and circular economy.
Obligated companies are the brand owners who have an annual turnover exceeding AUD 5 million in a year. Those below the threshold can join the Covenant voluntarily.
If your company imported or manufactured more than a threshold amount of computers or printers in Australia, it has a legal responsibility to organise the collection and recycling of these products.
There are a number of other voluntary schemes that companies are able to join to ensure that their products are properly managed for their full life cycle.
Producers and importers of service package, packagers (presumed to mean brand owners) and importers may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. If your company supplies packaged products to consumers in Austria by means of distance communication it is able to join a packaging compliance scheme in Austria.
If your company manufactures and sells EEE under their own brand, resells under own brand EEE produced by other suppliers and imports EEE into Austria to sell, it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. Distance sellers are required to appoint an Austrian based authorised representative who is responsible for meeting their obligations under the EAG-VO.
For batteries any company with residence in Austria (irrespective of the selling technique used) may be obligated. This includes manufacturers of batteries and importers of batteries. Producers of portable and vehicle batteries have to fulfil their take-back obligation by joining a compliance scheme. For producers of industrial batteries, it is not compulsory.
Your company only has to comply if the obligated packaging (both domestic and
industrial combined) amounts to more than 300kg of packaging waste annually.
The obligation is on companies who package products, have them packaged in Belgium to market them in Belgium under your brand name or a neutral brand name, import packaged goods or have them imported to bring them onto the Belgian market, consume or unpack industrially packed products in Belgium and produce and/or import service packaging (packaging mostly used at the point of sales – disposable carrier bags, pizza boxes, wrapping paper etc.)
A company not registered in Belgium (and without a Belgian VAT number) does not have any obligation to comply with Belgian regulations unless it distance sells directly to the consumer. It is possible for a foreign company to voluntarily join the compliance scheme and report however the legal responsibility still lies with the Belgian company who must ensure the foreign company complies.
Any company who places EEE and batteries on the Belgian market (manufacturer or importer) is obligated.
Brazil has a National Solid Waste Policy that regulates the management of various types of solid urban waste based on a system of Reverse Logistics (this encompasses extended producer responsibility and deposit return scheme principles). Reverse Logistics is implemented through a mixture of Sectoral Agreements, Terms of Commitment and State legislation. If your company produces, imports, distributes or sells any of the products listed in this policy, it may be obligated under producer responsibility laws in the management of any post-consumer packaging waste generated from that product. This includes batteries, and EEE products and their components.
Packaging in general (products wrapped in glass, metal and plastic packaging, and to other products and packaging) is legislated on in various individual States, for example companies that trade within the State of Rio de Janeiro must comply with producer responsibility laws in force on packaging waste in general.
Importers and producers of packaging and packaged products, service producers and sellers who add packaging to goods, and retailers may be obligated under producer responsibility laws. Obligated companies must take financial responsibility for collection, recovery, and treatment of their packaging. These obligations can be fulfilled by joining a compliance scheme, periodically declaring information regarding packaging placed onto the market and paying the appropriate fees.
Canada has a complex regulatory framework, with extended producer responsibility regulations being handled by the provinces and territories. British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec all have packaging EPR schemes in place with different thresholds and requirements, and Alberta and New Brunswick are looking to introduce schemes in the future.
Furthermore, most provinces have a beverage deposit return scheme in place which lead to another set of obligations on companies operating in Canada.
If your company manufactures, sells or imports EEE or batteries into a province in Canada it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws.
An EPR Bill has been proposed in Columbia to cover various container types. The container types include glass, metal/ aluminium, paper and cardboard containers all of which are considered to be ‘recoverable products’. Producers of such products will be obligated under EPR principles, with specific requirements set out by government. Producers are hence obliged to register with a designated registry which has been established by the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development; organise and finance the collection and treatment of waste products through either individual or collective management systems; and meet collection and recovery targets.
There are two systems of regulation in Croatia: one for the packaging of drinks and dairy beverages, and one for all other packaging.
Producers and distributors of obligated EEE products must pay a waste management fee to the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund (EPEEF).
Currently, foreign companies cannot register with the Croatian authorities.
Currently, the only packaging EPR in place in China is for paper-based composite beverage packaging, but there are trial EPR schemes for various other types of waste, like electronics, automobiles, and lead acid batteries.
To avoid excess packaging waste there are strict requirements on the dimensions of packaging that may be used for products, as well as regulations requiring that products and packaging be designed to be easily degraded and recycled.
Companies that introduce packaging or packaged consumer goods into the national market, with the exception of reusable containers, may be obligated under producer responsibility laws in Chile to organize and finance the collection of packaging waste. Regulations that have come into force more recently have implemented EPR systems for producers, to come into effect in 2022. Producers finance waste management in proportion to the amount of packaging placed on the market by each producer, as well as registering with The Pollutant Emissions and Transfer Register and carrying out reporting obligations.
If your company either produces, imports, distributes or distances sells packaging or packaged products onto the Cypriot market it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws.
If your company either produces, imports, distributes or distances sells WEEE and batteries onto the Cypriot market it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws.
Producers, importers and retailers placing packaging or packaged goods on the Czech market may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. Companies are exempted from the take-back, recovery and registration requirements if they place less than 300 kg packaging on the market each year, and if their annual turnover does not exceed 4.5 million Czech koruna per year.
There are no thresholds under the Czech WEEE Regulations and as such, companies are obligated from the first piece of EEE placed onto the market.
Both batteries that are sold separately and as part of electrical equipment are obligated.
Furthermore, there is a mandatory deposit return scheme for certain kinds of glass bottles.
Packaging regulations in Denmark are very different to the rest of Europe. Unlike most other countries, the key collection responsibility lies on local authorities/municipalities and the key financial responsibility lies on householders. The Danish place the responsibility for the recycling and treatment of packaging waste on private operators (recyclers) and local authorities (treatment facilities). These costs are covered through a taxation system. Effectively the Danish government has produced a list of packaging that will attract a tax levy and any company that produces, distributes or introduces any packaging on this list is affected. It is weight and material based.
Producers and importers of EEE must report annually on the quantities of EEE placed on the market over the previous year.
Producers and importers of batteries should be registered with the Danish Commerce and Companies Agency.
Manufacturers, importers, packers and fillers, sellers and end‐users are obligated to ensure that as much packaging is recycled in Estonia. Obligated parties are exempt if they place less than 100 kilograms of plastic packaging on the market per year of less than 200 kilograms of any other packaging on the market per year.
Producers, importers, exporters and internet sellers of EEE must register with the Register of Product of Concern through the Ministry of the Environment and submit regular reports about the amount of EEE products placed on the market.
If your company packs products, has products packed or imports packed products to the Finnish national market, and has a turnover of at least one million euros, then it may be obligated to comply with producer responsibility laws.
If your company contributes to the placement of EEE products and/or batteries to the Finnish market for the first time, if it produced EEE products and/or batteries from within Finland or if it distance sells from abroad EEE products directly to the consumer in Finland, it may be obligated to comply with producer responsibility laws.
If your company manufactures, handles, processes, sells or imports packaged products that generate household packaging waste to the French national market, it may be obligated to comply with producer responsibility laws. France has fast-developing legislation on EPR, with a system of modulated fees for packaging waste streams. Different declarations must be submitted depending on various thresholds describing the amount of packaging placed on the market each year by packaging producers.
If your company contributes to the placement of EEE products and/or batteries and accumulators to the French market for the first time, and is established in France, or sells by remote communication directly to the consumer in France, it may be obligated to comply with producer responsibility laws.
Germany’s Packaging Law (VerpackG) became effective on January 1, 2019 and replaced the German Packaging Ordinance (VerpackV). VerpackG established a national authority (Zentrale Stelle), significantly increased targets for material recycling, and added new registration and data reporting requirements.
Under the law, manufacturers (i.e., distributors that put packaging into commercial circulation on the German market for the first time) are required to register with Zentrale Stelle prior to placing the packaging on the market. They also required to provide the data listed below, which will be posted on Zentrale Stelle’s Central Packaging Registry.
- Registration number (provided by Zentrale Stelle)
- Material and volume of the packaging put on market
- Name of the packaging scheme contracted by the manufacturer to fulfil its Extended Producer Responsibility
- Duration of the agreement with the recycling company/system
If your company introduces EEE or batteries onto the German market, regardless of the selling method, it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. All obligated companies must register with the relevant authorities and report on the quantities of EEE and batteries placed on the market each year.
There is also a mandatory deposit return scheme covering many kinds of beverage packaging, and this will be expanded to cover an even larger proportion in January 2022.
If your company imports, produces or sells packaged products in the domestic market, it may be obligated to comply with producer responsibility laws. Primary, secondary and tertiary packaging that circulates in the Greek market, and packaging waste from all sources are subject to this legislation.
If your company places electrical and electronic equipment, regardless of their country of origin, for the first time on the Greek national market, or if they undertake distance selling intended for home (B2C) or business (B2B), it may be obligated to comply under producer responsibility laws. The two professional categories of manufacturer or distributer have different obligations within this system.
If your company is responsible for the placing on the Hungarian national market packaged products and packaging for the first time, and is established within Hungary, or distance sells from abroad, then it may be obligated under producer responsibility laws. Producer responsibility operates largely under a tax-based system which funds a centralised government authority to organize waste collection and treatment. Individual compliance is also possible for these companies, which can fully or partially exempt them from product levies.
If your company contributes to the placement of EEE products and/or batteries to the Hungarian market for the first time, if it produced EEE products and/or batteries from within Hungary or if it distance sells from abroad EEE products directly to the consumer in Hungary it may be obligated under producer responsibility laws. Some compliance schemes for batteries are in operation to take on producer obligations, although there are none for EEE waste. Companies must organize and manage their producer responsibility individually or are obligated to pay the Green Tax.
In Israel, extended producer responsibility laws are similar to those common across the EU. Companies that have imported or manufactured more than a threshold amount of packaging in Israel must pay a per tonne fee and report on tonnages bi-annually or annually.
WEEE & Batteries are covered under the same law. A threshold exists for the manufacturing or importing of EEE but not for batteries. Obligated companies pay a per product fee and report sales bi-annually or annually.
As a member of the European Economic Area, Iceland has implemented legislation regarding extended producer responsibility.
The recovery and recycling targets follow those set in the European Union (EU) directives and must be achieved by the Icelandic Recycling Fund, to which all producers must subscribe.
Producers and importers are responsible for the collection and achievement of the defined “utilization norms” fixed by the WEEE Directive 2012/19/EU, Battery Directive 2006/66/EC, and Packaging Directive 94/62/EC under the EEA Agreement.
However, in Iceland things are done differently than the other EU Member States. When a product is imported, it automatically triggers a report to the Icelandic Recycling Fund. Now the producer is registered at the Environment Agency. To start this process, importers need to register with the Customs Authority first, and local manufacturers need to register with the Internal Revenue department. The Icelandic Recycling Fund then charges the producer a take-back and recycling fee and takes on the producer responsibility as well as the reporting to the Environment Agency.
India has regulations in place concerning solid waste, plastic waste, WEEE, and batteries.
Companies that place packaging and plastic products on the Indian market are obligated to establish a system for the collection of the waste they generate and submit these plans to local or national Pollution Control Boards for approval. Currently, this system is quite different across states, but the government intend to introduce a Uniform Framework for Extended Producer Responsibility to combat this.
The state of Maharashtra also has a mandatory deposit return scheme for PET and PETE beverage bottles.
Only lead-acid batteries are currently covered by battery regulations.
WEEE regulations require producers to establish collective or individual systems.
Packaging regulations (solid waste and plastic waste) vary by province. Producers are responsible for setting up their own waste management systems.
Producers and users of packaging are obligated to become members of National and Material Consortiums in order to report on the qualitative and quantitative details of the packaging they are placing on the market, and how much of that is recycled. These consortiums aim to meet EU targets on packaging waste and recycling. Italy has transposed EU Packaging laws into its current legislation to varying degrees at this stage. It has legislation which establishes EPR schemes for packaging waste, although no current ministerial decrees that provide concrete guidelines for this.
If your company produces or distributes EEE, including if it manufactures and sells EEE under their own brand, resells EEE under their own brand, or imports EEE into Italy commercially, it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws.
Japan has had extended producer responsibility style legislation in place since the late 90’s.
There are obligations in place on manufacturers, wholesalers and importers of packaging, and on manufacturers of batteries.
There is a take back scheme in place for WEEE products.
The Kenyan government is currently in the process of introducing a wide-ranging EPR scheme within the country. This would cover a large number of packaging materials (composites, plastic and rubber, aluminium, glass, paper and carton, and textiles), but details of the precise format of the scheme are still being developed.
If your company is responsible for the placing on the Latvian national market packaged products and packaging for the first time, and is established within Latvia, or distance sells from abroad, then it may be obligated under producer responsibility laws. Companies receive a 100% exemption from paying the Natural Resources Tax by ensuring compliance with the recovery regulations for used packaging, disposable tableware and accessories through either: establishing an individual EPR system (and submitting financial security to the State Environmental Service (SES) and entering into an agreement with the SES regarding the application of their management system); or more commonly by entering into an agreement with a registered operator of packaging and packaging waste. If your company places more than 300kg of used packaging on the market per calendar year, new regulations coming into place from January 2022 will apply.
If your company produces, manufacturers, imports or distributes electrical and electronic equipment and first places it on the national Latvian market, they may be obligated to comply with producer responsibility laws, or be subject to the Latvian Natural Resources Tax.
If your company manufactures or imports more than 500kg of packaging to the national market of Lithuania in one calendar year, excluding all reusable packaging and disposable packaging subject to the Deposit Return System, you may be obligated to comply with certain extended producer responsibility laws. Companies that do not exceed this threshold still must register in the Lithuanian Manufactures and Importers Compendium and keep packaging records. Companies that do not comply with laws on producer responsibility in the management of their packaging waste are obliged to pay the environmental pollution tax, which is modulated by material categories.
If your company contributes to placing EEE products and/or batteries on to the national Lithuanian market for the first time, it may be obligated to comply with producer responsibility laws. This includes resellers and both domestic and foreign distance sellers, who sell their products directly to the consumer in Lithuania.
Luxembourg regulations affect anyone placing packaging and packaged products, EEE and batteries onto the Luxembourg market for the first time. To fulfil their obligations, the majority of businesses join approved compliance schemes.
Regulations affect manufacturers, producers, distributors, and importers of packaging and EEE. Obligated producers are required to register with the authorities and submit data regarding the amount of packaging and EEE placed onto the market. Compliance with these regulations may be achieved individually, or by joining an existing collective system.
Obligated producers of batteries are required to register with the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA).
There are no specific obligations for the producer responsibility of companies in Mexican legislation on a national level, rather the principle of Shared Responsibility is established in the national legislation. This includes the principle that the waste generator must assume the costs of its disposal, and mandates that individual states respond to this law with their own local policies and programmes. However, the principle of Extended Producer Responsibility is emergent throughout the country, and various States have draft legislation that would obligate various producers who would trade within their territory. This includes legislation on plastics, packaging and EEE waste.
If your company generates over 10 tonnes per year of what Mexican National Standards class as ‘Special Management Waste’, including PET, HDPE, LDPE, and other polymeric materials, you may be obligated to produce and participate in a Management Plan for this waste.
If your company places more the 50,000 kilograms of packaging on to the Dutch market, it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. This excludes transit packaging.
If your company produces or distributes EEE, including if it manufactures and sells EEE under their own brand, resells EEE under their own brand, or imports EEE into the Netherlands commercially, it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws.
Manufacturers or distributors of batteries are responsible for the waste management of batteries that they place on the market.
Currently there are limited regulations in place that implement extended producer responsibility in New Zealand. At this stage, the Ministry of Environment has commented that they are working with stakeholders to co-design product stewardship schemes for each priority product group, however this is still in the emergent phase for packaging. Consultation on proposed measures to address hard-to-recycle and single-use plastic items closed on 4 December 2020. Progress is planned for 2021-2022.
If your company manufactures or imports products in Nigeria, it may be obligated to comply with extended responsibility legislation on the collection, treatment and handling of packaging waste. For example, all companies that manufacture or import food and beverage products in Nigeria must submit a proposal for a consumer products stewardship programme, to establish buy back programmes and prove compliance with current EPR regulations.
If your company is an importer, exporter, manufacturer, assembler, distributor and retailer, of various brands of EEE products, it may be obligated to subscribe to an Extended Producer Responsibility Programme.
Packaging can only be sold on the Norwegian market if it meets the basic requirements listed in Norwegian Waste Regulations.
If your company is an importer and manufacturer who supplies 1000 kg or more of one type of packaging per year to the Norwegian market, it may be obligated to comply with packaging waste regulations and producer responsibility laws.
There are separate regulations that cover packaging for beverages.
Management of e-waste in Norway is also a producer responsibility, where producers are defined as Norwegian manufacturers and importers of EEE. A separate return scheme for EEE waste has been established, due to its potentially hazardous properties. All producers of EEE waste and/or batteries are required to be members of a recycling company approved by the Norwegian Environment Agency. Retailers of EE products and/or batteries and municipalities must receive EEE waste free of charge from households and ensure that it goes on to a legal reception or treatment facility.
New EU regulations on batteries have been proposed and are expected to be finally adopted in early 2022 – these will apply to Norway.
The Peruvian Ministry of Environment (MINAM) published their much anticipated WEEE Decree in November 2019; repealing the WEEE Decree of 2012 and executing a revised WEEE management regime under the 2016 framework Law on Solid Waste. The Agency for Environmental Assessment and Enforcement (OEFA) will be monitoring and enforcing the new regime alongside MINAM.
The decree defines EEE producers as anyone who places EEE on the national market for the first time for commercial purposes, regardless of sales technique – this includes manufacturers, assemblers, importers and distance sellers. The new regulation increases the compliance burden for those involved across the WEEE supply chain in Peru.
Producers will be required to design and implement WEEE management systems – individually or through producer responsibility organisations (PROs) – that offer free take-back of WEEE from end-users, meet collection targets and deliver collected WEEE to approved treatment operators.
Increased enforcement undertakings seem likely for non-compliant producers.
If your company places more than 1000kg of packaging annually on the Polish market, it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. Retailers are only obligated if their retail space across all their stores is greater than 500 square metres. There is an exception to this, which is that companies that engage in distance selling of packaged products are obligated for this packaging and must register directly with a compliance scheme regardless of how little they produce.
If your company places electrical and electronic equipment on the Polish market, you need to join a compliance scheme and contribute to the costs of recycling a percentage of household electronic products. Companies who sell EEE waste into Poland via distance selling are legally obligated for the recovery and recycling of these products. Manufacturers, producers, importers and foreign distance sellers of batteries may also be obligated under current producer responsibility laws.
Current producer responsibility laws will come to an end in January 2022. Recent draft proposals for future EPR systems are currently in legislative process.
Currently there is no extended producer responsibility system in place in the Philippines, however a recent bill to introduce it is prioritized for 2021. In this system, manufacturers would bear primary responsibility, however this would be coordinated with retailers and distributors.
EEE waste that contains hazardous components are regulated, and there are official guidelines for companies that manufacture, import or sell EEE and batteries that fall under these criteria.
If your company is responsible for the first placement of packaged products on the national market, intended for the final consumer, then it may be obligated to comply with Portuguese producer responsibility laws.
If your company produces or distributes EEE, including if it manufactures and sells EEE under their own brand, resells EEE under their own brand, or imports EEE into Portugal commercially, it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. It is mandatory for foreign companies placing EEE on the Portuguese market to nominate an authorized representative who will be responsible for fulfilling and locally guaranteeing all the company’s obligations before all the entities involved in the process. Other waste streams/products do not need an authorized representative yet, however foreign companies still must be registered and report locally to the Portuguese Environment Agency and to the local waste management schemes.
Manufacturers or distributors of batteries are responsible for the waste management of batteries that they place on the market. New EU regulations on batteries have been proposed and are expected to be finally adopted in early 2022 – these will apply to Portugal.
If your company places more than 10 tonnes of packaging or packaged goods onto the Irish market each year and has an annual turnover of greater than €1 million it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. This system will be reformed in 2023/24, and companies can expect to cover a larger proportion of the cost of handling waste as well as face potentially lower de minimis thresholds.
In Q3 of 2022, the government also intend to introduce a mandatory deposit return scheme for beverage containers which will cover PET bottles and aluminium cans.
If your company manufactures under its own brand, re-brands, imports or sells EEE and batteries to household customers in the Republic of Ireland it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws.
Obligated companies that produce, import, pack/fill, sell or are the end users of packaging are obligated under Romanian regulations to finance the collection and recovery of their packaging waste establishing a recycling system. This can be done by joining an approved compliance scheme.
EEE producers are responsible for organising and operating WEEE collection, either individually or through membership of a scheme, from private households, while municipalities are given several options to fulfil their obligation to ensure separate collection of WEEE from households. Producers and distributors (of B2C and B2B EEE) must inform buyers of WEEE management costs separately through a mandatory visible fee. Individual compliers require a licence from National Environmental Protection Agency.
For producers of portable batteries, the Regulations are not explicit about requirements for individual compliance. Producers can join a collective scheme and transfer legal responsibility to the scheme. Producers of industrial batteries can join a collective scheme and transfer legal responsibility to the scheme. Individual compliance is permitted, and no approval is required for individual systems. Distributors may not sell batteries from unregistered producers.
In 2015, producer responsibility laws rendering manufacturers and importers responsible for the collection and recycling of their products were brought into place.
Obligated producers can comply by either organising their own recycling systems, entering into a contract with a regional recycling operator or by paying an environmental fee dependent on the quantities of waste being placed onto the market.
If your company either sells products that are packaged under its own or a distribution brand that can reach the final consumer on Spanish territory, or packages, makes or imports packaged products that can reach the final consumer on Spanish territory, it may be obligated to comply with Spanish producer responsibility laws. These laws apply whether you are a Spanish company or foreign e-commerce seller. However, the legal responsibility for declaring packaging imported from a company outside of the Spanish territory lies with the Spanish importers. If an importer agrees with its foreign supplier that the latter will declare the packaging, foreign companies are able to voluntarily take the obligation by registering with a Spanish compliance scheme.
If your company professionally packs products, brings a packaged product into the national market, manufactures a package in Sweden and/or imports a package into Sweden, it may be obligated to comply with producer responsibility laws. Companies that place plastic bottles and metal cans on the Swedish market are required by law to ensure that the bottle or can is included in an approved return system.
If your company packs or fills packaged products, imports products/goods in packaging to the territory of the Republic of Slovakia, manufactures or imports empty packaging directly to the consumer, including via distance selling, or orders product packaging placed on the market under your own trademark then you may be obligated under producer responsibility laws. Producers that place less than 100kg of packaging per calendar year on the national market have limited obligations but must still comply with certain requirements.
The laws regarding extended producer responsibility were published in November 2020. The primary intention of the regulation is to extend the financial and physical responsibility for a product to the ‘producer’ of that product, which importantly includes the post-consumer stage (waste disposal).
The term ‘producer’, meaning “any person or category of persons or a brand owner who is engaged in the commercial manufacture, conversion refurbishment or import of new and/or used products as identified by the minister”.
Producers must register with The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries.
There is currently no Extended Producer Responsibility legislation for packaging whatsoever in Thailand. Explicit EPR laws on packaging waste remain in the drafting stage.
There is a draft electrical and electronic equipment waste (WEEE) Act that seeks to implement EPR for EEE waste, however nothing in force that obligates companies under producer responsibility laws.
All producers, marketers and suppliers of packaging are obligated under the Turkish regulations. Producers can fulfil their obligations individually or by joining an approved compliance scheme.
If your company has a UK turnover exceeding £2 million, owns and performs a relevant activity on any of the packaging it handles, and annually handles more than 50 tonnes of packaging, it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws. This system will be reformed in 2023, and companies can expect to pay substantially higher costs as well as face potentially lower de minimis thresholds.
In 2022, there will be a UK wide tax on plastic packaging with less than 30% recycled content, as well as a beverage deposit return scheme for Scotland. The rest of the UK will see a deposit return scheme in 2024.
If your company manufactures under its own brand, re-brands, imports or sells EEE and batteries to household customers in the UK it may be legally obligated under producer responsibility laws.
Currently, in the US, extended producer responsibility laws are administered on a state level with 5 states introducing legislation covering packaging since 2011. Three of these have enacted the legislation which carries an obligation.
Currently, at least 25 states have passed legislation placing the responsibility on electronics and electricals manufacturers to pay for the recycling of their products.
Nine states have enacted battery regulations that put an obligation on the producers of batteries.
