The rate per category of material is determined by the costs involved in collecting, separating and recycling that specific material. In short, readily recyclable packaging are not only good for the environment but also for your wallet. Part of the rate comprises the general system costs, these being the costs incurred for monitoring recycling and prevention of litter, amongst other things. These costs are evenly distributed over the categories of material.

Rate reusable packaging
Reusable packaging refers to packaging that, after being brought on the market, is returned, inspected, possibly cleaned, and refilled. We kindly ask you to specify the weight, for each material, both when you first introduce reusable packaging to the market and the total weight of the reusable packaging brought on to the market (including the intitial introduction, i.e. multiplying the total distribution by the weight of the reusable packaging). 

The requirements for reuse are:

• The packaging should be designed to last more than one cycle
• There must be a demonstrable system through which the packaging undergoes more than one cycle.

The annual declaration obligation is:

• The number of kilograms added to the pool for the first time in a year. You pay the rate for this. Calculate this by taking the number of added packaging * the weight per packaging.
• The number of cycles (in kilograms) of the reusable packaging each year. Calculate this by taking the number of units * the weight per packaging. No rate is linked to this. 

The first time you declare reusable packaging, you will be charged only the system fee (starting from 2023). For 2024, this fee is € 0,015 per kilogram. A mandatory declaration of the total weight of reusable packaging brought on the market applies, but no fee is associated with this. 

The 2026 fees show stability across the board, with the exception of beverage cartons and aluminium.
The fees for glass, plastic, paper & cardboard, other metals and wood are in line with 2025. The fee for reusable packaging also remains unchanged. Despite the increase in activities, the 2026 system fee is the same as in 2025.

For beverage cartons, we see a (slight) increase. The rising recycling targets combined with a vulnerable chain result in higher collection and processing costs for beverage cartons. Due to the decline in cans within the aluminium stream, a smaller, lower-quality, and therefore more expensive material stream remains, leading to higher costs for aluminium.

The surcharge for SUP packaging decreases thanks to better insight into the cost structure.

In our webinar “Tariff Bandwidths 2026” we provide a detailed explanation of the tariff developments, which you can view here.

The deposit return fees can be viewed here.

Plastic packaging

Since 2024, we have made a distinction in reporting and fees between rigid and flexible plastic packaging. Each has its own starting fee, reflecting the costs involved in recycling them.

Plastic Fee Differentiation

In the coming year, Verpact will once again reward easily recyclable packaging. This way, we encourage producers and importers of plastic packaging to bring recyclable plastic packaging to the market and to increase the use of recyclate. The total discount can amount to as much as €0.60 per kilogram.

The Plastic Fee Differentiation 2026 scheme will be published online soon. The discount levels and amounts will remain the same as in 2025. The scheme will, however, be further optimized to make it easier to apply for Fee Differentiation for easily recyclable plastic packaging.

This is how we turn plastic packaging back into new plastic packaging. Every step towards more recyclable plastic packaging delivers a direct financial benefit.

Read more about Plastic Fee Differentiation.

Want immediate insight into how recyclable your plastic packaging is? Our new Recycle Checks are now online.

Note: Plastic Fee Differentiation does not apply to deposit return or other fee components or discount schemes.

Fee for reusable plastic drinking cups

A reusable cup must be declared if it is intended as a point-of-sale packaging item for out-of-home use, such as in offices, retail and service sectors, schools, hospitality, festivals, associations, recreation, healthcare, and public transport stations. It is the responsibility of the producer/importer to demonstrate this.

For 2024/2025/2026, a separate fee of €0.28 per kilo applies to reusable plastic drinking cups, without SUP surcharge, and exclusively for reusable cups from the official Point-of-Sale Packaging List that meet the following conditions:

• The cup is demonstrably intended, designed, and placed on the market to make multiple cycles during its lifetime by being refilled or reused for the same purpose for which it was designed.

• The cup must be resistant to machine washing, and it must be proven that the cup has been tested in accordance with NEN-EN 12875-1:2005, which demonstrates that the cup can withstand 125 cycles (“loops”).

This fee for reusable plastic cups is a separate fee and cannot be combined with additional discount schemes such as Fee Differentiation.

*Falls outside tax-free threshold of 50,000 kilos per calendar year.

*Plastic lower rate (2019-2023)
Is your plastic packaging easy to sort and readily recyclable? If so, you might be eligible for Fee Modulation Plastic 1.0 and pay a reduced rate. 

**Plastic rigid and flexible
On January 1st 2024, we introduce Fee Modulation Plastic 2.0. In order to close the plastic packaging chain and produce as little new plastic as possible, plastic packaging that is thrown away must be used again as raw material for new plastic packaging. From plastic packaging, to plastic packaging. The easier a packaging is to recycle, the better this process goes. Verpact will therefore reward highly recyclable plastic packaging and the use of recyclate. We make a distinction between rigid and flexible packaging. 

Other categories of material  
This includes all packaging not made of glass, paper/cardboard, plastic, wood or metal, for example jute bags (textile) and stone jars/earthenware (ceramic).

Beverage cartons
On 1 July, 2023, the legal definition for beverage cartons changed. According to the amended legislation, beverage cartons are defined as: "packaging suitable for the packaging of liquid foodstuffs, excluding drinking cups, of which paper and/or cardboard is the main component". Read more about the application of the definition of beverage cartons here. 

For monitoring purposes, it is important that we know the composition of beverage cartons. Therefore, when submitting your declaration, you need to enter the weight per material type from which the beverage cartons are made. Note! The new definition applies to the declaration for the entire calendar year 2023. 

Indirect export
In the case of indirect export, a different rate applies to plastic. The other rates remain the same.

Plastic bottle for soft drink or water without deposit
You are required by law to register for the deposit scheme as quickly as possible. So, register now. Do you release plastic soft drinks and/or water bottles on the Dutch market which are not yet covered by the deposit scheme? Then you are obliged, even if you release less than 50,000 kilos per calendar year on the Dutch market, to file a declaration and pay the Packaging Waste Management Fee. You pay the regular (from 2024 rigid) plastic rate.

General rate (until 2022)
What if you are unable to determine the breakdown of your packaging according to category of material? The general rate applies in this case.

Read more about rates and our policy? Read about it here.