Every transfer of non-hazardous waste needs a waste transfer note under the duty of care. The good news, if you are hunting for a template: unlike hazardous waste, there is no compulsory form. What matters is that the note carries the right information. This guide lists those fields, shows you where the official GOV.UK template lives, and covers a faster way to produce a compliant note with waste transfer note software.
Moving hazardous waste? That needs the official HWCN01 form instead. See our hazardous waste consignment note template guide.
GOV.UK publishes an optional transfer note template, but any document with the same information counts, even an invoice. The form is flexible. The information is not.
What a waste transfer note must include
Whatever the note looks like, it has to carry all of this:
- A clear description of the waste, with enough detail for the next holder to handle it safely.
- The EWC code for the waste stream.
- The quantity, and how the waste is contained, loose or in a skip, bags or drums.
- Both businesses' names and addresses: who is handing the waste over and who is taking it.
- What allows the receiver to take it: the carrier's registration number, or the site's permit or exemption.
- The transferor's SIC code, the standard code for their business type.
- The place and date of the transfer.
- The waste hierarchy declaration in England and Wales.
- Both signatures. The person handing over and the person taking the waste each sign.
The SIC code is the field people miss most. A transfer note is not complete without it, so look it up before the collection, not at the kerb.
Where to get the official template
The optional template is on GOV.UK's waste transfer note page. You can print it and fill it in by hand for each transfer. Just remember that both businesses must keep a copy for at least two years, and a paper note means re-writing the same details every time and storing the copies somewhere you can actually find them.
Collecting the same waste every week? Use one annual note
If the same waste moves between the same two businesses regularly, you do not need a fresh note each visit. One annual waste transfer note, known as a season ticket, can cover up to 12 months of collections. You keep a schedule of each transfer alongside it, with the date, time and quantity, and hold both for two years after the last transfer.
A faster way: generate the note instead
Consigns builds the waste transfer note from the job details. Your saved customer, carrier and waste information fills the note, the SIC code and EWC code are checked before signing, the customer signs on screen, and the finished note stores itself for the full two years. See our guide on how to fill out a waste transfer note for what goes in each field.
WTN-only plans start at £49 a month. See the WTN plans, or start a free 14-day trial and make a real note today.