DWTS Compliance for UK Waste Sites
Everything you need to know about DEFRA's Digital Waste Tracking Service and how to get ready.
Get Started FreeHow to comply with DWTS
If your site is a permitted waste receiving site in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, you must comply with the Digital Waste Tracking Service from October 2026 (January 2027 in Scotland). To comply you need to: register with DEFRA's DWTS to get your API credentials, choose a submission method (API via compatible software or spreadsheet upload), start recording and submitting waste receipt data within two working days of receiving each load, and pay the £26 per legal entity annual service fee. LoadLog connects to the DWTS API automatically and handles the entire submission workflow.
What is the Digital Waste Tracking Service?
The Digital Waste Tracking Service (DWTS) is DEFRA's replacement for the paper Waste Transfer Note and the paper Hazardous Waste Consignment Note. Under Section 58 of the Environment Act 2021, waste movements across the UK are being moved onto a single digital system, rather than recorded on paper forms kept on site or in a filing cabinet.
DWTS sits within the government's wider Resources and Waste Strategy, first set out in 2018, which aims to tackle waste crime, improve recycling rates and build a more circular economy. By digitising the waste tracking process, the government and the Environment Agency expect to reduce illegal waste activity, currently estimated to cost the UK economy around £1 billion a year, and to give regulators a clearer, real-time picture of where waste actually ends up, including the ability to check a load's status at the roadside.
Who is affected, and when
The mandate is being introduced in two phases, and it matters which one applies to your organisation.
Phase 1 — from October 2026 (England, Wales, NI) / January 2027 (Scotland)
Every permitted waste receiving site must record incoming waste digitally within two working days of each load arriving. This includes:
- Waste transfer stations
- Materials recovery facilities
- Recycling and recovery facilities
- Landfill sites
- Treatment plants, anaerobic digestion sites and composting sites
- Household waste recycling centres, for the commercial waste they accept
Phase 2 — from October 2027 across the UK
Waste carriers, brokers and dealers must digitally initiate a waste movement record at the point of collection. A private beta for this phase opens in autumn 2026, with a public beta from spring 2027 ahead of the October 2027 deadline.
If your site holds an environmental permit or waste management licence and receives waste from carriers, Phase 1 already applies to you. LoadLog is built for exactly this group. Waste producers, the businesses that generate waste in the first place, aren't yet within scope of either phase, though that's expected to change in a future phase as the rollout continues.
What you need to record
Every digital Waste Transfer Note needs to capture the same core information DEFRA has always required, just submitted electronically instead of on paper:
- A description of the waste and its European Waste Catalogue (EWC) code
- The quantity of waste, usually by weight
- The vehicle registration used to transport it
- The carrier's registration number and details
- The producer and receiving site details
- The date and time of transfer, plus signatures from everyone involved
Our data entry sheets fully support standard waste transfers, hazardous waste consignment notes and entries for persistent organic pollutants (POPs). The application matches the exact rules set by environmental regulators so your documentation remains valid during site inspections.
Legislative timeline
Penalties for non-compliance
Non-compliance carries real costs, and the Environment Agency has the powers to act quickly once DWTS makes a missing record easy to spot. A fixed monetary penalty of up to £5,000 applies per incident for failing to record a waste movement correctly. For serious or repeated breaches, the Environment Agency can issue a variable monetary penalty instead, calculated against turnover and the financial benefit gained from non-compliance, with no upper limit. The most serious cases can lead to criminal prosecution under the Environmental Permitting Regulations, and your environmental permit can be suspended or revoked while an investigation is ongoing, which in practice can mean your site can't legally operate at all.
How LoadLog helps you comply
LoadLog is purpose-built for DWTS compliance. The platform handles the complexity so you can focus on running your site:
Direct DEFRA API integration
Submit WTNs directly to the government's digital service with one tap, with automatic retry if a submission fails.
Environment Agency audit pre-check
The data entry form validates your fields against the official schema before submission. It highlights errors or missing entries with clear colour labels to give you confidence that your data is correct before it reaches the government database.
Real-time status tracking
Know exactly when each WTN has been accepted by DEFRA.
Complete audit trail
Every action, edit and submission is logged with a timestamp, ready for an Environment Agency inspection.
Digital signatures
Legally compliant e-signatures captured on-site, removing paper from the process entirely.
Automated record keeping
PDF copies of every WTN stored securely for your required retention period.
Sandbox testing
Trial your full workflow against DEFRA's test environment before you submit a single live record.
Compliance FAQ
What's an EWC code?
Do I still need to keep paper records?
Does this apply if I only operate in Scotland or Wales?
Is DWTS the same as a Waste Transfer Note?
How do I register with DEFRA to get an API key?
Official guidance
For the most up to date information on the Digital Waste Tracking Service, including registration requirements and technical specifications, visit DEFRA's official guidance.
DEFRA Digital Waste Tracking ServiceRelated guides
The October 2026 DWTS deadline
The full regulatory timeline and immediate steps required for permitted waste receiving sites.
How much does DWTS cost?
A complete breakdown of government fees and compliance software costs.
What is a Waste Transfer Note?
A practical guide to WTNs: legal retention periods, mandatory fields, and current compliance rules.
EWC codes for Waste Transfer Notes: a complete guide
A practical guide to European Waste Catalogue codes required on every WTN, plus common mistakes to avoid.
DWTS software comparison
How LoadLog compares to manual DEFRA spreadsheets and legacy waste management systems.
Who needs DWTS compliance?
A clear breakdown of which waste sector roles fall into Phase 1 and Phase 2.
DWTS compliance checklist
A practical 10-step roadmap to prepare your operational team and site infrastructure.
Get DWTS-ready today
Start your free LoadLog account and be compliant before the deadline.
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