Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for packaging

The pEPR is being introduced under powers in the Environment Act 2021, to ensure packaging producers pay the full net cost of managing their products at end of life to incentivise them to design their products with sustainability in mind.
Who must comply with the regulations?
The key obligations under the regulations are that packaging producers must register their organisation, report packaging data, and ensure their products are collected and recycled or recovered properly.
An organisation must comply with the regulations if it meets all of the following criteria:
- It's an individual business, subsidiary or group (but not a charity)
- Annual UK turnover exceeds £1 million
- It has a physical presence in the UK
- It is responsible for more than 25 tonnes of packaging and/or packaging materials in the previous calendar year
- It carries out any of the described packaging activities
Businesses need to be aware that even if they fall below the above thresholds or are otherwise exempt, it may still have obligations to collect and report certain data, particularly is the business is part of a larger group of companies or operating as a franchise or online.
A packaging producer includes the performance of any of the following activities in the UK:
- Brand Owners- who package goods and sell them under their brand name. When a brand is not identifiable, the obligation falls to the organisation that carries out the packing or filling of the packaging.
- Importers- who import filled packaging
- Distributors- who manufacture or import empty packaging and sell that packaging to anyone who is not an obligated producer
- Sellers- who sell filled packaging to the end-consumer
- Online marketplaces- who operate a marketplace whereby non-UK sellers can sell filled or empty packaging to UK consumers
- Service providers- who hire out or lend reusable packaging
Large organisations (packaging producers whose turnover exceeds £2m where the total packaging for all packaging activities exceeds 50 tonnes) must:
- Create an account on the EPR packaging online service
- Collect, record and submit data on empty packaging and packaged products handled and supplied within the UK. By 1 October 2024 – report data for 1 January to 30 June 2024. By 1 April 2025 – report data for 1 July to 31 December 2025
- From 2025, based on 2024 data, pay a waste management fee, scheme administrator costs and a registration charge to the Environment Agency.
Small organisations (packaging producers whose turnover exceeds £1m and total packaging for all packaging activities between 25-50 tonnes) must:
- Register for the EPR packaging online service
- Submit data about empty packaging and packaged products handled or supplied in the UK during 2024 by 1 April 2025
Both civil sanctions and criminal prosecution are available for non-compliance. Most producers are expected to join a compliance scheme to meet their obligations.
The importance of record keeping
At any point, the Environment Agency may audit your data. Maintaining comprehensive, accurate records is key to ensuring pEPR compliance and avoiding potentially very large penalties. Here are some thoughts on good record keeping and approaches to compliance generally:
- Retention – keep all relevant documentation for at least 7 years. This includes records of calculations, packaging data and any evidence evidencing packaging classifications or exemptions.
- Collect and maintain invoices and delivery notes for packaging materials and packaged goods, product specifications and technical data sheets, packaging weight calculations and measurement records, proof of recycling and records of reusable packaging.
- Record the methodology for collecting and calculating packaging data. Online marketplace operators must submit their methodology to the Environment Agency.
- Ensure all submitted data is verified by an approved person within the business. Maintain records of who this person is and their relevant qualifications.
- Maintain a clear audit trail to demonstrate how reported figures were calculated, including any assumptions or estimates used in the calculations.
Penalties for non-compliance
There are a range of potentially serious civil sanctions available to the Environment Agency in enforcing the pEPR.
A fixed monetary penalty of £1,000 may be issued (increasing to £1,500 if not paid within 56 days) where producers fails to keep required records or fail to supply information requested by the agency. A variable monetary penalty (up to a maximum of £3million) may be issued in relation to more serious breaches, such as failing to register as a producer or failing to report packaging data. In addition to any civil penalty, the Environment Agency may seek to recover its enforcement costs.
As an alternative to a civil penalty, a business that face a civil penalty could make a voluntary offer to put right the effects of a breach, its impact on third parties and to make sure it cannot happen again (known as an enforcement undertaking).
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