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Digital Waste Tracking Is Live: What Skip Operators Need to Do
Since 1 October 2026, Digital Waste Tracking has been live for permitted or licensed receiving sites in England and Wales. They must report each controlled-waste load within two working days. Carrier-only skip businesses join at a later stage, so the same duty does not yet apply to every operator.
Last reviewed: 26 October 2026
What is Digital Waste Tracking?
Digital Waste Tracking is the UK programme for collecting waste information digitally and making individual movements more visible to regulators. The first mandatory service now covers controlled waste received at permitted or licensed sites in England and Wales.
The service is being introduced in stages because receiving sites, carriers, brokers, dealers, producers and exempt operations have different duties. Always check current GOV.UK guidance before making a compliance decision.
Who is affected first?
Since 1 October 2026, permitted or licensed organisations receiving controlled waste in England and Wales must use the Report receipt of waste service. The published start date for permitted receiving sites in Scotland and Northern Ireland is 1 January 2027.
The current service focuses on waste receivers. Government plans place the collector phase—covering carriers, brokers and dealers—on a later timetable, with mandatory use planned from October 2027.
What must receiving sites report?
GOV.UK points operators to the regulations and service template for the definitive data set. Categories include movement, carrier and receiver details, waste classification codes, recovery or disposal codes, persistent organic pollutant information and hazardous-waste data where relevant.
For England and Wales, records are normally due within two working days, starting on the day after the waste is received. Errors notified during submission must be corrected within that same submission window; other discovered errors have separate correction rules in the guidance.
If the service is unavailable, keep the required written record within the normal two-working-day period. Current guidance says to submit it within seven working days after the problem is resolved.
Do WTNs still matter?
Yes. Current GOV.UK guidance says the existing waste transfer note, Annex VII and hazardous waste consignment-note processes continue alongside the first digital service where they are required. Waste returns and hazardous-waste consignee returns also continue during the transition.
Digital reporting should therefore be treated as an additional controlled process, not an excuse to stop current records early.
What should a skip operator do now?
Confirm whether the business operates a permitted or licensed receiving site, identify who owns each submission, review the quality of carrier, receiver and waste data, and test the public service or software route that applies. Map where EWC, quantity, vehicle, origin, date and receiving-site details are captured today.
- Check permits and receiving-site scope
- Assign reporting responsibility
- Review waste and carrier master data
- Practise the submission and correction process
- Monitor GOV.UK updates
How Skiptastic helps with the source data
Skiptastic already keeps customer, site, job, carrier, waste, EWC, date and quantity information together. Better source data means less work rebuilding a movement after the event.
Skiptastic includes a government connection status page that shows how far software-provider registration and testing have progressed. It separates the live receipt-of-waste duty for permitted receiving sites from the later carrier and collection rollout. When built, the API connection will run securely through the Skiptastic server, never directly through a user's browser.
Skiptastic is not currently connected to the government reporting service. Where reporting is mandatory, use the official service or software on the current compatible-software list until the Skiptastic status is shown as live.
The GOV.UK compatible-software list was checked on 23 October 2026. Skiptastic was not listed. Providers on that page have self-certified their compatibility; the list should not be described as government approval or endorsement.
What the current Skiptastic status means
Skiptastic helps you collect clear job and waste details so they are easier to check when a receiving-site report is prepared.
It does not send those records to the government service today. A local 14-scenario rehearsal is not a government submission, and the connection will only be labelled live after the official test process and a controlled production check are complete.
Related Skiptastic capabilities
See Skiptastic's current waste records · Read the practical WTN guide · Understand EWC code responsibility · Browse operator resourcesBuyer questions
Does Digital Waste Tracking apply to every skip company from October 2026?
No. The current mandatory duty concerns permitted or licensed receiving sites in England and Wales. Collector requirements for carriers, brokers and dealers are on a later published timetable.
How quickly must a receiving site submit a record?
Current England and Wales guidance says within two working days, starting on the day after receipt. Check the official guidance for exceptions, outages and correction rules.
Is Skiptastic connected to the government service?
No. Skiptastic shows the current government connection status, but it does not currently send records to the government service and was not on the compatible-software list checked on 23 October 2026.