These guidelines can be used to determine whether any waste shipment controls apply for the transport (i.e. road, rail, sea and/or air) of objects, materials or substances from a country to another. Waste shipment controls only apply if the object, material or substance intended for transport is waste.

Is the object or substance waste?

 

Anyone planning to transport an object or substance to, from or through Malta must confirm if the shipment is classified as waste. Since various countries apply different criteria it is important to check the relevant classification of each country involved. In case of disagreement between the competent authorities of dispatch and destination whether the subject shall be classified as waste or non-waste, this must be considered as waste for the purpose of the shipment. Please refer to the Waste Framework Directive and the Commission Notice on technical guidance on the classification of waste for further information. For information about objects or substances exempted from waste shipment controls, please refer to Article 2(2) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 April 2024 on shipments of waste, amending Regulations (EU) No 1257/2013 and (EU) 2020/1056 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 (WSR).

Types of waste shipment controls

 

When an object, material or substance is confirmed as waste, its route and treatment operation(s) have to be confirmed as legal. All shipments to, from or through Malta must comply with the WSR. This Regulation, implements at Union level the Basel Convention of 22nd March 1989 on the control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal (the Basel Convention) and the OECD Decision of the Council on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Wastes Destined for Recovery Operations (the OECD Decision).

If a shipment of waste is not prohibited, there are two different type of controls which can apply for a transboundary movements of waste:

  1. the prior informed consent procedure [Article 4(2) and Article 5 of WSR] whereby competent authorities have to give prior consent before an intended shipment can take place; OR
  2. the general information procedure [Article 4(4) and Article 18 of WSR] whereby the transport has to be accompanied by certain information, but where no prior consent is required.

A legal duty of care is placed upon original waste producers and other waste holders to ensure that the waste is handled and managed safely by all undertakings involved. This includes the correct waste classification, shipment through the appropriate controls and the environmentally sound management of the said waste.

Please follow the links below to access the lists of:

​​​EU Member States Click Here
​OECD Member States ​Click Here
​EU Member States competent authorities ​Click Here
​OECD Member States competent authorities Click Here
​Competent authorities of Parties to the Basel Convention ​Click Here​

Selecting the applicable waste shipment control procedure

The following is required to determine which waste shipment control applies:

  1. Type of waste

Waste must be classified as hazardous or non-hazardous and depending on its origin and other properties it is assigned a six digit European Waste Catalogue code (Commission Decision 2000/532/EC). If the waste is classified as an absolute hazardous entry, no further assessment is needed to determine whether the waste is hazardous or not. Similarly, no further assessment is needed to verify whether the waste can be classified as non-hazardous if the waste is classified as an absolute non-hazardous entry. If there is an option to classify a waste using mirror entries (two or more related entries where one is hazardous and the other is not) further investigations are needed to determine which entry is applicable. These investigations will aim to determine whether the waste displays one or more of the hazardous properties listed in Schedule 3 of the Waste Regulations (S.L.549.63). For this purpose, Safety Data Sheets (only in cases where the waste retains its original properties) or HP criteria assessments (following sampling, analysis and identification of worst case substances) can be used to complete this assessment. All shipments of hazardous waste, are subject to the prior informed consent procedure. For further information it is recommended to refer to the Commission Notice on technical guidance on the classification of waste and ERA’s Terms of Reference – Determining the nature of waste & Classification of waste.

In the Annexes of the WSR there are three (3) different types of classification codes, each emanating from a specific legal instrument. For the purpose of determining which waste shipments control procedures apply for the waste, the classification regimes established in the Basel Convention and the OECD Decision have to be used. Basel Codes start with a single letter (i.e. A4010 or B4010) while OECD Codes start with two letters (i.e. AA010 or GB040). Transboundary movements of the following wastes are subject to the prior informed consent procedure:

  1. Wastes listed in Annex IV of WSR; OR
  2. Wastes not classified under one single entry in either Annex III, Annex IIIB or Annex IV of WSR; OR
  • Mixtures of wastes, unless listed in Annex IIIA of WSR; OR
  1. Waste listed in Annex III or Annex IIIB and mixtures of wastes listed in Annex IIIA of WSR contaminated by other materials to an extent which:

 

  • increases the risks associated with the wastes sufficiently to render them appropriate for submission to the prior informed consent procedure, when taking into account the of list of waste referred to in Article 7 of Directive 2008/98/EC as well as the hazardous properties listed in Annex III to that Directive; OR
  • prevents the recovery of the wastes in an environmentally sound manner; OR
  • wastes or mixtures of wastes containing or contaminated with persistent organic pollutants (POPs) within the meaning of Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 in quantities meeting or exceeding a concentration limit indicated in Annex IV to that Regulation, which are not to be classified as hazardous wastes; OR

 

2. Mixed municipal waste collected from private households, from other waste producers or from both, as well as to mixed municipal waste which has been subject to a waste treatment operation that has not substantially altered its properties, including refuse-derived fuels processed from mixed municipal waste, where such waste is destined for recovery operations.

If a waste cannot be classified using the classification regimes established in the Basel Convention and the OECD Decision, the waste is deemed as ‘unlisted’ and the prior informed consent procedure applies irrespective of the properties of the waste.

There is also a prohibition for shipments of mixed municipal waste collected from private households, from other waste producers or from both, as well as to mixed municipal waste which has been subject to a waste treatment operation that has not substantially altered its properties, including refuse-derived fuels processed from mixed municipal waste, where such waste is destined for disposal.

If the competent authorities of dispatch and of destination cannot agree on the classification of a waste destined for recovery as being listed in Annex III, Annex IIIA, Annex IIIB or Annex IV, or not listed in any of those Annexes of WSR, the shipment of that waste will be subject to the prior informed consent procedure.

2. Type of treatment

Shipments of waste may be destined for either recovery or disposal operations as listed in the Waste Framework Directive. Shipments of wastes destined for disposal are prohibited, except if a consent is given in accordance with Article 11 of WSR. This exception is only valid for shipments within the Union, exports from the Union to EFTA countries which are Parties to the Basel Convention, transit through the Union from and to third countries and imports into the Union from:

  1. countries which are Parties to the Basel Convention; OR
  2. other countries with which the Union, or the Union and its Member States, have concluded bilateral or multilateral agreements or arrangements compatible with Union legislation and in accordance with Article 11 of the Basel Convention; OR
  • other countries with which individual Member States have concluded bilateral agreements or arrangements in accordance with paragraph 2; OR
  1. other areas in cases where, on exceptional grounds during situations of crisis, peace-making, peacekeeping or war, no bilateral agreements or arrangements pursuant to points (ii) or (iii) can be concluded or where a competent authority in the country of dispatch has either not been designated or is unable to act.

Where the conditions in Article 11 of WSR are fulfilled, all shipments of waste for disposal are subject to the prior informed consent procedure.

Shipments of waste for recovery are allowed in most countries subject to different waste shipment controls depending on the type of waste and the country of import. However, in the cases described below, the applicable waste controls may also depend on the specific recovery operation intended for the waste:

  1. In the case of exports to countries to which the OECD Decision applies, mixtures of wastes listed in Annex IIIA of WSR destined for an interim operation are subject to the prior informed consent procedure if any subsequent interim or non-interim recovery operation or disposal operation is to take place in a country to which the OECD Decision does not apply.
  2. In the case of exports of non-hazardous waste to countries to which the OECD Decision does not apply, the waste can only be be destined for interim operations, if all subsequent non-interim or interim recovery operations take place in the same country of destination or in other countries for which the related waste is included in the list referred to in Article 41 of WSR.
  • In the case of intra-EU shipments of plastic waste classified as EU3011, the waste must be destined for a recycling operation only, otherwise the prior informed consent procedure applies.

If the competent authorities of dispatch and of destination cannot agree on the classification of a waste treatment operation as being recovery or disposal, the provisions regarding disposal apply. Similarly, if the competent authorities of dispatch and destination cannot agree on the classification of the waste treatment operation as interim operation or non-interim operation, the provisions on interim operations apply.

3. Routing and destination

Malta has a ban for the importation of waste for disposal. Imports of waste into the Union destined for recovery are prohibited except for imports coming from:

i) countries to which the OECD Decision applies; OR

ii) other countries which are Parties to the Basel Convention; OR

iii) other countries with which the Union, or the Union and its Member States, have concluded bilateral or multilateral agreements or arrangements compatible with Union legislation and in accordance with Article 11 of the Basel Convention; OR

iv) other countries with which individual Member States have concluded bilateral agreements or arrangements in accordance with paragraph 2; OR

v) other areas in cases where, on exceptional grounds during situations of crisis, peace-making, peacekeeping or war, no bilateral agreements or arrangements pursuant to points (iii) or (iv) can be concluded or where a competent authority in the country of dispatch has either not been designated or is unable to act.

Pursuant to Article 46 of the WSR, any exports of waste from the Union shall only take place to facilities which have been subject to an audit carried out by a competent third party auditor. This audit must determine whether the treatment facility in a third country of destination complies with the criteria set out in the WSR, especially Article 59 concerning environmentally sound management of waste.

Exports of waste for disposal are only allowed within the Union and from the Union to EFTA countries which are also Parties to the Basel Convention, if the conditions in Article 11 of WSR are fulfilled, subject to the prior informed consent procedure.

Exports of waste from the Union for recovery to countries to which the OECD Decision applies are allowed with the exception of shipments of mixed municipal waste collected from private households, from other waste producers or from both, as well as to mixed municipal waste which has been subject to a waste treatment operation that has not substantially altered its properties, including refuse-derived fuels processed from mixed municipal waste. It is important to note that the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 80 of WSR by prohibiting the export of a particular waste stream to such countries as described in Article 45 of WSR.

Exports of waste from the Union of the following wastes for recovery in countries to which the OECD Decision does not apply are prohibited, unless the waste is destined for recovery to a country included in the list of countries established in accordance with Article 41 of WSR for the non-hazardous wastes and mixtures of non-hazardous wastes specified in that list, which can include any of the following wastes:

  • i) non-hazardous wastes listed in Annex III or Annex IIIB and mixtures of non-hazardous wastes listed in Annex IIIA;
  • ii) non-hazardous wastes and mixtures of non-hazardous wastes included in the list of waste referred to in Article 7 of Directive 2008/98/EC, when not already listed in Annex III, Annex IIIA or Annex IIIB;
  • iii) non-hazardous wastes and mixtures of non-hazardous wastes not classified under one single entry in Annex III, Annex IIIA or Annex IIIB or in the list of waste referred to in Article 7 of Directive 2008/98/EC;i
  • v) non-hazardous waste classified under AB130, AC250, AC260 and AC270.

The countries featuring in this list must specify the applicable waste controls for each waste.

Transit of waste through the Union from and to third countries destined for both disposal and recovery are possible.

Shipments subject to the general information procedure

Shipments of the following wastes for recovery exceeding 20 kg are typically subject to the general information procedure laid down in Article 18 of WSR:

​​Shipment of waste within the Union or from the Union to countries to which the OECD Decision applies Waste listed in Annex III or Annex IIIB or mixtures of waste provided that the composition of those mixtures does not impair their environmentally sound recovery and provided that such mixtures are listed in Annex IIIA. Trends for export of waste from the Union to such countries will be monitored by the Commission.
​Shipment of waste from the Union to countries to which the OECD Decision does not apply ​Pursuant to Article 40 of WSR an export prohibition applies for certain types of waste. This prohibition does not apply to exports of wastes or mixtures of waste destined for recovery to a country included in the list of countries established in accordance with Article 41 of WSR, for the non-hazardous wastes and mixtures of non-hazardous wastes specified in that list, where such exports are subject to the general information procedure laid down in Article 18 of WSR.  If a country is not mentioned in the list, all shipments of waste destined to that country are prohibited. Non-OECD countries can only be included in this list if they notify the Commission of their intention to receive such waste from the Union and provided that they are able to prove that they manage such wastes in an environmentally sound manner.
​Shipments of waste explicitly destined for laboratory analysis or experimental treatment trials to assess either its physical or chemical characteristics or to determine its suitability for recovery or disposal operations ​Article 18 applies for such shipments of waste where all of the following conditions are fulfilled:

(i)               the amount of waste does not exceed the quantity reasonably needed to perform the analysis or trial in each particular case, but not more than 250 kg or any higher amount agreed on a case-by-case basis by the competent authorities of dispatch and destination and the person who arranges the shipment;

(ii)             in case an amount higher than 250 kg is requested by a person who arranges the shipment, the person who arranges the shipment shall provide the information contained in Annex VII to the competent authorities of dispatch and destination together with a motivated explanation that such a higher amount is needed to perform the analysis or trial.

In the case of export of waste to countries to which the OECD Decision applies, import of waste from a country to which the OECD Decision applies or from other areas during situations of crisis or war and transit of waste through the Union of waste destined for recovery, such shipments shall be subject to the procedure informed consent, unless the amount of such determined by the minimum quantity reasonably needed to adequately perform the analysis in each particular case does not exceed 25 kg.

Important Notes

 

  • From 1st January 2021, new EU rules for transboundary movements of plastic waste apply. For further information you may visit the following link.
  • From 1st January 2025, new EU rules for transboundary movements of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) apply. For further information you may visit the following link.
  • From 21st November 2026, export of plastic waste from the Union to non-OECD countries will be prohibited.

For the latest information and news about waste shipment rules it is highly recommended to visit the website of the European Commission.

The above guidelines can assist prospective notifiers to decide whether a waste shipment is prohibited, or if the prior informed consent procedure (Article 4 controls) or general information procedure (Article 18 controls) applies. Anyone interested in shipping waste must be fully aware of the obligations and procedures which are relevant to the waste intended for transport. For further assistance, kindly contact the TFS Environmental Permitting team on [email protected].

The Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) reserves the right to determine the applicable waste shipment controls (if any) in case of disagreements as per WSR.