I hold a waste exemption. Do I need digital waste tracking now?

Not yet, if all you hold is a registered exemption. The duty that started on 1 October 2026 is for permitted sites. GOV.UK say: “Waste exemptions will be included in a later phase.” No date has been given.

October 2026: Operators of permitted sites that receive waste, in England and Wales.
Exemptions: Not in the first phase, “as it only applies to permitted sites that receive waste”. They “will be included in a later phase”, with no date yet GOV.UK.
Phase 2: Waste carriers, brokers and dealers: a private beta from autumn 2026, a public beta in spring 2027, mandatory from October 2027. Exemptions are not in that list.
The test: Permit or exemption? A WEX number is an exemption. A permit number looks like AB1234CD.

Which one have you got?

Your paperwork says	It is	Digital waste tracking
A number starting WEX, with codes like U1, U10, T2, T4, D7, S2	Registered waste exemptions	Not yet: a later phase, no date given
An environmental permit, numbered like AB1234CD or EPR/AB1234CD	A permit	Phase 1: from 1 October 2026 in England and Wales, if the site receives waste
Both a permit and exemptions	Both	The permitted site is phase 1 now

Not sure? Look yourself up free on the Environment Agency's public register, or use the free permit check, which searches it for you.

Two things to be careful of

"No permit found" is not the end of it. The register shows granted permits only. If you have a permit application in, the answer can change when it is granted.
Farmers with U10 and U11 spreading exemptions are not in the first phase either; they come in with exemptions in a later phase. A contractor spreading under a bespoke permit or a mobile plant deployment is phase 1 now, and the landspreading guide covers that.

Exactly which duty you fall under is a question for your regulator, not for a software company, including this one. What is known about phase 2 so far is here.

Straight answers

Questions people ask

Do waste exemptions need digital waste tracking from October 2026?

No. The October 2026 duty falls on operators of permitted sites that receive controlled waste. GOV.UK say waste exemptions are not included in the first phase and "will be included in a later phase". No date has been given.

Is a WEX number a permit?

No. A WEX number is a waste exemption registration. A permit is a separate document, usually numbered like AB1234CD.

Do U10 and U11 landspreading exemptions need digital waste tracking?

Not in phase 1. They are exemptions, which come in a later phase, with no date yet. Spreading under a bespoke permit or a mobile plant deployment is phase 1.

I hold a permit and some exemptions. Which applies?

The permitted site that receives waste is in phase 1 now, from 1 October 2026 in England and Wales.

Is there anything to sign up to now?

Not for exemptions. Defra have given no date and no sign-up route for them.

Want this done for you at the gate?

Byrne Waste Tracking runs in the browser on a phone at the gate, with nothing to install. It remembers your carriers and their numbers, offers the waste codes and R or D codes your site uses, checks each load against Defra's rules before it saves, and sends it to Defra automatically once you've linked your Defra account. Byrne Digital Solutions is listed on GOV.UK as a compatible software provider.

£89 per site per month, no contract. Join before 1 November 2026 and nothing is due until 1 November; join from 1 November and you get 14 days free. After that it's £89 a month per site, and there's no card to enter until you start it. No setup fee when you set it up yourself. If a consultant introduces you, any setup fee is agreed through them and you see the amount before you pay anything.

A site in Scotland or Northern Ireland that joins before 1 January 2027 pays nothing until 1 January 2027, the day the duty starts there.

Got a waste consultant? Ask them about Byrne first: they can introduce you, your site is set up for you, and it shows on their Clients screen. How that works.

Create a free account Log a pretend load first

Already a customer? Open the app. Stuck on something here? Email wilf@byrnedigitalsolutions.co.uk - email is the quickest way to reach me, and I reply the same working day.

Scotland and Northern Ireland: digital waste tracking from January 2027Your date is 1 January 2027, not October 2026. Who is in, the charge, and what to do now.
Which R or D code am I? Recovery and disposal codes by type of siteR13, R12, R5, R4, R3, R10, D15 and D1 by type of site, and where your permit already lists yours.
Bank holidays and the two working days: every due date worked outChristmas, New Year, Easter and every 2027 bank holiday, worked out for each nation.
Every guideAll the questions customers ask, one page each.