Topic: Producer

What does resident in Ontario mean?

Resident in Ontario means a person having a permanent establishment in Ontario within the meaning of the Corporations Tax Act. A permanent establishment is usually a fixed place of business such as an office, factory, branch, warehouse, workshop, etc. In some cases, a corporation will be deemed to operate a permanent establishment in Ontario. These include cases where:

  • The corporation produced, grew, mined, created, manufactured, fabricated, improved, packed, preserved or constructed anything in the province, in whole or in part;
  • The corporation carries on business through an employee or agent in the province who has general authority to contract for the corporation; or
  • The corporation carries on business through an employee or agent in the province who has a stock of merchandise owned by the corporation from which they regularly fill orders that they receive.
  • A corporation will also have a permanent establishment in Ontario if it uses substantial machinery or equipment in the province, or if it is has a permanent establishment elsewhere in Canada and owns land in the province.

For more details about what constitutes a permanent establishment, see the definition of “permanent establishment” in the Corporations Tax Act.

If a producer meets its collection and management requirements early, can it stop collecting and processing materials?

No. Producers and PROs working on their behalf must operate the collection systems they have established as required by the Regulation even after their requirements are met. If a consumer is refused permission to drop off materials at a registered collection site, they can contact the Compliance and Registry Team at registry@rpra.ca, 647-496-0530 or toll-free at 1-833-600-0530.

I’m a producer. How do I set up my tire collection and tire management network?

The Tires Regulation requires producers to submit to the Registry the identity of each tire collector and tire collection site that is a part of that producer’s tire collection system. It is up to each producer, or a producer responsibility organization (PRO) on the producer’s behalf, to identify the tire collection sites that will be used in their tire collection systems.

Tire collectors are required to register and identify their collection sites (i.e., the address for every individual site where tires are collected). The collection site data will be used to populate a list of collection sites that will be available to producers and PROs. Producers, or their PROs, will be required to identify their tire collection systems.

Please read Compliance Bulletin -Tire Collection Systems for compliance guidance to producers who are required to establish and operate tire collection systems under the Tires Regulation.

I am a retailer. What does the Tires Regulation mean for me?

As a retailer, you may also be a producer and/or a collector, based on the definitions in the Tires Regulation.

Businesses will continue to have discretion over whether they charge a fee to recover the cost of recycling their products. If a business chooses to charge a fee, they are no longer required to provide information about who is charging the visible fee and what it will be used for.

How are my tire collection and resource recovery requirements determined?

Tire Collection Requirements
The minimum tire collection requirements are calculated based on a rolling average of three years of tire supply data multiplied by 0.85 to account for tire wear. Section 4(2) of the Tires Regulation describes the formula used.

Tire Resource Recovery Requirements
Producers must ensure that 85% of the tires they collected in a year, by weight, were reused, retreaded or turned into processed materials and made into products and packaging as described in section 11 of the Tires Regulation.

Any producer who collects tires in a calendar year, despite being exempt from the collection requirements under section 4(7) of the Tires Regulation, is required to manage those tires (through reuse, retreading or processing) in accordance with section 11(6) of the Tires Regulation.

Do I need to provide a verification report with my annual supply information?

You may be required to provide a verification report for the annual tire supply report. You will be required to provide verification if you meet the definition of a medium or large producer. Small producers will not be required to submit a verification report, however a percentage of small producers selected annually by the Registrar will be subject to an inspection. If exceptions are identified during the inspection, a comprehensive review may be carried out. For more information on this, read Tires Registry Procedure – Audit.

What are the Authority’s program fees?

Program fees are charges that producers obligated under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016, are required to pay to RPRA annually to recover its operational costs, including costs related to building and operating the registry, providing services to registrants, and compliance and enforcement activities.

All current and past fee schedules can be found here.

As a producer, do I need a PRO to meet my collection and management requirements?

No, producers are not required to sign up with a PRO to meet their regulatory requirements. It is a business decision if a producer chooses to work with a PRO, and a producer can choose to meet their obligations without a PRO.

Most producers will choose to contract with a PRO to provide collection, hauling, processing, retreading and/or refurbishing services to achieve their collection and management requirements unless they carry out these activities themselves.

 

Are there costs associated with PROs?

Yes. PROs are private enterprises and charge for their services to producers.

Each commercial contract a producer enters with a PRO will have its own set of terms and conditions. It is up to the PRO and producer to determine the terms of their contractual agreement, including fees and payment schedule.

RPRA does not set the terms of the contractual arrangements between PROs and producers.

Which address should I use as my business address?

You should use the address where you carry on business. If you carry on business in more than one location in Ontario, use the main address for your business in Ontario. If you do not have an Ontario address, use the address that relates to the activities you carry out in Ontario.