Singaporeans Can Now Have Refund By Simply Returning Beverage Bottles And Cans, Here’s How

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans can now return beverage bottles and cans instead of throwing them in the trash, and in return have a refund for doing so.

The Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS) officially starts on April 1st, and 8world reported how to return these recyclables and have your deposit money back. 

It is important to take note that the beverage bottle refund policy covers only aluminum and plastic drink cans from 150ml to 3 liters. As of the moment, those drinks in cardboard boxes and glass bottles are not yet included. People must also look for a special label on their bottles or can to confirm eligibility.

From April 1 to September 30, the beverage bottle and can refund policy enters a transition period. During this time, one will find both labeled (deposit) and unlabeled containers on the shelves. However, only those with the label qualify for refunds–no label means no refund.

Unlabeled beverage bottles and cans can go straight into the blue recycling bins–just make sure that these were emptied and rinsed. Since these were not bought with a deposit, there will be no refund to claim by returning these. 

If one buys a labeled beverage bottle or can, they will pay a 10-cent deposit upfront. Big supermarkets won’t show these on the shelves, so it is a must to check the total at checkout for full transparency. 

The same goes with restaurants unless they join the Return Right F&B scheme. Businesses who joined the Return Right F&B will pour drinks into cups or take back bottles/cans for recycling, and no deposit is needed. However, if the business is not part of the said scheme,  customers need to pay the deposit upfront, then return the empty container to a recycling machine for your refund. The National Environment Agency notes this deposit is exempted from GST.

Furthermore, people should ensure that the bottles or cans that they will return are intact and not crushed or deformed. Otherwise, the recycling machine will not accept these. Most importantly, the barcodes on the bottles or cans must be intact, otherwise the recycling machine will not be able to read them and one may not get their deposit back. 

There are over 1,000 Return Right recycling machines island-wide, and large supermarkets over 200sqm are required to set up recycling points. There will also be recycling points set up in town centers, on the ground floor of HDB blocks, and some hawker centers. 

People can claim their 10-cent deposit by swiping a physical SimplyGo card (including student/senior ones) or scanning a DBS PayLah! QR code. The recycling machine can only read physical SimplyGo transit cards. DBS PayLah! users can open the app, tap “MyQR” on the home screen to pull up your personal QR code, then scan it at the recycling machine for instant deposit refunds.

If one is not a DBS customer, anyone in Singapore can download and register for PayLah!, and no DBS/POSB account required. Additionally, one  can transfer wallet funds to any local bank.

To know more about the Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS), you may check their website here.

This article (Singaporeans can now have refund by simply returning beverage bottles and cans, here’s how) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News.