Landfill Disposals Tax (Wales): Welsh Revenue Authority rates, registration and returns
What landfill site operators in Wales must do under the Landfill Disposals Tax (Wales) Act 2017, including the 2026 to 2027 rates of £130.75, £8.65 and £196.15 a tonne, registration at least 14 days before operating, quarterly returns, record keeping and penalties.
Landfill Disposals Tax (LDT) replaced Landfill Tax in Wales from April 2018. It is set by the Landfill Disposals Tax (Wales) Act 2017 and collected and managed by the Welsh Revenue Authority (WRA). If you operate a landfill site in Wales you must register with the WRA and file a return every quarter. If you send waste to landfill but do not operate the site, you do not file returns, although the tax affects the price you pay.
There are three rates. The standard rate applies to most material. A lower rate applies to materials that meet the conditions in the Act. The unauthorised disposals rate is set at 150 per cent of the standard rate and is a deterrent against illegal dumping.
- Standard rate from 1 April 2026
- £130.75 per tonne
- Lower rate from 1 April 2026
- £8.65 per tonne
- Unauthorised disposals rate from 1 April 2026
- £196.15 per tonne. It applies to all material disposed of without authorisation, whether or not the material would qualify for the lower rate
- Rates for 2025 to 2026
- Standard £126.15, lower £6.30, unauthorised £189.25 per tonne
- Who registers
- Landfill site operators carrying out, or intending to carry out, taxable disposals. Registration is required before you operate, and applications should reach the WRA at least 14 days before taxable operations begin
- Changes to your registration
- Tell the WRA within 30 days of any change or correction to your registered details, in writing or by email. WRA guidance says a penalty of up to £300 can apply if you carry out taxable disposals without being registered or fail to meet a registration requirement, including reporting a change on time. If you keep making taxable disposals unregistered more than 10 days after the WRA issues a registration penalty notice, further penalties of up to £60 a day can apply
- Accounting periods
- Calendar quarters ending 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December
- Return and payment deadline
- File the return and pay no later than the last working day of the month after the quarter ends. A quarter ending 30 June is due by the last working day of July
- Amending a return
- You can amend a return within 12 months of the filing date by notifying the WRA
- Record keeping
- Keep invoices, transfer notes, weighing records and disposal records for at least six years after the return's filing date
- Late filing and payment
- Penalties and interest apply under the Tax Collection and Management (Wales) Act 2016, as set out in the WRA's technical guidance
What you must do
- Register your organisation and your sites. Register with the WRA and declare each site you operate in Wales. Apply at least 14 days before you start making taxable disposals and do not operate before registration is complete.
- Sign up to WRA online services so that you can file and pay online.
- Apply for any special arrangements before you start. These include weighing methods, water discounts, site restoration relief and non-disposal areas.
- Calculate the tax on each disposal. Multiply the taxable weight by the standard or lower rate. Water discounts apply to material weight calculations.
- File and pay each quarter. Return and payment are due by the last working day of the following month.
- Claim the customer insolvency credit where it applies, but check its effect on your liability.
- Keep your records for six years from the return's filing date, longer if you amend a return or the WRA opens an enquiry.
Unauthorised disposals
You can be liable for LDT on an unauthorised disposal if you made it or knowingly caused or permitted it. The WRA presumes that you knowingly caused or permitted a disposal if you controlled, or could control, the vehicle or trailer it was made from, or if you owned, leased or occupied the land where it was made. If more than one person is charged for the same disposal, each is jointly and severally liable for the whole tax. The WRA's public register of landfill site operators lets you check that a site is registered, and you can contact the WRA at ldtmailbox@wra.gov.wales.