More information about waste permits:

You may need to apply to the Environment Agency for an environmental permit if your business uses, recycles, treats, stores or disposes of waste or mining waste. This permit can be for activities at one site or for mobile plant that can be used at many sites.

You are breaking the law if you operate without a permit when you should have one.

There is separate guidance on how to register as a waste carrier if you are a waste transporter, buyer, seller, broker or dealer.

Ways you can meet the requirement

If you are carrying out a waste activity, you can meet the permit requirement using one of the following:

• a ‘regulatory position statement’ – the Environment Agency does not currently require a permit for that activity
• an ‘exemption’ – you do not need a permit for the activity, but you must still register your exemption with the Environment Agency
• a ‘standard rules permit’ – a set of fixed rules for common activities
• a ‘bespoke permit’ – tailored to your business activities

Check if your activity is covered by a regulatory position statement

A regulatory position statement (RPS) means that the Environment Agency will not normally take enforcement action against you if you have not applied for a permit provided:

• your activity meets the description set out in the RPS
• you comply with the conditions of the RPS
• your activity does not (or is not likely) to cause environmental pollution or harm human health

Each RPS has an expiry date. You should check with the Environment Agency before this expiry date to make sure they have not withdrawn the RPS. If they have, you may need to register an exemption or apply for a permit for your activity.

Check for an RPS if you are:

• using waste
• treating waste
• disposing of waste
• storing waste

Check if there is an exemption for your activity

Check for an exemption if you are:

• using waste
• treating waste
• disposing of waste
• storing waste

If your activity is covered by an exemption you will need to register it as exempt.

Each exemption has specific limits and conditions you need to follow. If you do not, the Environment Agency can cancel or ‘deregister’ your exemption.

Check if you can get a standard rules permit

You can apply for a standard rules permit if your operation meets the relevant description and rules, but:

• you cannot change (vary) the rules and you have no right of appeal against them
• if you want to change your operations and so will not meet the criteria of the standard permit anymore, you will have to apply to make it a bespoke permit instead
• if there is a change in your local environment after your permit has been issued (for example a change in the definition of a groundwater source protection zone) you may need to apply to change your permit

Read the standard rules if your activity involves:

• keeping or transferring waste
• biological treatment of waste
• metal recovery or scrap metal
• materials recovery and recycling
• recovery or use of waste on land
• treatment to produce aggregate or construction materials
• onshore oil and gas exploration and mining waste operations

Applying for a standard rules permit is quicker and costs less than a bespoke permit, but if you do not meet the conditions for the standard rules permits you must apply for a bespoke permit.

If you need to apply for more than one standard rule at the same site or add a standard rule to a bespoke permit, you must confirm that each standard rule covers a self-contained and separate activity.

You should not apply for more than one standard rule to split a single operation.