Packaging fees
Each packaging must bear its own cost. Producers finance the cost of the municipal collection and the recycling of packaging by paying a packaging fee. Pricing must be transparent and fair. The cost is the same regardless of whether you are a large or small producer. All producers who are connected to Näringslivets Producentansvar therefore pay the same packaging fee. Näringslivets Producentansvar does not distribute any profit to its owners – what you pay is used to increase recycling in Sweden.
Criteria for differentiated packaging fees
Packaging fees
All producers pay an annual fee of SEK 2,500. After that, packaging fees based on reported kilos are added. All prices on this page are stated excluding VAT.
The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency announces quarterly changes that affect the costs and thus the fee. Above all, it refers to the expansion of municipal collection, as well as changes to the compensation level for the municipal collection system (recycling stations, collection near properties, etc.). The costs are therefore variable and our ambition is to adjust the fees annually.
Differentiated fees are driving progress
Differentiated fees mean a lower fee for a packaging designed for material recycling compared to a packaging that is difficult to recycle. The idea behind differentiated packaging fees is also to create a means to steer development toward increased material recyclability.
The basis of our packaging fees
Transparency and fairness are the basic principles for working with our packaging fees. With us, the fee levels are the same for everyone, we do not differentiate between affiliated producers. Our fees are normally adjusted annually, and then at the beginning of the year. It is our principle to inform about changes as early as possible, no later than three months before they come into force.
As a producer responsibility organization (PRO), Näringslivets Producentansvar works for transparency, both regarding circularity and finances. Näringslivets Producentansvar does not distribute profit. We work to ensure that our costs and revenues are even over time.
The Packaging Ordinance places high demands on producers in order for Sweden to reach the recycling targets. As a producer, you are responsible for financing all costs for collection and recycling that the packaging gives rise to.
Costs financed by packaging fee for private use:
- Municipal collection of household (and certain co-located businesses) packaging
- Logistics and recycling
Costs financed by packaging fee for other than private use
- Logistics and recycling of packaging waste from businesses that are delivered to NPA’s collection points
The fees that Näringslivets Producentansvar collects from you as a producer are used to cover the costs we have as PRO. The packaging fees make up the absolute majority of our revenue, while our expenses consist of costs for collection and recycling, as well as administrative costs.
The fee corresponds to the costs of the packaging
The packaging fees must be charged fairly to the producers, to the extent that each individual packaging must be covered by a packaging fee. We work according to the principle that each package should bear its own costs as far as possible. The fee must correspond to the costs the packaging gives rise to, minus any revenue it generates when sold as recycled raw material.
Costs and revenues that are directly attributable to a specific package are therefore charged to that package. Costs (and in exceptional cases income) that are not directly attributable to the specific packaging, for example because the collection takes place jointly for many packages (for example in four-compartment bins) or various overhead costs, are distributed according to a thoroughly elaborated model.
Allocation of costs between PRO:s
The collection of household (and some co-located businesses’) packaging waste is managed by the municipalities. The municipalities hand over collected packaging waste to the PRO:s in relation to each PRO’s market share, which also determines how the costs of the collection are to be distributed between the PRO:s. The municipalities’ collection cost is thus competitively neutral between PRO:s. This is important as the costs for the municipalities’ collection are the single largest cost for a PRO and thus also the single largest part of the packaging fee for private use.
Also costs linked to handling and recycling of packaging waste from businesses that are left at NPA’s collections points are distributed between the PRO:s according to market share.
From January 1, 2024, the municipalities have the collection responsibility for packaging from households, and approximately SEK 1 billion in costs for curb side collection have been moved from municipalities and property owners to producers with producer responsibility. The regulation also requires that the municipalities gradually expand collection curb side collection for all households until January 1, 2027.
As the producer responsibility organization with the largest market share, NPA is responsible for organizing collection points where businesses can drop off their packaging waste free of charge. The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency requires that the number of places be expanded to one reception place per municipality on 1 January 2026.
The packaging fees are affected by several different parameters, where the financing of the municipal collection of packaging waste from households constitutes the largest part and accounts for nearly 70 percent of the packaging fees for private use. The remaining 30 percent consists for the most part (to 82 percent) of logistics and recycling costs for the packaging waste we, as a producer responsibility organization, PRO, collect from the municipalities.
The possibility for us as a PRO or for you as a producer to influence the costs underlying the charges for private use is therefore very limited, but cost control and optimization are always in focus for us, where it is possible to influence. As a producer, however, you can influence the fee by choosing packaging that is compatible with material recycling.
Since the majority of the costs that build packaging fees for private use are directly linked to the collection of household packaging and the expansion of curb side collection, we see that the costs will continue to increase in the coming years when the curb side collection is expanded to reach all households in Sweden.
Our forecast shows that the increase will be strong during the years 2025-2027 and then level off. What determines how large the cost increases will be for a single year depends on the expansion rate of curb side collection, and will look different for different materials.
The expansion of collection points and an increased amount of packaging waste submitted from businesses to the collection points may also mean that fees for other than private use will increase in the next few years. Here we monitor the development and strive for the most cost-effective handling possible.
Frequently asked questions
Producer responsibility is a statutory obligation. Producer responsibility is based on the Polluter Pays Principle (PPP). If your company introduces packaging to the Swedish market, you, as the producer, have a legal and financial responsibility for the collection and recycling of the packaging. Producer responsibility is the foundation of the collection and recycling system for packaging in Sweden.
The basic idea behind producer responsibility is to reduce the amount of waste, but also to ensure that any waste that is generated is recycled and used to make new products.
The fees are based on the packaging’s net cost for collection and processing. The fees are used to reimburse the municipalities for their costs for the collection of packaging waste from households and co-located businesses that have chosen municipal collection, as well as for the municipality’s information efforts in accordance with the packaging regulation. The principle is that each type of material should bear its own costs, with no cross-subsidization between the categories. All types of materials are handled on a competitive-neutral basis. Näringslivets Producentansvar does not distribute any profit to its owners – what you pay is used to increase recycling in Sweden.
Näringslivets Producentansvar do not distribute any profits – our focus is that you as a customer should receive as much as possible for your packaging fee.
Your company has producer responsibility if you:
- Fill or otherwise use a packaging (to protect, present or facilitate the handling and transport of an item)
- Bring a packaged item to Sweden
- Manufacture a packaging in Sweden (service packaging)
- Bring a packaging to Sweden (service packaging)
- From a country other than Sweden, sell a packaged product or a packaging to an end user in Sweden.
In the ordinace on producer responsibility for packaging, Chapter 8, Section 2, the following definition serves as the basis for reporting packaging for private use:
“In this chapter, packaging intended for private use refers to packaging normally used by private individuals or intended for use by both private individuals and businesses.”
An example of packaging considered intended for private use is a one-liter milk carton. Whether the milk carton is purchased and used by employees at a company or used by private individuals, it is considered packaging intended for private use. However, a larger milk carton (e.g., 10 liters) is not considered packaging intended for private use. This is because it is assumed to be intended for use by a business (e.g., in large kitchens or other restaurant operations) and not by private individuals.
Related information and instructions
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