Annex II, PIC procedure, Green-listed waste impact
For decades, cross-border waste movements in Europe were governed not only by environmental law, but also by paperwork. Notifications, movement documents, Annex VII forms, signatures and confirmations travelled with the waste or between authorities, often creating delays, inconsistencies and enforcement gaps.
That model has now changed. On 21 May 2026, most provisions of the revised Waste Shipment Regulation – Regulation (EU) 2024/1157 started to apply, together with the launch of the Digital Waste Shipment System, known as DIWASS. The European Commission describes this as a landmark step towards a circular economy and the full digitalization of waste shipment procedures in the EU.
The practical result is clear: waste moving across EU borders is no longer meant to be accompanied by a fragmented paper trail. It is now expected to carry a digital record, a form of regulatory “passport” allowing operators and authorities to follow the shipment, verify compliance and intervene where necessary.
Why the EU changed the rules
Waste is no longer viewed only as an environmental risk. It is also a source of secondary raw materials. The EU Commission notes that EU waste exports reached 35.1 million tons in 2023, worth EUR 18.5 billion, while most EU waste continues to move between Member States.
The revised Regulation therefore pursues three connected objectives:
(i)to ensure that the EU does not export its waste problems to third countries;
(ii)to strengthen enforcement against illegal shipments; and
(iii)to increase traceability of waste movements within the EU so that recycling and reuse can be facilitated.
This is why DIWASS should not be seen simply as an administrative IT tool. It is part of a broader legal and industrial policy: improving the availability of secondary raw materials inside the EU, reducing reliance on imports of primary raw materials, and making illegal waste exports harder to conceal.
What DIWASS actually does
DIWASS is the EU’s central electronic platform for the submission and exchange of information and documents related to waste shipments. It is designed both as a direct-access system for operators and authorities and as a hub connecting national platforms and commercial software.
From 21 May 2026, DIWASS must be used by EU competent authorities and economic operators for notification procedures where an EU Member State is involved as the country of dispatch, destination or transit. It must also be used to generate movement documents once the relevant authorities have consented to a notified shipment.
The system covers, in particular, notifications, requests for additional information, consent or objection decisions, movement documents, Annex VII documents, information on pre-consented recovery facilities and certificates confirming the completion of recovery or disposal operations.
For businesses, this means that compliance will increasingly depend not only on knowing the substantive waste rules, but also on having the right internal processes, registrations, data flows and authorization arrangements in place.
PIC procedures
The most immediate legal effect concerns shipments subject to the prior informed consent procedure – the PIC procedure. This applies, broadly, to waste destined for disposal, hazardous waste, mixed municipal waste and certain contaminated or higher-risk waste streams. For such shipments, the operator must obtain prior consent from the competent authorities concerned before the shipment can take place.
Since 21 May 2026, these PIC procedures must be processed digitally through DIWASS. The Commission states that no paper-based transition applies to the PIC procedure.
This matters because DIWASS changes the evidentiary environment. Authorities will have faster access to shipment data, procedural status, deadlines, certificates and treatment confirmations. For compliant operators, this should reduce uncertainty and delays. For non-compliant operators, it reduces the possibility of hiding behind fragmented paper records.
Green-listed waste and Annex VII: the important transition
A more nuanced rule applies to green-listed non-hazardous waste destined for recovery, which is generally subject to the “general information requirements” rather than the full PIC procedure. Under the new regime, Annex VII documentation also falls within the digitalization framework. However, the Commission and Member States recognized that full technical interconnection of all local systems and software would not be ready in time.
As a result, a practical transition applies: from 21 May 2026 to 31 December 2026, Annex VII documents may continue to be handled broadly as before, primarily in paper form.
This should not be misunderstood as a repeal of the digital obligation. The German Federal Environment Ministry has expressly noted that the Regulation itself requires electronic completion of Annex VII documents and contains no general exemption, but that no sanctions should be imposed during the transition period where the required documents are completed and carried on paper because electronic completion is not possible. From 1 January 2027, all parties involved must comply with electronic documentation.
For operators, the message is simple: Annex VII paper handling may continue temporarily, but this is a grace period for adaptation, not a long-term compliance model.
Access routes and Member State differences
DIWASS can be accessed through the Commission’s graphical user interface, through national systems interconnected with DIWASS, or through compatible commercial software. Member States have informed the Commission how operators under their competent authorities must access the system, and different access routes may apply to different parts of the process, such as notification procedures, Annex VII documents or pre-consent communications.
This creates a practical compliance challenge for companies operating in several jurisdictions. A recycler, broker, carrier or producer active in multiple Member States may need to verify not only the EU-level rule, but also the specific access method required by each competent authority.
In Bulgaria, the Ministry of Environment and Water confirmed that DIWASS would introduce mandatory electronic information exchange from 21 May 2026, covering the submission of applications, communication between competent authorities and operators, participant registration, deadline tracking and secure data exchange.
Stricter controls beyond digitalization
DIWASS is only one part of the revised framework. The Waste Shipment Regulation also tightens the EU’s approach to exports.
The Regulation continues the general ban on waste exports for disposal and the ban on hazardous waste exports for recovery to non-OECD countries. From 21 May 2027, stricter rules will apply to exports of non-hazardous green-listed waste to non-OECD countries: such exports will generally be prohibited unless the third country has demonstrated that the waste will be managed in an environmentally sound manner.
Plastic waste is subject to particular scrutiny. From 21 May 2026, plastic waste exports to third countries require PIC approval, and from 21 November 2026, exports of plastic waste from the EU to non-OECD countries will be banned.
The Regulation also reinforces enforcement cooperation, including through the EU Waste Shipment Enforcement Group and the involvement of OLAF in supporting transnational investigations into waste trafficking.
What companies should do now
The transition from paper to DIWASS is not simply a change of format. It affects contract management, logistics planning, document retention, IT systems and compliance controls.
Companies involved in cross-border waste shipments should urgently review whether they are correctly registered, which access route applies to them, whether their commercial software is interoperable with DIWASS, and whether their internal teams understand the different treatment of PIC shipments and Annex VII shipments during the transition period.
Contracts with carriers, consignees, brokers and recovery facilities should also be checked. The digital system depends on timely input and confirmation from several actors in the shipment chain. A delay or failure by one party may affect the entire shipment.
Finally, companies should treat the DIWASS record as a compliance file. In a digital enforcement environment, incomplete or inconsistent data will be easier for authorities to detect.
Article written by Momchil Denchev from our Bulgarian Member Law Firm Milanova & Partners.
