Waste Carriers
Are you affected?
Householders moving their own waste or businesses moving waste within a premises are not required to register as waste carriers.
New regulations will shortly come into force to replace the existing waste carrier, broker and dealer legislation in England. The Environmental Permitting (Waste Controlling or Transporting) and Relevant Functions of Primary Authorities (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2026 mostly come into effect 12 months after the new regulations are made. The key changes this legislation will apply are as follow:
- Registration to permits – Operators will move from a simple registration system to a permit-based system, meaning they must actively demonstrate they meet requirements to operate, rather than just registering their details.
- Enhanced background checks – All operators will be required to undergo identity and criminal record checks, helping to prevent organised criminals from entering the sector.
- Technical competence – Operators must demonstrate they are competent to transport or make decisions about waste, a requirement that does not exist under the current system.
- Stronger enforcement powers – The Environment Agency will have greater powers to revoke permits, issue enforcement notices. The permit system will be self-funding, with permit fees covering the cost of regulation.
- Penalties – There are currently no custodial sentences for illegally transporting or dealing in waste. This SI will introduce penalties of up to five years’ imprisonment.
- Permit number display – Operators will be required to display their permit number in advertising, including branding on vans, making it easier to identify and report unlicensed operators.
Fees have yet to be consulted on but it is expected that there will be an initial application fee and then an annual subsistence fee.
Whilst a tightening of the waste carrier licensing regime is welcome, it must be recognised that significant amounts of waste are moved by foreign carriers (eg plastic to the Netherlands for recycling) who will also have to conform, something that does not yet seems to have been taken into account as to how they will satisfy the competence test amongst other things.
This page provides a lot more detail on the changes.
Currently (July 2026):
In England and Wales.
If you are having waste collected, it is a requirement of the Duty of Care that you ensure the person collecting the waste is a registered waste carrier. An archived EA Guidance document helps to determine whether you are affected but the NRW website has a much better explanation of the difference between Upper and Lower tier activities.
In general, ff you carry waste on a professional basis or carry building or demolition waste that you have generated, you shuld be registered as an UPPER TIER carrier and appear on the Agency public register.
If you have previously been exempt and carry your own waste (other than building and demolition) waste on a ‘normal and regular basis’, from 1 January 2014, you are classed as a LOWER TIER carrier and will appear on a separate public register.
This means that regardless of the type of business you operate, if you carry waste on more than just the occasional trip to a disposal site, you must be registered.
Examples of Lower Tier registrations might be:
- Businesses that collect confidential waste from their different locations to centralise at Head Office.
- Businesses where maintenance teams carry waste items.
- Solicitors that take their waste paper to a paper merchant once a month.
- Healthcare Trusts where nurses travel with waste sharps in their car.
- Carpet fitters who take away offcuts.
- Charities collecting printer cartridges.
Examples of Upper Tier include:
- Waste Management companies.
- Plumbers carrying waste pipework.
- Builders carrying rubble or wood offcuts.
There is now only a brief explanation on the requirements for waste carrier registration on the GOV.UK website.
In Scotland
The same principles apply, but there is no Upper and Lower Tiers. Instead, those that fit into the Upper Tier description above must register as Waste Carriers whilst those that fit into the Lower Tier description must notify SEPA that they are Professional Collectors and Transporters of Waste.
Further details are on the SEPA website.
In Northern Ireland
The Waste (NI) Regulations effectively apply the Upper/Lower Tier principle in a similar way to England and Wales.
Further details are on the NIEA website.
What is required?
For England and Wales
There is now one registration process that is on the GOV.UK website.
For UPPER TIER carriers, on registration, there is a new requirement to provide details of any convictions of any ‘relevant person’ of the business – Directors, Managers etc. If there is a change in any of these relevant persons, the EA must be informed within 28 days through the completion of a new form which must also details any convictions. UPPER TIER registration must be renewed every three years.
For LOWER TIER registrations, there is no fee and once registered, there are no renewal requirements.
Further details and access to the Public Register are here.
Business whose registered address in the devolved administrations must register with the apprpriate agency.
Previous Exemptions
The following activities were previously exempt from registration but operators must now register as Lower Tier (England, Wales and NI) or as a Professional Collector and Transporter of Waste (Scotland).
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A charity or voluntary organisation
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A waste collection authority
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A waste disposal authority
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A waste regulation authority
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A carrier who only transports:
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Animal by-products
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Waste from a mine or quarry
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Waste from premises used for agriculture
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If you carry your own waste other than construction or demolition waste
Fees
The fee’s vary between Agencies and are subject to change annually. As at 1 Jan 2015:
| Initial registration | Renewal | |
| England and Wales | £154 | £105 |
| Scotland | £162 | £111 |
| Northern Ireland | £135 | £69 |
How can I check if a carrier is registered?
The Environment Agency operates an On-line Public Register where you can check to find a registered waste carrier or check the validity of someone claiming to be a registered Waste Carrier. This includes Upper and Lower Tier Waste Carriers.
SEPA also has an online database of Scottish-registered carriers.
NRW public register
NIEA public register
Republic of Ireland public register