Landfill Tax Changes in April 2025: What Businesses Need to Know
Introduction
There had already been announcements in the 2024 Spring Budget that there would be sweeping reforms to landfill tax from April 2025. They hope that the changes, as well as Simpler Recycling legislation are all designed to encourage businesses down a better waste management path. The new requirements will pose challenges and increase costs for your business, so as a business owner or manager it is crucial that you are aware at all times. This is something we drive home in this post but also the repercussions of this to your business.
Key Takeaways
From April 2025 Landfill Tax will go up which means higher costs for your waste.
The newly introduced Simpler Recycling legislation is set to standardise recycling across the UK.
Since saving money and acting environmentally conscious should be priority for all types of business, more effective waste management would help with both.
Understanding the Landfill Tax
What is Landfill Tax?
Landfill Tax is a tax charged on waste sent to landfill. Measurable against tonnes of waste into landfill, to give business an incentive not to make rubbish. Landfill operators pay the tax, with them frequently passing it through to customers. This involves businesses to not ignore at all for waste disposal and this tax has a 1 step forward in firing up words of "5 Rs" as Refuse, Reduce, Reuse/Repurpose Recycle.
Changes in Tax Rates
The standard rate of landfill tax will increase from £103.70 to £126.15 a tonne with effect from 1 April 2025, and the lower rate (£3.30 to £4.05 per tonne) will also be by slightly more than inflation at that time. This standard rate may be billed for generic business supplies, non-compact waste (are usually raw materials) or mixed-waste deposits where the low fee is administered merely on inert buildups such as rubble and glass.
Material Sent to Landfill:
From 1 April 2024:
Standard Rate (per tonne): £103.70
Lower Rate (per tonne): £3.30
From 1 April 2025:
Standard Rate (per tonne): £126.15
Lower Rate (per tonne): £4.05
Impact on Businesses
Landfill taxes are set to increase, landing businesses with more expensive bills when it comes to disposing of waste in such facilities. The goal of this economic incentive is to drive measurable waste diversion improvements through increased recycling and sounder waste management practices.
Simpler Recycling Legislation
What is Simpler Recycling?
Simpler Recycling is new legislation and will be implemented on the 31 March 2025. The intention is to create a universal recycling approach for the UK, which will help businesses recycle in the correct manner. The law would mandate businesses throw away food scraps in designated containers and separate starting dry-mixed recyclables such-as paper, cardboard, metal, glass and plastic containers from general waste.
Benefits of Simpler Recycling
The proposed schema would also create improved labour standards and training requirements across the industry whilst raising recycling rates of businesses by establishing a uniform system for recycling. This, combined with the hike in landfill tax rates is designed to provide a powerful incentive for businesses to move their waste management practises up the hierarchy. Recycling correctly can save your business money, reduce its carbon footprint and encourage a circular economy.
Practical Steps for Businesses
Adopting the "5 Rs"
Businesses should work more in line with the 5 Rs (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) principles to counteract this further landfill tax hike.
Refuse: Go for no waste over unnecessary trash.
Reduce: Cut waste as much as possible.
Reuse: Look for ways to reuse materials rather than throw them away
Repurpose: Convert waste material into new products.
Recycle: Try and avoid waste materials, sort out & re cycle.
Implementing Effective Waste Management
There are a number of steps that businesses can take to better their waste management, including:
Conduct a Waste Audit: Understand what types and amounts of waste is your business creating. This will reveal the places that you can improve.
Educate Staff: Make sure all employees know about the new laws and why recycling is so vital. Use training to promote sorting collection and disposal of waste.
Partner with a Reliable Waste Carrier: Utilise waste services such as UK Construction Garbage collection for certain the fact that your garbage is actually dealt with). As they are experienced within sustainable waste management, this allows us to then employ them on compliance work and help achieve landfill tax savings.
Case Study: Hospitality and Food Services
Around 1.1 million tonnes of food waste is produced annually from the hospitality and food services industry. While these changes are on their way, this sector still faces heavy costs associated with not recycling food waste. They can reduce the amount of waste they are sending to landfill by introducing systems that allow their food wastage to be recycled, turned into energy and fertiliser through anaerobic digestion - a process which would also see them significantly reducing their tax bill from disposing of food into general bins.
Conclusion
The impending changes to the landfill tax and new Simpler Recycling legislation symbolise a big move away from current waste management regulations for businesses throughout the UK. Through awareness of these changes, and taking action to implement improvements in your waste management processes businesses can reduce costs associated with this activity as well assist in helping towards achieving a sustainable future.
As Master Builders, this is indeed a daunting task for business, and here at UK Construction Waste Co. we vow to aid in the successful management of these changes by offering workable waste solutions on your site! Find out more, call our expert team now to discuss your legal waste responsibilities and how you can save money on disposal and meet sustainability goals.
For more information, visit our website: UK Construction Waste Co.
