HMRC has instigated a 12-week consultation on reforms to Plastic Packaging Tax (PPT), which will determine whether PPT exemption claims should require certification for mechanically recycled plastic.
Tighter controls on recycled plastic content are now under consideration following concerns that the current evidence requirements lack the depth needed to verify whether plastic packaging actually contains the recycled content claimed by manufacturers and importers.
PPT at present
Since April 2022, PPT has applied to any plastic packaging manufactured in or imported into the UK containing less than 30% recycled plastic. Registration is mandatory for all businesses manufacturing or importing 10+ tonnes of plastic packaging per year.
Presently, producers can evidence their recycled content using records such as invoices, product specifications and supplier declarations. However, the government suspects that this system allows scope for error, misuse and fraud, especially within global supply chains, where sourcing accurate verification can prove difficult.
Is reform the solution?
The new proposals would require businesses to obtain certification from approved third-party schemes to confirm the level of recycled plastic being used in their packaging materials. Imported packaging would also need vetting to ensure overseas suppliers meet equivalent certification standards.
HMRC assert that the changes would strengthen overall confidence in PPT, improve traceability across supply chains and foster a more consistent approach to evidencing recycled content claims.
This consultation comes in the wake of wider reforms on chemically recycled plastics. The UK government previously announced that chemically recycled plastic will be treated as recycled content within PPT from April 2027, with a certified mass balance approach planned to verify claims.
Have your say
Industry stakeholders are now being invited to provide feedback on the consultation.
Among considerations are:
- how certification systems could operate in practice
- potential costs
- administrative impacts
- the effect across supply chains
If your business would like to provide input on this consultation, you can do so via this government page, which also provides further details on the consultation itself.
