ABSTRACT
The Landfill Tax came into operation on 1 October 1996. It is levied on operators of licensed landfill sites in England, Wales and Northern Ireland at the following rates with effect from 1 April 2016:
Inactive or inert wastes [Lower Rate]
£2.65 per tonne Included are soil, stones, brick, plain and reinforced concrete, plaster and glass – lower rate
All other taxable wastes [Higher Rate]
£84.40 per tonne Included are timber, paint and other organic wastes generally found in demolition work and builders skips – standard rate
The standard and lower rates of Landfill Tax were due to increase in line with the RPI, rounded to the nearest 5 pence, from 1 April 2016. However, legislation introduced in the Finance Bill 2016 provided for new rates of Landfill Tax until 31 March 2019 as follows:
Lower Rate From 1 April 2016 £2.65/tonne
Lower Rate From 1 April 2017 £2.70/tonne
Lower Rate From 1 April 2018 £2.80/tonne
Standard Rate From 1 April 2016 £84.40/tonne
Standard Rate From 1 April 2017 £86.10/tonne
Standard Rate From 1 April 2018 £88.95/tonne
Following industry engagement to address compliance, on 1 April 2015 the government introduced a loss on ignition testing regime on fines (residual waste from waste processing) from waste transfer stations by April 2015. Only fines below a 10% threshold will be considered eligible for the lower rate, though there is a 12 month transitional period where the threshold will be 15%. This transitional period came to an end on 31 March 2016. The government intends to provide further longer term certainty about the future level of landfill tax rates once the consultation process on testing regime has concluded, but in the meantime is committed to ensuring that the rates are not eroded in real terms (Finance Bill 2014).
