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15 01 10* Packaging containing residues of or contaminated by hazardous substances

EWC / List of Waste code · Last checked 21 October 2026 · Applies across the UK (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland)

Hazardous Absolute hazardous entry

Official description: “packaging containing residues of or contaminated by hazardous substances”

Where it sits: chapter 15 (waste packaging; absorbents, wiping cloths, filter materials and protective clothing not otherwise specified), section 15 01 (packaging (including separately collected municipal packaging waste)).

In plain English

Packaging with residues of, or contaminated by, hazardous substances, such as some part-used chemical containers.

What the hazard status means

Waste that matches this description is always hazardous waste, whatever the amount of hazardous substances in it. You do not need to test it to decide whether it is hazardous, but you still need to know its hazardous properties to fill in the paperwork.

Using this code

Write the code on the paperwork when waste is passed on: a waste transfer note for non-hazardous waste, or a consignment note for hazardous waste (called special waste in Scotland).
Choose the code from where the waste came from first (the chapter), then what it is. If a load is mixed, you may need more than one code.
The waste must go to a site whose permit allows that code. A registered carrier can tell you which codes they accept: check a waste carrier.
Businesses have a duty of care to describe their waste correctly.

Other codes in section 15 01

15 01 01 Paper and cardboard packaging Not hazardous
15 01 02 Plastic packaging Not hazardous
15 01 03 Wooden packaging Not hazardous
15 01 04 Metallic packaging Not hazardous
15 01 05 Composite packaging Not hazardous
15 01 06 Mixed packaging Not hazardous
15 01 07 Glass packaging Not hazardous
15 01 09 Textile packaging Not hazardous
15 01 11* Metallic packaging containing a hazardous solid porous matrix (for example asbestos), including empty pressure containers Hazardous

This page explains the code in plain English. It is not a classification of your waste. The official List of Waste and the classification guidance decide which code applies, and you are responsible for the code you use.