Topic: Reporting

How do I pay my fees to RPRA by electronic bill?

If you select electronic bill payment as your method of payment, this method of payment is done through your online banking account, using the bill payment functionality. It is available at major Canadian banks (e.g., TD, RBC, BMO, Scotiabank, etc.).

Follow these steps to complete your payment:

  1. Log in to your bank account.
  2. Go to the bill payment section and choose to add a payee.
  3. Search for and select “RPRA” as the payee.
  4. Once “RPRA” is selected, enter your registration number as the account number to make your payment. Your registration number can be found on your invoice.

Please note:

  • Registry invoices are considered due on receipt.
  • Invoices are in CAD funds and payments must be sent in CAD.
  • It may take 1-2 weeks for your payment to be reflected in your Registry account once you have completed it.

If you have questions relating to fee payment, contact our Compliance and Registry Team at registry@rpra.ca or call 647-496-0530 or toll-free at 1-833-600-0530.

How do I pay my fees to RPRA by bank withdrawal (pre-authorized debit)?

If you select bank withdrawal as your method of payment, this authorizes the Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority to make a one-time withdrawal for the Registry invoice payment from the account you provided.

Bank Withdrawal – Important Terms:

  • You have authorized RPRA to make one-time debits from your account. RPRA will obtain your authorization before any additional one-time or sporadic withdrawal is debited from your account. You have agreed that this confirmation may be provided at least three (3) calendar days before the first payment is withdrawn from your account. You have waived any and all requirements for pre-notification of the account being debited.
  • Your payments are being made on behalf of a business.
  • Your agreement may be cancelled provided notice is received thirty (30) days before the next withdrawal. If any of the above details are incorrect, please contact us immediately at the contact information below. If the details are correct, you do not need to do anything further and your Pre-Authorized Debits (PAD) will be processed. You have certain recourse rights if any debit does not comply with these terms. For example, you have the right to receive a reimbursement for any PAD that is not authorized or is not consistent with this PAD Agreement. To obtain more information on your recourse rights, contact your financial institution or visit www.payments.ca.

Please note:

  • Registry invoices are considered due on receipt.
  • Invoices are in CAD funds and payments must be sent in CAD.
  • It may take 1-2 weeks for the involved banks to process your payment.

If you have questions relating to fee payment, contact our Compliance and Registry Team at registry@rpra.ca or call 647-496-0530 or toll-free at 1-833-600-0530.

How do I pay my fees to RPRA by credit card? 

If you select credit card as your method of payment, this method of payment is done through your Registry account.

Follow these steps to complete your payment:

  1. When you are in the payment method section in the Registry, select credit card as your preferred method.
  2. Input your credit card details.
  3. Click submit and payment will process automatically.

Please note:

  • Registry invoices are considered due on receipt.
  • Invoices are in CAD funds and payments must be sent in CAD.
  • Once your transaction has been approved, your payment will be reflected in your Registry account immediately.

If you have questions relating to fee payment, contact our Compliance and Registry Team at registry@rpra.ca or call 647-496-0530 or toll-free at 1-833-600-0530.

Can you access/use the mobile app without internet?  

The mobile app will be inaccessible if the user has logged out of the mobile app and the user is offline, as you need a network connection to log into the app. If the user stays logged into the mobile app, they will be able to use the app offline. It is advised that drivers/users stay logged into the app, or log in before going out of an internet zone, to ensure they can always use offline mode.

What is a beverage container?

For the purposes of the Blue Box Regulation, a beverage container is a container that:

  1. Contains a ready-to-drink beverage product,
    • “Ready-to-drink” means a beverage packaged by the manufacturer for immediate consumption that does not require any preparation. A ready-to-drink beverage is intended to be consumed as purchased and does not require a dispensing device to be consumed.
    • “Beverage” means a consumable liquid for enjoyment or hydration. It does not include an “alcoholic beverage”, or “non-alcoholic beer, wine or spirits” as defined in O. Reg. 391/21.
  2. Is made from metal, glass, paper or rigid plastic, or any combination of these materials, and
    • If a beverage container is made only of flexible plastic, it would be obligated as a Blue Box material but would be reported under the material category “Flexible Plastic” rather than the “Beverage Container” material category. The Blue Box Regulation defines flexible plastic as unmoulded plastic. For more information on reporting of packaging and beverage containers that consist of multiple materials, please see the “Component Threshold Rule” in the Blue Box Verification and Audit Procedure Registry Procedure.
  3. Is sealed by its manufacturer.
    • A cup provided to a consumer in a restaurant filled with fountain pop is not sealed by the manufacturer and is therefore not considered a beverage container. However, the cup (including the lid and straw) would still be obligated as a Blue Box material in the paper and/or plastic material categories.

For greater clarity, the Registrar does not consider the packaging from the following product types to be a beverage container:

  • Infant formula
  • Meal replacements, nutritional supplements or dietary supplements
  • Regulated health products
  • Concentrated beverages intended to be mixed or diluted before consumption, such as frozen juices, cocktail mixers, extracts and flavour enhancers
  • Liquids that are not intended to be consumed as purchased such as soup, syrups, cream and other beverage additives, whipping cream, buttermilk, broth
  • Beverage containers made of flexible plastics such as milk bags (these are still to be reported as flexible plastics)

Milk products and substitutes (e.g., soy beverage, almond beverage, a rigid plastic container of milk, drinkable yogurt) are beverage containers provided they are packaged in a container as defined above.

What is a brand supply list?

A brand supply list is a list of brands of obligated products that a producer supplies to consumers in Ontario. A producer must provide a brand supply list that makes up their supply data annually to RPRA. Each program has different requirements regarding how a producer must submit a brand supply list. For more information, consult the applicable programs’ walkthrough guide or contact RPRA’s Compliance and Registry Team at 1-833-600-0530 or by emailing registry@rpra.ca.

Is the HWP Registry open?

Starting January 1, obligated parties are required to report on waste management activities, including manifesting, through the online HWP Registry instead of reporting through the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Park’s Hazardous Waste Information Network (HWIN) and instead of using paper manifests. 

The regulated community no longer has access to HWIN to manage their accounts and pay fees associated with activities from 2022 or earlier.

If necessary, the ministry will contact generators to address balances remaining in HWIN pre-paid accounts from 2022.

What are certified compostable products and packaging?

In the Blue Box Regulation, certified compostable products and packaging is defined as material that:

  • is only capable of being processed by composting, anaerobic digestion or other processes that result in decomposition by bacteria or other living organisms, and
  • is certified compostable by an international, national, or industry standard that is listed in this procedure.

All certified compostable products and packaging reported by producers must be certified under one of the following standards:

  • CAN/BNQ 0017-088: Specifications for Compostable Plastics
  • ISO 17088: Specifications for compostable plastics
  • ASTM D6400: Standard Specification for Labeling of Plastics Designed to be Aerobically Composted in Municipal or Industrial Facilities
  • ASTM D6868: Standard Specification for Labeling of End Items that Incorporate Plastics and Polymers as Coatings or Additives with Paper and Other Substrates Designed to be Aerobically Composted in Municipal or Industrial Facilities
  • EN 13432: Requirements for packaging recoverable through composting and biodegradation – Test scheme and evaluation criteria for the final acceptance of packaging

 

How do I register and report if I am a newspaper producer?

For the purpose of reporting annual supply data under the Blue Box Regulation, the weight of newspaper must be reported in the appropriate material categories. For example, newsprint must be reported in the ‘paper’ category, while any protective plastic wrapping must be reported as ‘flexible plastic’.

Then, producers will be asked to indicate what percentage of their total Blue Box material supply was newspaper, including any protective wrapping and supplemental advertisements and inserts, in that calendar year.

See our FAQs: “What is a newspaper?” and “Who is a newspaper producer?”

Are foam insulating containers included under the HSP Regulation?

While foam insulating containers were included under the MHSW Program, the HSP Regulation defines a non-refillable pressurized container as a pressurized container that is used for the supply of a gas product.

Foam insulation containers are used to supply an insulating foam, which is not a ‘gas product,’ and therefore they do not meet the definition of a non-refillable pressurized container under the HSP Regulation.

What is an aerosol container?

RPRA considers an aerosol container to be a non-refillable receptacle that contains a product and a propellant under pressure, and that is fitted with a release device allowing the contents to be ejected as solid or liquid particles in suspension in a gas, or as a foam, paste, powder, liquid, or gas.

What do I do if I misreported my supply data?

If a producer misreports their supply data to RPRA, they must contact the Compliance and Registry Team immediately by emailing registry@rpra.ca. Please include the following information in the email:

  • The rationale for the change in the data
  • Any data that supports the need for a correction (e.g., sales documents, audit)
  • Any other information to support the change

While it is an offence to submit false or misleading information under the RRCEA, RPRA wants this corrected as quickly to ensure a producer’s minimum management requirement is calculated using accurate supply data.

RPRA can only receive these requests from the primary contact on the company’s Registry account. Your request for an adjustment will be reviewed by a Compliance and Registry Officer.

Can a PRO report on behalf of a producer?

A producer can grant access to anyone they would like to authorize in their reporting (i.e. Registry) portal. Producer reporting must be done in the producer account and batch data transfers are not accepted.