WEEE producer responsibility compliance

If your business manufactures, imports, or rebrands electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) for the UK market, you are likely classified as a WEEE producer and must comply with the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2013. These regulations require producers to finance the collection, treatment, recovery, and environmentally sound disposal of waste EEE.

Non-compliance is a criminal offence. You must not place EEE on the UK market without being registered. This guide walks you through everything you need to do.

Are you a WEEE producer?

You are a WEEE producer if you do any of the following in the UK:

• Manufacture EEE under your own brand and sell it in the UK
• Import EEE into the UK from outside the country
• Rebrand another manufacturer's EEE and sell it under your own name or trademark
• Distribute EEE under your own brand (even if manufactured by someone else)
• Operate an online marketplace that facilitates sales of EEE from non-UK sellers (from 2025, under the amendment regulations)

If you only sell EEE that has already been placed on the UK market by another producer (for example, a retailer buying from a UK-based wholesaler), you are a distributor, not a producer. Distributors have separate take-back obligations (covered below) but do not need to register as producers.

How to register

Your registration route depends on the amount of EEE you place on the UK market each year.

Small producers (under 5 tonnes per year)

If you place less than 5 tonnes of EEE on the UK market in the previous compliance year, you are a small producer. You must:

1. Register directly with your environmental regulator using the WEEE online service (this replaced the National Packaging Waste Database from January 2025)
2. Report the amount of EEE you place on the market each year, broken down by category
3. Pay the applicable registration fee

If you cross the 5-tonne threshold during a compliance year, you must notify your regulator and join a Producer Compliance Scheme within 28 days.

Large producers (5 tonnes or more per year)

If you place 5 tonnes or more of EEE on the UK market, you must join an approved Producer Compliance Scheme (PCS). The PCS takes on your collection, treatment, and recovery obligations in exchange for a membership fee. You cannot register directly with the regulator as a large producer.

When choosing a PCS, consider:

• The fee structure (fixed fees versus per-tonne charges)
• Whether they cover all 15 EEE categories relevant to your products
• The quality of their reporting and compliance management
• Their track record of meeting collection targets

Reporting and data obligations

All WEEE producers must report data on the EEE they place on the UK market. The data must be broken down by:

• Product category (across the 15 broad EEE categories)
• Household vs non-household classification (dual-use products count as household)
• Weight in tonnes placed on the market

Large producers report quarterly through their PCS. Small producers report annually to their regulator. Accurate reporting is essential because collection targets for each PCS are calculated based on their members' combined market share.

Marking requirements

All EEE placed on the UK market must carry the crossed-out wheelie bin symbol. This tells consumers that the product should not be disposed of as general household waste. The marking must be:

• Visible on the product itself (or its packaging if the product is too small)
• Permanent and legible throughout the product's lifetime
• Accompanied by the producer's identification mark

If your EEE also falls under the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) Regulations, it must additionally comply with RoHS substance restrictions and carry the appropriate compliance documentation. RoHS and WEEE operate as complementary regimes: RoHS controls what goes into products, while WEEE controls what happens when they become waste.

Distributor take-back obligations

If you sell EEE to consumers (whether in-store or online), you have separate obligations as a distributor. You must offer customers free take-back of their old equipment on a like-for-like basis when they purchase new equipment of the same type.

Alternatively, you can join the Distributor Takeback Scheme (DTS), which provides funding for local authority collection sites in lieu of in-store take-back. Most large retailers choose the DTS route for practical reasons.

Small retailers selling EEE with a floor area under 400 square metres are exempt from in-store take-back, but must still inform customers of local WEEE collection facilities.

What to do now

1. Determine your producer status: Review the definition above and assess whether your business manufactures, imports, rebrands, or distributes EEE under its own brand
2. Calculate your tonnage: Work out how much EEE (by weight) you placed on the UK market in the last compliance year
3. Register or join a PCS: If under 5 tonnes, register with your environmental regulator. If 5 tonnes or over, join an approved Producer Compliance Scheme
4. Check your marking: Ensure all your EEE carries the crossed-out wheelie bin symbol
5. Set up reporting: Establish processes to track and report EEE placed on the market by category and household/non-household split