How Landfill Disposals Tax works

From 1 April 2018 Landfill disposals tax replaced landfill tax in Wales. Landfill disposals tax is charged on all taxable disposals in accordance with the LDTA and the Welsh Revenue Authority collects and manages the tax. Up until 31 March 2018, landfill tax was collected and managed in Wales by HMRC on behalf of the UK government.

To ensure the new tax systems created are recognisable to those who will have to operate them on a daily basis, there will be similar processes and an approach to tax rates which will provide stability and reassurance to businesses.

Like landfill tax, landfill disposals tax is a tax on the disposal of material as waste to landfill and will be charged by weight. It will be payable by landfill site operators, who pass on these costs to waste operators through their gate fee.

The landfill site operator or operators of an authorised landfill site will be liable to pay tax on disposals made at the landfill site.

Where a disposal is made at an authorised landfill site, the landfill site operator is the person responsible for the disposal. Where a disposal is made without the permission of the landfill site operator, the person responsible for the disposal is the person who disposes of the material, but the landfill site operator will be liable for tax, even if another person was responsible for the disposal.

For example, if a disposal is made out of hours without the knowledge of the landfill site operator, it will be the landfill site operator who is liable to pay the tax even though it may not have been an unknown third party’s intention to discard the material.