What is e-waste?
E-waste is waste electrical and electronic equipment.
Australia regulates the export, import and transit of e-waste under the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989 (the Act).
The Basel Convention is a global control system for exporting and importing hazardous waste. It governs the management of hazardous waste between countries. This includes hazardous e-waste. Australia must meet the requirements under these arrangements.
From 1 January 2025, the Basel Convention will also control non-hazardous e-waste.
E-waste may be whole items or components.
Examples of whole e-waste include:
- televisions, monitors, smart displays
- computers, laptops, tablets
- mobile phones
- printers, other consumer electronics
- solar panels, security systems
- large and small household appliances including white goods
- lighting equipment
- electrical and electronic tools
- commercial and industrial electronics
- other electronics.
Examples of components that are separated and removed from whole e-waste include:
- printed circuit boards
- disk drives
- semi-conductor chips
- Memory (RAM) modules.
E-waste can be in any form including e-waste that has been shredded.
Classifying e-waste
E-waste can be hazardous or non-hazardous waste, depending on its composition and characteristics.
You should presume all e-waste is hazardous unless you can prove that it has no hazardous components or characteristics.
Examples of components that make e-waste hazardous include:
- Cathode Ray Tubes (CRT’s) and solder on circuit boards containing lead and lead compounds
- nickel-cadmium batteries, semiconductors or CRTs with cadmium and cadmium compounds
- glass containing antimony and its compounds
- plastics containing brominated flame retardants (BFRs) or other hazardous additives.
- button-cell batteries, fluorescent tubes and liquid crystal displays containing mercury and mercury compounds
- photoconductive material in photocopier drums containing selenium or cadmium sulphide
- capacitors and transformers containing polychlorinated biphenyls.
Control of e-waste
Hazardous e-waste
Hazardous e-waste is controlled under the Act.
The import, export, or transit of hazardous e-waste requires a permit except where:
- e-waste components are exported to an OECD country for metal recovery operations and the country of import also does not control hazardous e-waste components
- e-waste components are imported from an OECD country to Australia for metal recovery operations.
Before importing or exporting hazardous e-waste components to an OECD country, contact the Competent Authority in that country to check their requirements.
Find the contact person for the relevant Competent Authority.
Find out how to apply for a permit under the Act.
Non-hazardous e-waste
From 1 January 2025, new rules will apply to the international movement of non-hazardous e-waste. Until Australia implements these new rules:
- the export of non-hazardous e-wastes from Australia will require an export permit if the country of import controls them under their legislation.
- the import of non-hazardous e-wastes into Australia will not require an import permit. You may still require a permit from the country of export.
- the transit of non-hazardous e-wastes through Australia will not require a transit permit.
Before exporting or importing non-hazardous e-waste, contact the Competent Authority in the countries of import and transit to check if they have implemented the changes into their national legislation.
Find the contact person for the relevant Competent Authority.
Find out how to apply for a permit under the Act.
Contact us
Email: hazardous.waste@nationalepa.gov.au
Phone: 1800 976 422