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20 03 01 Mixed municipal waste

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

Not hazardous Absolute non-hazardous entry

Official description: “mixed municipal waste”

Where it sits: chapter 20 (municipal wastes (household waste and similar commercial, industrial and institutional wastes) including separately collected fractions), section 20 03 (other municipal wastes).

In plain English

Mixed general rubbish from homes and similar waste from businesses, such as the contents of a general waste bin.

Read our guide: general rubbish →

What the hazard status means

Waste that matches this description is not hazardous waste. Check that nothing hazardous has been mixed in: a load that contains hazardous waste needs a different code.

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 20 03

20 03 02 Waste from markets Not hazardous
20 03 03 Street-cleaning residues Not hazardous
20 03 04 Septic tank sludge Not hazardous
20 03 06 Waste from sewage cleaning Not hazardous
20 03 07 Bulky waste Not hazardous
20 03 99 Municipal wastes not otherwise specified Not 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.