The deposit system should be understood as a system in which, when selling products in packaging, a fee is charged which is reimbursed when the packaging or packaging waste is returned, without the need to present a receipt confirming the previous payment of the deposit.

As explained by Jacek Ozdoba, Deputy Minister of Climate and Environment, the deposit system will include single-use plastic bottles for beverages with a capacity of up to 3 litres and reusable glass bottles for beverages with a capacity of up to 1.5 litres.

Entrepreneurs introducing beverages in the above-mentioned packaging will be obliged to guarantee, as part of the created deposit system, the level of separate collection of packaging or packaging waste resulting from these types of packaging. Ultimately, by 2030, it will be 90% of introduced packaging of a given type. If the required levels of separate collection are not reached, operators introducing beverages will pay a product fee

– he said.

Who creates the system

Deputy Minister Ozdoba pointed out that the deposit system will be created by operators introducing beverages in packaging covered by the system. The draft act leaves a lot of freedom to entrepreneurs in creating the system. However, it specifies the conditions to be met by this system. Operators introducing beverages will be represented by one operator. The representative of operators introducing beverages and participating in the system will submit an annual report on the functioning of the deposit system to the minister in charge of climate. Launching the system will require obtaining a permit, issued by way of a decision, by the minister in charge of climate. The representative operator will be obliged to submit to the minister an application for issuing a permit to launch the deposit system no later than 6 months before its planned launch.

Although the deposit system will not be mandatory, the requirement to reach the levels of separate collection only through the deposit system will make entrepreneurs create such systems. If they do not join the system, they will be obliged to pay a product fee.

In the future, once the amendments to the EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility) system for packaging enter into force, it is planned to introduce a mechanism of exemption from the packaging fee for operators introducing beverages in packaging included in the deposit system in relation to the collection level reached in the system. This exemption will allow operators introducing beverages to avoid incurring double costs in terms of financing the same objective (collection of packaging waste).

Amount of the deposit, method of collecting packaging and packaging waste

Deputy Minister Ozdoba pointed out that the draft act does not specify the amount of the deposit for packaging. The choice of its amount is up to entrepreneurs who, due to the required collection levels, will set its amount at the best level, on the one hand making buyers return packaging, and, on the other hand, not excessively increasing the price of products offered.

The draft act does not impose on entrepreneurs creating the system an obligation to choose the method of collecting packaging and packaging waste. Therefore, they will be able to base the system only on the collection of packaging and waste by stores, but they will also be able to install reverse vending machines for collecting bottles inside and outside stores.

– he pointed out.

As the Deputy Minister added, the choice of the collection method will therefore be dictated by the assessment of its effectiveness by entrepreneurs, in the context of guaranteeing the required levels of collection.

Universal and „no-receipt” system

On the other hand, the proposed regulations oblige every store with a retail space of more than 100 m2 to collect empty packaging and packaging waste resulting from the types of packaging covered by the deposit system and to return the deposit. Smaller business units will be able to collect this packaging and, at the same time, to return the deposit on a voluntary basis. All business units offering products in packaging subject to a deposit will be obliged to collect the deposit.

– explained the Deputy Minister of Climate and Environment.

The return of the packaging will not require presenting a receipt confirming the previous payment of the deposit. In turn, the unreceived deposit will be transferred to producers to be used for the functioning of the system only.

– he added.

Dates of launching the deposit systems

We assume that the proposed regulations will enter into force on 1 January 2023. At the same time, the draft act assumes that operators introducing beverages will be obliged to create the system no later than 24 months after the entry of the act into force – thus, by the end of 2024 at the latest.

- informed Deputy Minister Ozdoba.

Comments and opinions on the draft act may be submitted within 30 days from the date of submission of the project for public consultation to the following address: departament.prawny@klimat.gov.pl.