Western Australia’s container deposit scheme will be expanded on 1 July 2026 to accept a much wider range of beverage containers for a 10 cent refund at participating refund points.

The updated scheme, known as Containers for Change, will include wine and spirit bottles and other containers currently outside its scope, as part of a government strategy to increase recycling and reduce waste.

Expanded container list from mid-2026

From 1 July 2026, Containers for Change will accept almost all beverage containers between 150 millilitres and 3 litres, including glass bottles of wine and spirits.

The revised eligibility also covers containers such as wine in plastic packaging, sachets and casks, water in casks, and larger fruit and vegetable juice, flavoured milk and cordial containers.

Until the expansion takes effect, current eligible containers remain unchanged and new types will not be accepted at refund points. Containers brought to refund points must carry the scheme’s 10 cent refund mark to qualify for a refund, and the refund applies only to purchases made after the expansion starts.

Some products will remain excluded, including plain milk and registered health tonic containers, which should continue to be placed in household recycling.

wider recycling and recovery outcomes

The Containers for Change scheme began on 1 October 2020 and has collected more than 4.56 billion eligible containers, boosting Western Australia’s beverage container recovery rate from about 34 per cent before the scheme to around 65 per cent in the 2023–24 financial year.

The state government estimates the expansion will bring an additional 200 million containers per year into the refund system, including 90–130 million glass bottles previously excluded.

Wider eligibility aims to simplify the scheme for consumers and potentially improve recycling rates still further.

Implications for suppliers and operations

Under the scheme’s framework, beverage suppliers who first sell eligible containers into the Western Australian market will be responsible for scheme fees and compliance.

From July 2026, suppliers of newly eligible wine and spirit containers must register these products, ensure they carry the refund mark and barcode, and comply with reporting requirements.

The expansion aligns Western Australia’s deposit scheme more closely with other Australian jurisdictions that have already broadened their refund programs to include similar container types.

The change is intended to support recycling infrastructure, provide clearer container eligibility for the public, and reinforce the state’s waste reduction framework while maintaining the existing 10 cent refund model at participating refund points.