Waste tax
Every household pays for the collection and processing of waste and materials. This is called the Waste Tax. In 2024, households in the municipality of Uithoorn will pay a fixed rate. Starting 1 January 2025, this will change to a combination of a fixed and variable rate. The fixed rate covers the collection and processing of all waste streams, except residual waste. The variable rate, beginning in 2025, will be based on how many times you dispose of your residual waste. Since processing residual waste is expensive, we can save costs together by reducing residual waste (prevention) and properly separating waste.
- For more information about the waste pass, visit waste pass.
- For questions about your tax assessment, visit gemeentebelastingenamstelland.nl. You will also find the rates for 2023, 2024, and 2025 listed on Gemeentebelastingen Amstelland, rates for the municipality of Uithoorn.
Processing residual waste is the most expensive part of waste management. Households pay for this collectively through the waste disposal levy. Businesses do not pay the waste disposal levy and organize their collection themselves. Since the introduction of waste passes, the amount of residual waste in the municipality of Uithoorn has significantly decreased.
At the beginning of 2025, you will receive a notification from Amstelland municipal taxes for the fixed part of the 2025 waste disposal levy. This is €297 for someone living alone and €312 for a multi-person household. Second mini-container for residual waste: €157.88 (only for residents in ribbon development). For all instances where you dispose of residual waste or have your mini-container for residual waste emptied in 2025, you will receive an invoice from Amstelland municipal taxes in 2026. In the residents' portal, you can keep track of how often you offer residual waste.
From 1 January 2025, we will charge per instance of disposing of residual waste:
- €1 per bag of residual waste in the underground waste container (60 liters)
- €4 per instance for emptying a mini-container for residual waste (240 liters) With this money, we can precisely cover the costs of collection, shredding, and incineration (plus national taxes and CO2 levies) of residual waste.
Tip: If you are used to frequently disposing of small bags of residual waste, put the smaller bags in a larger bag and dispose of them less often. This will save you money. If you cannot take a larger bag away, ask a neighbor or family member for help. Together, we can achieve more!
- Do you have an income at social assistance level without any assets? Then you do not have to pay the fixed part. And you get a discount on the variable part (single-person household €22, multi-person household €66). Check the page Request a waiver on the website Gemeentebelastingen Amstelland.
- Do you have medical waste, such as incontinence or stoma material? Then you can apply for a €22 discount on the variable part. You can apply for this from January 2025 via an application form. Tip: Also check Frequently Asked Questions - Stoma Association for information about special waste bins for this type of waste.
- For loose litter and bags with dog waste, the public trash cans remain in place, or there will be valves on the underground containers. Missing a bin at a location? Let us know via gemeente@uithoorn.nl. We will see what we can do for you.
A single man lives in Uithoorn in an apartment. At the beginning of 2025, he receives a bill of €297 for the fixed part of the waste disposal levy. Throughout 2025, he takes a bag of residual waste to the underground container 22 times. In 2026, he receives a separate bill for this amounting to €22. This is the variable part of the waste disposal levy.
In total, he pays €319 for the waste disposal levy for 2025. He has done well and has even saved money compared to 2024, when he paid €323.06!
He had already calculated this himself. With the number on his waste pass and the login code he received by letter, he tracked his recycling rate in the residents' portal.
Do you have a lot of medical waste due to a medical condition? Then you may be eligible for compensation for the extra costs. You will be asked for proof of the purchase of the material, including name and date. If that is not available, you can also take a photo of the medications with the address sticker showing the name. Also, specify what type of medical waste it is.
How does the compensation for medical waste work?
Do you have medical waste, such as incontinence or stoma material? Then you can apply for a €22 discount on the variable part. You will receive the discount for the entire year, so it does not matter when you apply for or receive the discount. You can apply for this starting from January 2025:
The municipality of Uithoorn has chosen source separation because the quality of the recyclable material is better. In particular, drink cartons from residual waste are harder to recycle due to moisture and dirt. There are hardly any buyers for textiles and paper and cardboard from post-separation due to moisture and odor. Organic waste from post-separation cannot be composted because it may have come into contact with chemical waste such as oxidizing batteries. This can cause serious environmental pollution if farmers use this compost in agriculture, which could enter our food chain. Unfortunately, glass cannot yet be removed mechanically.
Awareness about waste is greater when residents separate it themselves. At the moment, it is also not an option for the municipality of Uithoorn because the sorting facilities of processors are completely full.
Residual waste from the municipality of Uithoorn is incinerated at the Afval Energiebedrijf in Amsterdam (AEB). Energy is generated from it, but valuable raw materials are also lost. Additionally, harmful substances are released during the incineration process. The municipality therefore pays tax per ton of residual waste to the national government. Starting in 2025, an additional CO2 tax will be introduced. Therefore, the less residual waste, the better for the waste disposal levy and the environment.
Nitrous oxide cylinders in residual waste
Nitrous oxide cylinders can explode during incineration, which is dangerous and causes damage. Therefore, waste must first be shredded. The collector empties the containers and shreds the residual waste, which incurs extra costs. Therefore, bring used nitrous oxide cylinders to the Separation Depot. If you find a nitrous oxide cylinder, leave it and report the location via the reporting tool or use the app BuitenBeter. You can immediately add a photo of the location there.
The municipality does not profit from the waste tax. The waste budget operates as a ‘closed’ financial system. This means that all costs incurred by the municipality for waste collection and processing are covered by the waste tax revenue. Income from recyclable materials (such as plastic, metal, paper, old appliances, glass et cetera) is deducted from the costs of collection and processing. The remaining costs are divided among households.
The municipal council decided that a recycling rate will be introduced starting 1 January 2025. In addition to a fixed amount for the waste tax residents will pay a variable rate based on their residual waste disposal. There has been a lot of consultation and decision-making about this, below are links to the meetings. The rates and exemptions are recorded in regulations. These were adopted by the council on December 19, 2024 (in Dutch).
If you have a minimum income, you may qualify for partial remissions from the waste tax. Think you may be eligible? Visit the page Requesting a waiver on gemeentebelastingenamstelland.nl for more information.
A container opening is only registered once the container has been opened and then closed again. If the container is full or defective it will not open. In this case you will not be charged. If there is an incorrect registration, it will be corrected. You can monitor this via the online portal for household waste and report any issues there.
For more information go to Online portal for household waste.
Some municipalities have faced the so-called ‘Recycling Rate Paradox.’ When a municipality funds fixed expenses with variable income, this can entail risks. To prevent this, the variable rate for residual waste is set in such a way that it fully covers the costs of collecting and processing residual waste. This ensures that residual waste remains a financially closed system within the larger closed system of the total waste budget. This approach eliminates the risk of the ‘Recycling Rate Paradox’ for the municipality of Uithoorn.
Currently, 55% of Dutch municipalities have implemented some form of recycling rate. Research shows that municipalities with a recycling rate perform better in terms of waste management, achieving higher recycling rates and producing less residual waste per household.