As per EU, the Waste Shipments Regulation aimed to establish a new regime for the shipments of waste within the EU, as well as for imports and exports of waste into and from the EU.
Feb 12, 2025
The European Union has asked all countries which are not part of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to submit their formal application seeking permission for importing of non-hazardous waste by February 21, 2025.
A statement issued by the EU said the new Waste Shipments Regulation aimed to establish a new regime for the shipments of waste within the EU, as well as for imports and exports of waste into and from the EU.
The objective was to ensure that instead of exporting its waste problems to third countries, the EU contributed to the environmentally sound management of waste, as well as better addressing the illegal trafficking of waste, in line with the European Green Deal and the second EU Circular Economy Action Plan.
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The Regulation further introduced stricter rules on waste exports to non-OECD countries, including a full ban on the export of plastic waste from November 21, 2026. For other types of non-hazardous waste, non-OECD countries have to submit a formal request to the European Commission to continue importing such waste from the EU by February 21, 2025.
The non-OECD countries, in their request, must demonstrate their ability to manage the waste they wish to import from the EU in an environmentally sound manner under conditions equivalent to those applying in the EU. This includes providing detailed information and documentation, as outlined in Annex VIII of the Regulation.
A list of non-OECD countries that remained eligible for importing EU waste would be established based on the requests received before February 21, 2025. Later requests would not be disregarded but would be considered for updates to this list after November 21, 2026.
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The list would be updated at least every two years. Exports of waste to non-OECD countries not included in the list would be prohibited from May 21, 2027. One request per country for all envisaged waste types must be submitted by the competent national authority designated by that country.
