Saskatchewan vs Washington EPR: Rules Compared
Last verified
Saskatchewan and Washington both run packaging EPR, but the rules differ. Saskatchewan exempts only producers below the lower revenue floor, CA$1,000,000 against $5,000,000 in Washington. Washington has the lower weight floor, 907.2 kg against 1 tonne in Saskatchewan. Both require producers to register. Both programmes set their first annual report for May 31.
Saskatchewan and Washington side by side
4 of 9 rows have a verified figure on each side of Saskatchewan and Washington; a cell reads “not yet published” when a side has none, and an exemption row reads “none recorded; see thresholds” when no exemption is on record.
| Measure | Saskatchewan | Washington | Stricter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration duty | Required | Required | Same |
| Producer organisation | one producer responsibility organisation | one producer responsibility organisation | Not comparable |
| Lowest revenue exemption | CA$1,000,000 | $5,000,000 | Saskatchewan |
| Lowest weight exemption | 1 tonne | 907.2 kg | Washington |
| First annual report date | May 31 | May 31 | Same |
| Published penalties | not yet published | 1 published | Not comparable |
| Report file | csv | csv | Not comparable |
| Paper fee, cheapest matched rate | 31 cents per kilogram | not yet published | Not comparable |
| Plastic fee, cheapest matched rate | 113 cents per kilogram | not yet published | Not comparable |
The lowest revenue exemption is CA$1,000,000 in Saskatchewan and $5,000,000 in Washington (CA$6,989,000 at the Bank of Canada 2025 annual average rate). Saskatchewan therefore reaches smaller sellers: a business with revenue between the two lines is exempt in Washington but still in scope in Saskatchewan.
The lowest weight exemption is 1 tonne of packaging in Saskatchewan and 907.2 kg in Washington, about 1.1 times as much in Saskatchewan as in Washington. A seller whose packaging falls between the two lines is exempt in Saskatchewan but counted in Washington.
Both programmes require a producer to register, in Saskatchewan and in Washington.
The first annual report date is the same on both sides, May 31.
Who runs the programme in Saskatchewan and Washington
Who collects and who the producer files with, in Saskatchewan and then Washington.
| Aspect | Saskatchewan | Washington |
|---|---|---|
| Regime | Household Packaging and Paper Stewardship Program Regulations, 2023 | Washington Recycling Reform Act, chapter 70A.208 RCW |
| Regulator | not yet published | Washington State Department of Ecology |
| Producers obligated | Yes | Yes |
| Registration | Required, SK Recycles producer portal | Required, Producer registers with a PRO; the PRO registers with Ecology |
| Producer organisation | one producer responsibility organisation: SK Recycles; membership required | one producer responsibility organisation: Circular Action Alliance; membership required |
| Revenue counted as | not yet published | worldwide gross revenue, USD, prior fiscal year |
| Who counts as the producer | primary: brand owner, importer, seller; secondary: brand owner, importer, seller; tertiary: brand owner, importer, seller | primary: manufacturer, brand licensee, brand owner, importer |
Both programmes organise producer responsibility the same way: one producer responsibility organisation. The practical differences between Saskatchewan and Washington therefore sit in thresholds, fees, dates and report formats rather than in whom a producer deals with.
What Saskatchewan and Washington cover, side by side
Each row below is one published feature of the two programmes; a cell reads “not yet published” when Saskatchewan or Washington has no verified entry for it in the dataset.
| Aspect | Saskatchewan | Washington |
|---|---|---|
| Producer duty: primary packaging | brand_owner; importer; seller | manufacturer; licensee; brand_owner; importer |
| Producer duty: secondary packaging | brand_owner; importer; seller | not yet published |
| Producer duty: tertiary packaging | brand_owner; importer; seller | not yet published |
| Reporting categories | 19, material category | not yet published |
| Exemption 1 | Under 1,000 kg to Saskatchewan residents | A de minimis producer is under one ton, or under the global revenue limit, or an agricultural employer within limits. |
| Exemption 2 | Businesses under CAD 1 million in annual revenue | Registered 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations are excluded from the producer definition. |
| Materials covered | not yet published | packaging, paper products |
| Product classes covered | not yet published | packaging, paper |
| Excluded from scope | not yet published | exempt materials |
| Sales channels addressed | not yet published | physical retail, remote sale, other distribution |
Thresholds and exemptions in Saskatchewan and Washington
Every verified threshold Saskatchewan and Washington publish, as each states it.
| Place | Measure | Amount | Effect | Basis as published |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saskatchewan | packaging weight | 1,000 kg | exempt below | annual supply to Saskatchewan residents |
| Saskatchewan | packaging weight | 5,000 kg | flat-fee band | 1,000 to 5,000 kg |
| Saskatchewan | revenue | CA$1,000,000 | exempt below | annual revenue |
| Washington | packaging tonnage | 1 short ton | exempt below | covered materials introduced, most recent fiscal year |
| Washington | revenue | $5,000,000 | exempt below | global gross revenue, prior fiscal year |
Saskatchewan exemption: Under 1,000 kg to Saskatchewan residents It does not have to be applied for.
Saskatchewan exemption: Businesses under CAD 1 million in annual revenue It does not have to be applied for.
Washington exemption: A de minimis producer is under one ton, or under the global revenue limit, or an agricultural employer within limits. It does not have to be applied for.
Washington exemption: Registered 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations are excluded from the producer definition. It does not have to be applied for.
Read the basis column first: the same amount can exempt a producer in one programme and only simplify its report in another.
The lowest revenue exemption is CA$1,000,000 in Saskatchewan and $5,000,000 in Washington (CA$6,989,000 at the Bank of Canada 2025 annual average rate). Saskatchewan therefore reaches smaller sellers: a business with revenue between the two lines is exempt in Washington but still in scope in Saskatchewan.
The lowest weight exemption is 1 tonne of packaging in Saskatchewan and 907.2 kg in Washington, about 1.1 times as much in Saskatchewan as in Washington. A seller whose packaging falls between the two lines is exempt in Saskatchewan but counted in Washington.
Fees per kilogram for shared materials
Saskatchewan publishes per-kilogram rates in the dataset; Washington does not. The rows therefore show Saskatchewan only. Until both sides publish per-kilogram rates for the same material class, a fee comparison between Saskatchewan and Washington would mean inventing a figure, and this page does not do that.
Saskatchewan: the 2027 fee schedule of SK Recycles, effective January 1, 2027, is the source of the per-kilogram rates used on this page.
Saskatchewan 2027: the category “Boxboard” is published at 31 cents per kilogram.
Saskatchewan 2027: the category “Plastic Film” is published at 113 cents per kilogram.
Saskatchewan 2027: the category “Clear Glass” is published at 30 cents per kilogram.
Deadlines in Saskatchewan and Washington
Each verified date, with the period it covers when one is given.
| Place | Kind | Date | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saskatchewan | report | May 31 | not yet published |
| Saskatchewan | payment | January 31 | fee year (the calendar year after the reporting year) |
| Saskatchewan | payment | April 30 | fee year (the calendar year after the reporting year) |
| Saskatchewan | payment | July 31 | fee year (the calendar year after the reporting year) |
| Saskatchewan | payment | October 31 | fee year (the calendar year after the reporting year) |
| Washington | other | March 1, 2026 | not yet published |
| Washington | report | May 31, 2026 | not yet published |
| Washington | registration | July 1, 2026 | not yet published |
| Washington | other | October 1, 2028 | not yet published |
| Washington | other | March 1, 2029 | not yet published |
| Washington | other | January 1, 2030 | not yet published |
| Washington | payment | February 15, 2031 | not yet published |
| Washington | payment | February 15, 2032 | not yet published |
The first annual report date is the same on both sides, May 31.
Penalties in Saskatchewan and Washington
What each side has published; a side without an amount says so.
Washington penalty for producer violating chapter 70A.208 RCW: up to $1,000 per day.
Report formats in Saskatchewan and Washington
How the report file for Saskatchewan compares with the one for Washington.
| Aspect | Saskatchewan | Washington |
|---|---|---|
| Layout | SK Recycles annual report Fee-year categories, reviewed 2026-09-29 | Washington interim producer supply report by material class 2026-09-29 (interim, built from CAA guidance) |
| Recipient | SK Recycles | Circular Action Alliance (Washington PRO) |
| How it is submitted | SK Recycles producer portal | CAA producer portal. The customer signs in and submits. |
| File type | csv | csv |
| Encoding | utf-8 | utf-8 |
| Delimiter | , | , |
| Decimal separator | . | |
| Columns | 4 | 4 |
| Required columns | 4 of 4 | 4 of 4 |
| Weight unit | kg | lb |
| Period basis | calendar year | calendar year |
The two layouts share a file type and a delimiter, but each programme names its own columns and categories, so one file cannot be sent to both programmes. Each report is built from the same underlying measurements and exported separately.
Which to plan for first, Saskatchewan or Washington
Check the exemption thresholds before anything else. Saskatchewan reaches smaller sellers than Washington, so a seller that is exempt in Washington may still have to register in Saskatchewan.
Questions about comparing these two programmes
Is Saskatchewan or Washington stricter on packaging EPR?
Saskatchewan exempts only producers below the lower revenue floor, CA$1,000,000 against $5,000,000 in Washington. Washington has the lower weight floor, 907.2 kg against 1 tonne in Saskatchewan. Both require producers to register. Both programmes set their first annual report for May 31.
Do I register in both Saskatchewan and Washington?
Saskatchewan requires producers to register. Washington requires producers to register.
How do the fees per kilogram compare in Saskatchewan and Washington?
The dataset does not hold per-kilogram rates for the same material class on both sides, so this page does not compare fees.
Which deadline comes first, Saskatchewan or Washington?
The first annual report date is the same on both sides, May 31.
How these figures are made
Sources
- skrecycles.ca: low volume producers retrieved
Original wording: Businesses supplying less than 1,000 kg of packaging and paper annually to Saskatchewan residents are exempt from registration and reporting requirements.
Original wording: Businesses supplying between 1,000 and 5,000 kg of material annually can file a simplified report and pay a flat fee.
- skrecycles.ca: are you a producer retrieved
Original wording: that business is the obligated producer as the brand holder.
Original wording: If a business or organization supplies packaging to consumers in Saskatchewan and is the brand owner resident in Canada
Original wording: Businesses with less than $1 million in annual revenue are also exempt.
- skrecycles.ca: reporting resources and guidebook retrieved
Original wording: Producers registered with SK Recycles are required to submit reports on the WeRecycle Portal by May 31
- sk-webmedia-assets-prod-shared-ca-central-1.s3.ca-central-1.amazonaws.com: SK Recycles Membership Agreement Dec11 2024 Final 2 retrieved
Original wording: each such instalment is due on January 31st, April 30th, July 31st and October 31st of the respective Fee Obligation Year
- skrecycles.ca: fees retrieved
Original wording: Newsprint 63
- circularactionalliance.org: washington retrieved
Original wording: required in the Recycling Reform Act
Original wording: By January 1, 2026 Washington Department of Ecology must establish and appoint the initial membership of the advisory council.
Original wording: July 1, 2026 Washington regulatory deadline for Producers to register with a PRO.
Original wording: By March 1, 2026 A PRO must register with Washington Department of Ecology on behalf of its producers.
Original wording: By May 31, 2026 Reporting (Interim State Addendum Signed & Simplified Reporting)
- app.leg.wa.gov: default retrieved
Original wording: After July 1, 2026, be a member of a producer responsibility organization registered in this state
Original wording: Has a global gross revenue, not including on-premises alcohol sales, for the prior fiscal year of
Original wording: the producer is the person that manufactures the item
Original wording: In their most recent fiscal year introduced less than one ton of covered materials
Original wording: Until January 1, 2031, less than $5,000,000
Original wording: "De minimis producer" means a producer that
Original wording: Registered 501(c)(3) charitable organizations and 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations
Original wording: By October 1, 2028, and every five years thereafter, submit a plan that meets the requirements of this chapter
Original wording: Beginning March 1, 2029, a producer that is not a member in good standing with a registered producer responsibility organization
Original wording: By January 1, 2030, or within six months of plan approval, whichever is later, implement the plan approved by the department
Original wording: No less than 75 percent of the net costs by February 15, 2031
Original wording: No less than 90 percent of the net costs by February 15, 2032, and each year thereafter
Original wording: civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation per day on any producer who violates this chapter
Original wording: "Covered material" means packaging and paper products introduced into the state.
- ecology.wa.gov: producer responsibility organization retrieved
Original wording: The Circular Action Alliance is the PRO representing producers in Washington. We encourage all potentially obligated producers to register with CAA.
- Bank of Canada, FXAUSDCAD (annual average 2025) retrieved
- skrecycles.ca: SK Recycles 2027 Fee Schedule retrieved
Original wording: SK RECYCLES FEE SCHEDULE (CENTS/KG)
Original wording: Boxboard 31.00 31.00 0.0%
Original wording: Plastic Film 113.00 119.00 -5.0%
Original wording: GLASS Clear Glass 30.00 31.00 -3.2%
The free plan is enough to start. We estimate and prepare; you sign and submit.