The government has once again postponed the entry into force of a 30 cent tax on single-use aluminum packaging for meals, according to an order published today in the Diário da República.
Initially scheduled for January 1 of this year, the start of the levy on aluminum or multimaterial packaging containing aluminum in ready-to-eat meals was postponed until December 31, 2022, to September 1 (Friday). Now, the date of entry into force has been revised again, to January 1, 2024, in view of the difficulties reported by economic operators.
“Taking into account the constraints expressed by various economic agents, as well as the need to extend the scope of this ordinance to other materials, (…) it is considered essential to ensure, immediately, the extension of the production of effects for the application of the contribution on single-use packaging made of aluminum or multimaterial with aluminum”, reads the ordinance.
However, the 30 cents tax has already been applied since July 2022 on single-use plastic packaging for ready-to-eat meals. According to the decree, this measure is based on “the need to deepen the transition to a circular economy, promoting a sustained reduction in the consumption of single-use packaging and the consequent reduction in the volume of waste generated”.
The law, signed by the Secretaries of State for Tax Affairs and the Environment, Nuno Félix and Hugo Pires, respectively, comes into force this Wednesday.
