The obligations of companies
Organizations subject to the Environment Quality Act must register with ÉEQ, report the containers, packaging and printed matter they put on the market in Quebec depending on the type of materials and their quantities and pay their contributions to finance municipal curbside recycling services.
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1. Register with ÉEQ
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2. File a report
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3. Pay a contribution based on a report
Profile of contributing companies
The companies that pay contributions to ÉEQ under the Act operate in a range of sectors. They vary in size, from tens to thousands of employees and from millions to billions in turnover. In total, they generate an estimated $100 billion per year in Québec.
The retailers, distributors and first importers of packaged products cover 55% of the costs. This high percentage is mainly attributable to the many private brand products, flyers and other advertising inserts and packaging that are directly added at the point of sale, such as those included with products prepared in house.
The majority (more than 65%) of organizations that contribute to the compensation plan put on the market a very small amount of containers, packaging and printed matter. These low-volume producers generally make contributions of less than $3,000.
Which companies are targeted?
The companies or organizations that market products or services in Quebec that:
- provide products or services aimed at Quebec consumers
- generate containers, packaging or printed matter
More specifically:
- own a brand, name or distinguishing guise
- are based or established in Quebec
First suppliers
- The first suppliers of a product or service under a brand, name or distinguishing guise in Quebec
- The owners of products or services that are not based or established in Quebec
- Whether you import it or not
Owners of franchises, chains and banners
- That are based or established in Quebec
- That add packaging at the retail outlet
- That import products or have members that do
Support, compliance and audit
ÉEQ supports companies in the submission of their reports
ÉEQ offers different services and tools to support companies and organizations in the production of their declaration in order to:
- Help companies and organizations develop best practices in information gathering and data entry
- Simplify and standardize their approach
- Increase the compliance of the reports submitted by companies and organization
Visit the documentation section to learn more about our support services for companies
ÉEQ has established procedures to ensure fairness between companies and identify areas for simplification
The comprehensive review, analysis and verification process makes it possible to:
- Guide companies in the reporting process by providing information on the most common errors and sharing tips to avoid them
- Ensure the standardized compliance of reports
- Ensure that the principle of fairness toward companies and organizations is followed by analyzing all the reports at least once per cycle
- Use an approach that accounts for the inherent risks of the reports that are submitted
The procedures are carried out in compliance with the terms of our confidentiality policy.
More on the procedures (PDF)