Digital waste tracking (Scotland)
Digital waste tracking is a UK-wide project which aims to digitise and streamline the way we track the movement of waste, from its origin, to where it ends up. The aim is to join up and eventually replace, the multiple existing outdated paper-based systems.
Tracking waste movement on a secure online platform will help us tackle waste crime, support legitimate businesses and protect our environment.
The Digital Waste Tracking (Scotland) Regulations 2026 come into force on 1 January 2027. The introduction of these Regulations will not remove or change any of the existing duty of care or waste reporting requirements currently in place for waste receiving facilities.
How digital waste tracking will be introduced in Scotland
Digital waste tracking will be introduced in two phases across the whole of the UK. There are some differences in timing and applicability in Scotland.
Phase 1: who it applies to
Phase 1 will only apply to permitted and licensed waste-receiving sites.
• Waste transfer stations
• Scrap yards
• Landfills
• Energy from waste facilities
• Composting sites.
There is one exception to this: authorisations granted to local authorities for Household Waste Recycling Centres and Transfer Stations where waste is bulked up and stored prior to transfer for disposal (for example to landfill), recycling, or treatment (for example at a materials facility).
- Former waste licensing exempt sites, either simple or complex (now deemed authorisations under the Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Regulations 2018).
- New authorisations issued at registration level under the Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Regulations 2018.
For operators in Scotland with sites included in phase 1, digital waste tracking will:
- be open for voluntary use in spring 2026
- become mandatory on 1 January 2027.
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, it will be mandatory from 1 October 2026.
Phase 2
Phase 2, which will cover other parts of the waste movement chain, is currently under development and an announcement will be made by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) at a later date.
How to prepare for phase 1
If phase 1 applies to you, you will need to:
- Register to use the system.
- Record specified information relating to received waste.
How to register
Defra will provide guidance on registering with digital waste tracking and how to use the system after 14 April 2026. If you cannot use the digital service due to digital exclusion once it’s mandatory, you will be able to register with SEPA instead.
For the latest from Defra, you can visit the digital waste tracking webpage and sign up to the Defra newsletter.
Submitting your information
Once you are registered, you can submit information in two ways:
1. If you already use your own waste software systems, you can use an application program interface (API) to automatically upload information from your system directly into the digital waste tracking system.
2. If you do not use your own waste software systems, you can submit the required information in a spreadsheet (provided by digital waste tracking).
More information on how to do this will be shared by Defra.
Apply to test digital waste tracking
You can get involved now, and help test the service if you are an operator of a permitted and licensed waste-receiving site.
Sign up to test digital waste tracking.
Contact us
If you have any queries, contact the Defra digital waste tracking helpline on 03000 203 781 (open Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm and closed on bank holidays).
If you need any further help or information about the regulation of digital waste tracking in Scotland, contact us.