Free tool · No account · England & Wales
Waste codes, in plain English.
Every type of waste on a transfer note needs a six-digit code. Type what it is — sofa, rubble, fridge — and get the code, what to write next to it, and whether it can go on a note at all.
51 codes
The short version
One line per type of waste. Code, description, how much, loose or in something.
11 of the 51 codes here are hazardous — those need a consignment note instead, and the free note tool refuses them.
Chapter 08 — Trade paint and adhesive
Wastes from the manufacture, formulation, supply and use (MFSU) of coatings (paints, varnishes and vitreous enamels), adhesives, sealants and printing inks
Chapter 13 — Waste oils
Oil wastes and wastes of liquid fuels (except edible oils, 05 and 12)
Chapter 15 — Packaging
Waste packaging; absorbents, wiping cloths, filter materials and protective clothing not otherwise specified
Chapter 16 — Tyres, batteries and equipment
Wastes not otherwise specified in the list
Chapter 17 — Building and demolition work
Construction and demolition wastes (including excavated soil from contaminated sites)
17 01 01 Concrete 17 01 02 Bricks 17 01 03 Tiles, ceramics, toilets and sinks 17 01 07 Rubble — mixed concrete, brick, tile 17 02 01 Wood from building work — joists, doors, floorboards 17 02 02 Glass from building work — windows, glazing 17 02 03 Plastic from building work — guttering, pipes, uPVC 17 03 02 Tarmac, asphalt, roofing felt 17 04 05 Iron and steel 17 04 07 Mixed metals from building work 17 04 11 Cables 17 05 04 Soil and stones from building work (clean) 17 06 04 Insulation — rockwool, fibreglass, celotex 17 06 05 Asbestos (hazardous — specialist only) Hazardous 17 08 02 Plasterboard and plaster 17 09 04 Mixed building waste (skip waste)
Chapter 20 — Clearances and general rubbish
Municipal wastes (household waste and similar commercial, industrial and institutional wastes) including separately collected fractions
20 03 01 General mixed rubbish (black bag waste) 20 03 07 Bulky items — sofas, armchairs, mattresses, furniture POPs 20 01 01 Paper and cardboard 20 01 02 Glass (bottles, jars, panes) 20 01 08 Food waste 20 01 10 Clothes 20 01 11 Textiles — curtains, bedding, carpets and rugs 20 01 21 Fluorescent tubes, low-energy bulbs Hazardous 20 01 23 Fridges and freezers Hazardous 20 01 25 Cooking oil and fat 20 01 27 Paint, solvents, adhesives (hazardous) Hazardous 20 01 28 Water-based paint, dried paint tins 20 01 33 Batteries (lead-acid, lithium, mixed) Hazardous 20 01 35 TVs, monitors, laptops, screens (hazardous WEEE) Hazardous 20 01 36 Washing machines, cookers, dishwashers, microwaves, kettles, small electricals 20 01 37 Treated wood — creosoted, CCA-treated (hazardous) Hazardous 20 01 38 Wood — furniture, timber, pallets from households 20 01 39 Plastics — garden chairs, toys, storage boxes 20 01 40 Scrap metal — bed frames, bikes, radiators 20 02 01 Garden waste — grass, hedge cuttings, branches 20 02 02 Soil and stones (from gardens) 20 02 03 Other garden waste — plant pots, fencing, gravel
Nothing matches that.
Try the plain word for it — “sofa”, “rubble”, “washing machine” — or the first two digits of the code. This is the working set for clearance and carrier work, not the full 850-entry list.
Next step
Got your codes? Write the note.
Every box the law asks for, both signatures on the screen, PDF in your inbox and the customer's. Kept for two years. Free, no account.
Write a transfer note Straight answers
Questions carriers ask
What is an EWC code?
A six-digit code from the List of Wastes that says what a load is. It has to be on the waste transfer note for every type of waste you carry. Most people still call them EWC codes; the official name in the UK is the List of Wastes, or LoW.
What does the star on a code mean?
A star (asterisk) means the entry is hazardous. Hazardous waste moves on a consignment note, not a waste transfer note, and both the carrier and the receiving site need to be able to take it.
The same thing has two codes — which do I use?
It depends where the load came from, not what the material is. A wardrobe out of a house clearance is chapter 20; the same timber out of a strip-out is chapter 17. Pick the chapter that matches the job, then the entry that matches the material.
Do I need a code for a house clearance?
Householders do not have to write a transfer note, so nothing is required from them. You still code the load for the tip, and from October 2027 your movement of it gets reported to DEFRA under digital waste tracking.
Is this the whole List of Wastes?
No. This is the working set a van operator actually meets — 51 entries across six chapters. The full list runs to about 850 entries, most of them industrial process wastes a clearance firm never touches.