Some current international plastic tax policies
In recent years, several countries and regions have included plastics in the scope of consumption tax.
The EU introduced a "plastic packaging tax" on January 1, 2021, which will be added to single-use plastic packaging at a rate of 0.8 euros per kilogram. The plastic tax is not a tax on virgin plastics or the packaging industry, but rather a fee paid on plastic packaging waste that is not recycled.
A plastic packaging tax (PPT) at a rate of £0.20 per kilogram will be imposed on single-use plastic packaging produced or imported into the UK from April 1, 2022.
The Italian plastics tax was introduced on January 1, 2023, with a levy of 450 euros per ton. The tax was initially mentioned in the fiscal year 2020 budget and has since been postponed several times in succession, first in July 2021, then in January 2022, and then in January 2023. Even if implemented, this €
The Spanish government approved decree HFP/1314/2022. The Spanish plastic tax, effective January 1, 2023, starts at 5 kg of non-recycled plastic packaging per month and is charged at 0.45 euros per kg.
Nigeria introduced a new "green tax" from June 1, 2023, imposing a 10% excise tax on single-use plastic products, including plastic containers, films and bags. Other plastic products such as plastic sheets, films, foils and tapes, polymers, styrene, and copy paper (printed and non-printed), were also subject to increased import excise duties.
The Netherlands may introduce a taxation policy on the sale of plastic pellets and powders.
The German government has released draft legislation to tax single-use plastic products, and for the first time, companies that put single-use plastic products on the German market for sale (including remote sales) will have to pay the tax, which is expected to start in 2025.
Tax on plastics, ACC strongly opposes
In 2021, a proposal was introduced in the U.S. Senate to impose a government excise tax on all non-recycled plastics produced by plastics manufacturers, including plastic packaging, beverage containers, bags and food service products. The proposal proposes a tax of 10 cents per pound of new plastic starting in 2022, rising to 15 cents in 2023 and 20 cents in 2024.
The American Chemistry Council, which represents billions of dollars of leading companies in the chemical business, strongly opposes this. ACC argues that increasing taxes on plastics would instead further increase inflation. ACC says the U.S. needs comprehensive public policy to achieve a circular economy, not the proposed bill.
Can a plastic tax really solve the problem?
In the view of tax experts, disposable plastic products, which are characterized by rapid consumption and almost difficult to recycle, are a major component of global plastic pollution. By imposing a consumption tax on disposable plastic products, a universal regulatory instrument, the regulation of the consumption of disposable plastic products will be increased, thus reducing the environmental pollution caused by disposable plastic products; the plastic tax imposed can be used for projects such as environmental protection.
It may seem wonderful, but there are two sides to everything, and the plastic tax is no exception.
In fact, after years of development and close integration of the plastics industry with human society, reducing the use of plastics is not an easy task. And the increased costs of a plastic tax will be passed down through the ranks, eventually falling on consumers. The increase in supply chain costs from the entire plastic tax will also expose the entire industry to volatility.
Plastic has brought convenience and distress, and gradually awakened mankind to the future of the plastics industry has produced a reflection and remedy.
A plastic tax is a viable tool, but ameliorating the plastic problem does not seem to be easily accomplished through taxes alone. So far, the problem of resource recycling still plagues mankind, and the relatively mature recycling system in developed countries still needs to be continuously improved and optimized. Developing countries have already started to catch up on this road, but it will take the joint efforts of all sectors in the future to achieve leadership.
