Deposit system for single-use plastic and metal drinks containers in Austria

On 1 January 2025 Austria launched a 25c deposit for plastic bottles and aluminium cans between 0.1 and 3 litres.

The recycling cycle. Source: https://www.recycling-pfand.at

The key points

• Eligible bottles and cans are marked with the Austrian deposit logo (see our main image below).

• Every retailer that sells drinks in single use bottles is required to accept recycling of the same sized containers. Exceptions are vending machines and online sales and delivery companies (so not Amazon or DHL etc.).

• You will be charged 25c more at the checkout as a result of the scheme.

• Do not crush the container or remove the label.

• There is a difference between SINGLE-USE and MULTIPLE-USE containers. The new regulation only applies to single-use bottles. Multiple-use containers, such as 0.5 litre glass beer bottles, are collected via the same system and also involve a deposit, but this deposit is set at a different amount.

• There is a transition period until 1 Janaury 2026 after which all products sold in Austria must be registered and display the deposit logo. Until then producers may continue to sell old stock, and international brands without the reycling logo may still be sold.

• The goal is that 90 percent of all PET bottles and aluminium cans will be processed within the system by 2027.

Sources and further information

• https://www.recycling-pfand.at