The short answer
What happens if you miss the two-working-day deadline?
Every load you receive has to reach Defra by the end of the second working day after the day it arrives. A load in on Monday is due by the end of Wednesday.
Weekends and bank holidays don’t count as working days. The penalty is a fine, a civil sanction or a fixed penalty.
How the two days are counted
The clock starts the day after the load arrives, and only working days count.
- IN ON A MONDAY
Due by the end of Wednesday. Tuesday is working day one, Wednesday is working day two.
- IN ON A FRIDAY
Due by the end of Tuesday. Saturday and Sunday don’t count, so the count skips straight to Monday.
- IN ON THU 24 DEC 2026
Due by the end of Wednesday 30 December. Christmas Day and the Boxing Day substitute are bank holidays, so the count skips them.
Bank holidays move the date - every due date to the end of 2027 is worked out here.
Don’t work it out in your head at the gate. The free deadline calculator takes the arrival date and gives you the due date, bank holidays included.
Paper transfer notes continue
Digital reporting runs alongside paper waste transfer notes. Paper doesn’t stop, and no end date for dual running has been published. Keep doing both.
The two routes Defra accept
Defra accept exactly two submission methods: their API, or their own spreadsheet template. You can’t send your own format.
Byrne Waste Tracking builds each load into Defra’s format as you record it at the gate, ready for whichever route you use.
Making the deadline boring
Every new sign-up gets 14 days free, then from £89 a month per site, and there's no card to enter until you start it. No setup fee when you set it up yourself. Your consultant gives you your price, and you see it before you pay anything. Unlimited loads, unlimited users, no contract.
I’m listed on GOV.UK as a compatible software provider, and Defra publish the full list so you can compare.
Last updated October 2026
Create a free account and log one of your own loads - it shows the due date on every load.
From £89 a site · no contract
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