Registration for the Deposit Return Scheme, which most shops selling drinks in disposable containers will have to take part in, has opened, with retailers having just three months to register.
From October 2027 all stores selling drinks in single-use containers made from PET plastic, steel or aluminium and holding 150ml to 3l will apply a 20p deposit at the sales point.
Most shops will also have to accept, process and return empty containers, with the option of doing so manually or via automated reverse vending machines. Stores that must accept returns will also have to hand customers their 20p deposits back via cash, vouchers or digital tokens.
Shops with under 100sq m of retail space in urban areas are automatically exempted from being a ‘return point operator’, meaning they do not need to handle empty bottles or issue 20p returns. These stores do not need to register with the scheme.
Urban shops with 100 to 200sq m of retail space, and rural stores with under 200sq m, can apply to be exempt from accepting returns, but these, and all other stores, need to register with Exchange for Change, which is running the scheme, by December 31 2026.
Registration is being done in two phases. The first phase, which is open now, is for producers (i.e. drinks manufacturers and importers), and stores that will host return points.
Shop managers will need to create an account, provide information about their store, and tell Exchange for Change if they intend to handle returns manually or via a reverse vending machine, providing the latter’s make, and serial number, if applicable.
The second phase, for which no opening date has yet been set, will see more detailed information collected ahead of the scheme commencing.
