Full draft Extended Producer Responsibility regulations have been published by the UK Government with the aim of it coming fully into force by 1 January 2025.
Covering all four UK nations, the Government sent the Draft Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024 to the European Union (EU) as part of its responsibilities for Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework. Simultaneously, the UK notified the World Trade Organisation (WTO) of the new labelling requirements, fulfilling its membership obligations and paving the way for the introduction of Extended Producer Responsibility (pEPR) for packaging from 2025.
This pivotal development provides much-needed clarity to the packaging value chain across the UK’s four nations as they gear up for the early implementation of packaging EPR next year. Stakeholders can now access the full draft Regulations, marking a significant milestone in the UK’s commitment to environmental stewardship.
Timelines Taking Shape
The UK’s legislative process will see the packaging EPR legislation presented to Parliament later this year, with the goal of enacting it by 1 January 2025. Producers will be mandated to report the volume of packaging they market from January to December 2024. This data will form the basis for calculating producer fees and compensating local authorities for managing packaging waste from April 2025 to March 2026.
Responsive Regulation: Changes Reflect Stakeholder Input
The draft Regulations have undergone several critical changes following stakeholder feedback from the packaging EPR consultation. These amendments aim to refine the legislation to better meet the needs of all parties involved in the packaging value chain. Key changes include:
- The introduction of recycling targets for the years 2025 to 2030.
- A contingency provision mandating full pEPR obligations for producers of PET plastic, aluminum, and steel drinks containers if a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is not operational by 1 January 2028.
- Adjustments to labelling provisions, with all obligations now set to commence on 1 April 2027.
- The exclusion of binned waste and litter payments from the draft, to be addressed in separate regulations.
- The requirement for the Scheme Administrator to provide guidance on the methodology and factors considered in assessing net efficient disposal costs and effectiveness.
- A revised definition of household packaging that broadens the exemption criteria, aligning with the data reporting regulations in each nation.
The new recycling targets are:
| Category | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 |
| Plastic | 55% | 57% | 59% | 61% | 63% | 65% |
| Wood | 45% | 46% | 47% | 48% | 49% | 50% |
| Aluminium | 61% | 62% | 63% | 64% | 65% | 67% |
| Steel | 80% | 81% | 82% | 83% | 84% | 85% |
| Paper, board or fibre-based composite material | 75% | 77% | 79% | 81% | 83% | 85% |
| Glass | 74% | 76% | 78% | 80% | 82% | 85% |
What does this mean for PRN/PERN registration?
From 1 January 2026, individuals or entities must be accredited to issue PRNs related to packaging waste recycled at their reprocessing sites and PERNs for packaging waste exported for recycling.
Accreditation requires the entity to be established in the UK, registered for the specific category of packaging waste, and to submit detailed applications including a sampling and inspection plan and a business plan.
The applicant will also need to specify a tonnage band for the amount they will reprocess or export, although this can be changed through the compliance year. These tonnage bands are:
(a) up to 500 tonnes;
(b) up to 5,000 tonnes;
(c) up to 10,000 tonnes; or
(d) over 10,000 tonnes.
Applications for accreditation must be made separately for each category of packaging waste and reprocessing site. The appropriate agency will determine applications within a specified timeframe, and accreditation will be granted if all criteria are met. However, accreditation may be refused if false or misleading information is provided.
Reprocessors must report the following to the appropriate agency for each category of packaging waste handled at their registered reprocessing sites:
- The weight of packaging waste received for recycling in the reporting period.
- Details of each person from whom packaging waste was received for recycling, including their contact information and a description of their role in relation to the waste.
- The weight of packaging waste recycled in the reporting period.
- The weight of packaging waste received but not recycled (“unrecycled packaging waste”).
- The weight of unrecycled packaging waste that was sent to another reprocessor, exported, or sent to any other facility or site.
- The final destination in the UK of all unrecycled packaging waste, identifying each facility or site to which it was sent.
Exporters must report the following for each category of packaging waste for which they are registered:
- The weight of packaging waste received for exporting in each reporting period.
- Details of the persons in the UK from whom the packaging waste was received.
- The weight of packaging waste exported for recycling in the reporting period, and details of each overseas reprocessing site to which any of that waste was exported.
- The weight of packaging waste exported for recycling in the reporting period which was refused by the recipient destination or stopped during the course of export.
- The weight of packaging waste referred to in the previous point which has been repatriated in the reporting period.
- Details of the weight of packaging waste received by the exporter in the reporting period which has not been exported (“unexported packaging waste”).
- The weight of unexported packaging waste that was sent to a reprocessor in the UK, sent to another exporter in the UK, or sent to any other facility or site in the UK.
- The final destination in the UK of all unexported packaging waste, identifying each facility or site to which it was sent.
The weight of packaging waste received for recycling refers to the weight in tonnes of the recyclable proportion of that packaging waste. This can be calculated as either the actual weight of packaging waste received for recycling after deduction of everything which is not packaging waste in that category, or the percentage of packaging waste specified in any protocol for packaging waste recycling which is approved by the appropriate agencies as applying to recycling of that category of packaging waste.
What does this mean for exporters?
Starting from 1 January 2026, exporters must register with the relevant environment agency in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland for each category of packaging waste they export for recycling and for any year they engage in such export.
Registration applications must be submitted by 1 October 2025, or within 28 days of the first export if later. The application must include a sampling and inspection plan and other specified information.
A fee is payable with each application, and all provided information must be accurate. The agency will determine applications within 12 weeks and may require amendments to the sampling and inspection plan.
Registration will be granted if the applicant meets all requirements, holds relevant authorisations, and has an approved sampling and inspection plan. However, registration may be refused if the agency finds the provided information to be materially false or misleading.
Applicants will be notified of the decision within 28 days, and if refused, they will be informed of the reasons and their right to appeal. Charges may apply if the sampling and inspection plan is changed before registration.
An exporter can only issue a Packaging Waste Export Recovery Note (PERN) if the following conditions are met:
- The packaging waste is of a category for which the exporter has an accreditation at the time of its export and has been exported for recycling at an overseas reprocessing site specified in that accreditation.
- The packaging waste has been exported in accordance with the relevant legislation.
- The exporter is the legal owner of the packaging waste at the point of export, or the exporter has transferred legal ownership of the packaging waste to the person responsible for the operation of the overseas reprocessing site to which the waste is exported.
- The exporter has evidence that the packaging waste has been received at the overseas reprocessing site, and of the tonnage of packaging waste received.
- The exporter has up-to-date information that the recycling operations taking place at the overseas reprocessing site take place under conditions that are broadly equivalent to requirements applicable to reprocessing sites in the United Kingdom.
Furthermore, the exporter must adhere to these additional rules:
- An exporter must not issue a PERN for more than the recyclable proportion of packaging waste which meets the conditions above.
- Any PERN issued which relates to packaging waste received at an overseas reprocessing site for recycling in December of a year must specify that fact.
- An exporter must not issue PERNs for more packaging waste than the upper limit of the tonnage band for which the exporter is accredited.
- An exporter who exports packaging waste to an overseas reprocessing site via an interim site must provide the appropriate agency with the name, address, email, and telephone number of the interim site operator before exporting packaging waste to an interim site. They may only issue PERNs against the weight of packaging waste received for recycling at the overseas reprocessing site.
The full draft regulations can be found here.
