The Waste Reduction and Recycling Support (WRARS) levy is a fee charged per tonne of waste disposed of at waste management facilities in Manitoba. The rate is set in legislation. The levy was introduced in 2009 under The Waste Reduction and Prevention Act to reduce waste and promote recycling and waste diversion.
The levy applies to all types of waste, including:

• municipal solid waste
• residential waste
• industrial, commercial and institutional waste
• construction, renovation and demolition waste
• any other waste

Burning waste counts as disposal. If waste is burned at a landfill or waste transfer station under a burning permit, the owner/operator must report the weight of the burned waste and pay the WRARS levy at the legislated rate. This includes materials such as woody debris and cardboard.

Owners/operators of waste management facilities (such as landfills and waste transfer stations) must pay the WRARS levy to the department responsible for The Waste Reduction and Prevention Act. This includes municipalities, communities, private facilities and government departments.

Yes. They include:

• single-use private landfills that do not accept waste from other generators
• First Nation waste disposal grounds that do not accept waste from other generators
• First Nations' waste disposed of in community landfills
• Materials diverted from landfills through recycling, composting or wood chipping.

Waste management facility owners/operators must pay the WRARS levy each year for the period ending December 31. Payment and remittance reports are due by January 31 of the following year.

Waste management facility owners/operators are encouraged to report disposed waste online using the WRARS system. To request login access, please email recyclemb@gov.mb.ca. Reporting forms are also available. Use the most current versions here and email completed forms to recyclemb@gov.mb.ca.

The WRARS levy can be paid by cheque or electronic funds transfer (EFT).

1. Electronic Funds Transfers (EFT) - preferred: Contact recyclemb@gov.mb.ca for more information.
2. Cheques: Make cheques payable to the Minister of Finance.

Send cheques by mail to:
WRARS Program
Box 37 - 14 Fultz Blvd
Winnipeg, MB  R3Y 0L6
Cheques may be delivered to:
14 Fultz Blvd, Winnipeg, MB  R3Y 0L6, ATTN: Box 37 WRARS Program

Waste management facilities without a weigh scale can report disposed waste in two ways: by estimating the amount of waste or by using a per capita waste factor.

Estimating waste: Waste management facility owners/operators can measure the volume of waste disposed/burned and convert it to tonnes. See Section 6 and Appendix C of the WRARS Guide. Supporting calculations must be emailed to recyclemb@gov.mb.ca.

Per capita waste factor: The WRARS levy can also be calculated using a twelve-month per capita factor of 660 kilograms (0.66 tonnes) per person. This rate is based on the measured average per capita waste disposed of at landfills outside of the Capital Region and Brandon. Waste management facility owners/operators should use the most recent Statistics Canada’s census of population data (statcan-census-2021), which is accessible in the WRARS system.

Here is an example of calculating a twelve-month WRARS levy using a population of 1,000 people and a $10 per tonne rate:

1,000 x 0.66 tonnes = 660 tonnes of waste
660 tonnes x $10/tonne = $6,600

The WRARS system will calculate the levy based on estimated waste or the per capita waste factor.

Waste transfer station owners/operators do not pay the WRARS levy on waste transported from the waste transfer station to a landfill. The landfill owner/operator where the waste is sent will pay the WRARS levy on that waste. If waste is burned at a waste transfer station under the authority of a burning permit, the owner/operator must report the weight of the burned waste and pay the WRARS levy.

Closing a waste disposal ground or converting it into a waste transfer station will affect the WRARS levy. Please notify WRARS Program staff of any changes at recyclemb@gov.mb.ca.

All waste transfer stations must be registered with the WRARS Program, whether or not they were converted from a landfill. Owners/operators must complete a Landfill Closure Confirmation and Waste Transfer Station Registration Form or a Landfill and Waste Transfer Station Registration Form and submit it to recyclemb@gov.mb.ca.

If a municipality or community sends its waste to a landfill they don’t own, they don’t pay the WRARS levy. The landfill owner/operator that received the waste pays the levy instead. However, if a municipality or community stores or burns waste at a waste management facility it owns, it must pay the WRARS levy on that disposed or burned waste.

If a community sends some of its waste to an external landfill, it should only pay the WRARS levy for the portion of waste disposed of at its own landfill. For example, if a municipality of 1,000 people sends 30% of its waste elsewhere, the levy would apply to the remaining 70% of the population—700 people.

Owners/operators of landfills accepting waste from multiple municipalities/communities should list all municipalities and communities served in the "Catchment" field in the WRARS system. For the "Population served" field, count only the population of municipalities and communities in which the majority of residential waste is collected. For example, if only construction, renovation and demolition waste is collected from a municipality, list that municipality in the "Catchment" field, but do not include its population in the "Population served" field.

Please complete the online form here.

Recycling rebates are financial incentives to municipalities and communities to support residential recycling of packaging and printed paper (blue bin materials).

Rebates are based on each applicant’s share of the total reported amount of residential printed paper and packaging recycled. The formula for calculating the rebate each applicant receives for each twelve-month period is:

Recycling rebates for each applicant are calculated once all eligible recycling reports are received by the department.

Recycling rebates are available to municipalities and communities that

• operate a WRARS registered waste management facility and pay the WRARS levy by the deadline, and/or haul their waste to a WRARS registered landfill for waste disposal;
• have an agreement with Multi-Material Stewardship Manitoba (MMSM);
• apply for a recycling rebate under the WRARS Program by the deadline; and
• ensure the application matches the eligible material recycling tonnages reported to MMSM.

First Nations may also receive recycling rebates if they choose to meet these eligibility criteria.

Municipalities and communities are encouraged to submit a recycling rebate report online through the WRARS system. To request login access, please email recyclemb@gov.mb.ca. Reporting forms are also available. Use the most current versions here and email completed forms to recyclemb@gov.mb.ca.

The recycling rebate schedule follows the WRARS levy schedule. Applicants must report the WRARS recycling rebate information each year for the twelve-month period ending December 31. Reports are due by January 31 of the following year.

The recycling rebates are determined once all applicants submit their recycling rebate reports to the department.

The WRARS system is a website where you submit WRARS levy remittance reports and apply for recycling rebates.

Visit https://wrars.ca and click Login. Registered participants can request a user account from recyclemb@gov.mb.ca.

Refer to the instructions for submitting a WRARS levy remittance report in the WRARS system.

Refer to the instructions for submitting a Recycling Rebate Report in the WRARS system.

You can request a user account from recyclemb@gov.mb.ca. If you forget your password, you can click on "Forgot your password?" below the Sign in field. This will send an email to the user's email address to reset the password.

Please contact WRARS Program staff at recyclemb@gov.mb.ca if you need any assistance with the WRARS system.

The Manitoba government passed Bill 22, amending The Waste Reduction and Prevention (WRAP) Act.  Beginning in 2026, landfill owners/operators will report and pay the WRARS levy once per year instead of twice. The recycling rebate applications will continue to follow the WRARS levy schedule.

This change reduces administrative work for municipalities, communities, landfill owners/operators and the provincial government.

The change applies to the 2026 calendar year. The first annual WRARS levy remittance reports, levy payments and recycling rebate applications are due January 31, 2027.

No. As long as you meet WRARS Program eligibility criteria, you can continue to apply for the recycling rebates. Recycling rebates are available to municipalities and communities that

• operate a WRARS registered waste management facility and pay the WRARS levy by the deadline, and/or haul their waste to a WRARS registered landfill for waste disposal;
• have an agreement with Multi-Material Stewardship Manitoba (MMSM);
• apply for a recycling rebate under the WRARS Program by the deadline; and
• ensure the application matches the eligible material recycling tonnages reported to MMSM.

You can continue using the WRARS system to submit WRARS levy reports and apply for recycling rebates.

Email: recyclemb@gov.mb.ca

WRARS Guide: https://www.gov.mb.ca/sd/wastewise/pdf/wrars_guide.pdf