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A waste exemption is a waste management activity that is exempt from needing an environmental permit. Each waste exemption has conditions that you must comply with.

If you cannot meet the conditions, you may needan environmental permit to carry out the activity.

You can register a waste exemption through the waste exemption service. Read the guidance on this page first.

Exemption categories

Waste exemptions are grouped under 4 types of waste activity:

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

Each exemption has its own guidance setting out:

• what activities are allowed
• the conditions of the exemption

All exemptions have to be registered, except for 3 relating to temporary storage and collection points see the section Exemptions you do not need to register in this guidance.

See the full list of waste exemption guides.

Exemption conditions

You must comply with the conditions of each exemption to make sure you do not cause harm to people or the environment.

You must not:

• cause risk to water, air, soil, plants or animals
• cause a nuisance through noise and odours
• adversely affect the countryside or places of special interest

Read the list of waste exemption guides to make sure you register only what you need and can comply with the conditions.

Registering a waste exemption

Most waste exemptions must be registered with the Environment Agency through the waste exemption service.

Youll need to give the following information:

• exemptions you want to register - see the list of waste exemption guides
• name, address and contact details of the person or business carrying out the waste activity
• site address and postcode where the exemption will be used, or a grid reference
• for a limited company or limited liability partnership, the company registration number and registered address

Your waste exemption will last for 3 years from the date you register. Details about your business and exemption will be added to the public register of exempt waste sites.

Registering an exemption on a farm

For waste exemptions on a farm, including outlying land or discrete farmyards being managed as a single farm unit, you must register the exemption to the farm.

Yards or land parcels with different addresses and correspondence addresses are separate units and should be registered as separate sites.

Registration rules

You cannot register more than one of the same exemption at the same place at the same time. Only the first registration will be valid.

Only one business can register a particular exemption at one site. Other organisations cannot register the same exemption at that site. Only the first registration will be valid.

You can renew your exemption at the end of the 3-year registration period. You cannot renew your exemption earlier, or de-register and re-register it to increase the amount of waste allowed.

Exemptions you need to register with the local council

There are 2 waste exemptions that you need to register with your local council, not the Environment Agency. These are:

• T3 treatment of waste metals and metal alloys by heating for the purposes of removing grease
• T7 treatment of waste bricks, tiles and concrete by crushing, grinding or reducing in size

If the local council is:

• in England or Wales, you must register where your main business is
• outside England and Wales, you must register where the waste activity is carried out

Find a description of exemptions T3 and T7 in theEnvironmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016.

Renewing an exemption

If you still need an exemption after 3 years, you can renew it. The Environment Agency will contact you a month before it expires to tell you what to do. You cannot renew your exemption before the Environment Agency has been in touch.

If you miss the renewal date your exemption will expire and youll need to start a new registration.

Deregistering an exemption or updating your details

Use the waste exemption service to:

• deregister waste exemptions you no longer need
• update your contact details if theyve changed

Youll need:

• your waste exemption (WEX) registration number??
• the email address you used to register the exemption

Bulk registration

If you want to register the same exemption at 30 or more sites (known as bulk registration) use the?bulk and linear networks registration form?instead of the digital service.

Linear networks

Some waste exemptions take place on a stretch of road, river, canal or railway, rather than a site with a single postcode.?These stretches are known as linear networks.

If your waste activity involves work along a linear network, you may need to register using the?bulk and linear networks registration form?instead of the online service.

The following exemptions may be needed for waste activity along linear networks:

• U1 Use of waste for maintenance work in construction
• D1 Deposit of waste from dredging of inland waters
• D2 Deposit of waste from a railway sanitary convenience
• U12 Use of mulch (where the mulch is produced and used on site)

An example of a linear network registration would be a U1 exemption to maintain an existing road by filling in potholes along several miles.

Linear network exemptions have conditions set at tonnages per linear mile.The specific conditions are set out in the individual exemption guides.

Registering an exemption on a linear network

You can register just once to cover the whole linear network.

You will need to:

• register in the name of the operator, at their registered office or main place of business
• identify the network to which the exemption applies

Identifying a linear network

Divide the linear network into areas of work and use a map or spreadsheet to give grid references of where these areas start and finish. The areas can vary according to the nature and size of the work activity, but if they can be identified, they can be registered.

Fill out the bulk and linear networks registration form and submit it with a copy of a map or spreadsheet showing the network. If its a spreadsheet you will also need to include:

• the nearest town or district, and county
• name of watercourse or stretch of road
• grid reference
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