!!! Note "Private Beta" Are you a waste receiver or software provider and want to get involved? Sign up for our Digital Waste Tracking Private Beta test
The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) intend to transform how data about waste movements is collected and shared with the regulators across all 4 UK nations. It will be mandatory for Waste Receivers to report waste they’ve received from October 2026.
You can read more about the digital waste tracking policy on GOV.UK.
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We are exploring the development of new APIs to integrate with waste management software and other systems. By having waste carriers and receivers submit data via APIs, we can give regulators a more joined-up and comprehensive picture of all waste movements.
This site contains draft details for the technical design of the service, including a list of data definitions, and a link to the draft API specification.
We want to test how people will report waste they’ve received as early as we can, including learning about any barriers to delivering it. We welcome feedback from people in the waste industry to help us do this.
We are currently talking to the following groups of people to help us learn about any barriers to us delivering this new service:
- waste carriers
- waste receivers
- waste management software suppliers
We are inviting waste receivers to start testing the service we are designing from Autumn 2025. Read more about why we want to test the service and how to apply.
We are also planning further user research and other opportunities for people in the waste industry to give feedback and test the solutions we're looking to develop. To register interest in taking part, sign up for the waste tracking user panel.
Page last updated on 9 July 2025.