The construction and demolition waste levy is a per-tonne charge on waste sent to licensed disposal facilities. The facility pays it to the state, then builds it into the gate fee it charges you. On a demolition job the levy can be one of the biggest line items. How much you pay depends on the state, the area, the type of material and, above all, where the waste ends up. At Mission Demolition we plan every job around that last point: the waste stream is sorted, tracked and sent to the right destination, so the levy you carry is the smallest the project allows.
TL;DR
- The levy is set per tonne by each state. For 2026–27 the general rate is $180.20 in the NSW Metropolitan Levy Area, $135 in Queensland Metropolitan Level 1, $171 in metropolitan South Australia and $90 in Western Australia (anticipated).
- Facilities pay the levy, but it reaches you through the gate fee, so a heavier or less sorted load costs more.
- Recycled and lawfully recovered material is treated differently from landfilled waste. Queensland charges no levy on recycled materials.
- Asbestos and other regulated waste attracts higher rates and tighter rules, so identify it before demolition starts.
- Rates are reset each financial year from 1 July. Confirm the current figure with the state regulator before you sign a quote.
Table of Contents
- What the levy is and why it exists
- Who actually pays it
- 2026–27 rates by state
- What the levy covers
- How sorting and recovery reduce the levy
- Records and paperwork
- Questions to settle before you sign a quote
- Our view: the levy rewards a plan
- Let us plan the waste with the demolition
- FAQ
- Sources
What the levy is and why it exists
A waste levy is a per-tonne payment made by licensed waste facilities for each tonne they receive. The Senate committee that reviewed waste and recycling describes the aim as encouraging diversion from landfill to recycling and helping fund waste and recycling initiatives. In other words, it works as a disincentive to dump and as a funding source.
The mechanism is a price signal. Western Australia’s published schedule says its rates are prescribed under the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Levy Regulations 2008 and are intended to maintain a price signal relative to other disposal costs. When landfill costs more than recycling, sorting pays.
A peer-reviewed 2020 study of 132 Australian construction and demolition stakeholders found that almost 90% of respondents who favoured financial imposts agreed landfill levies were effective. Demolition is a heavy waste generator: concrete, brick, timber, metal, plasterboard and roofing. That is why the levy matters so much to a demolition budget.
Who actually pays it
The legal liability sits with the facility, not the homeowner. Victoria’s EPA guideline says the liable person is the landfill permission holder, or the person who should have held permission, with the levy payable for each tonne received. Queensland says landfill operators may charge customers a fee to cover their levy liability.
In practice that means the levy appears in the tip fee, and the tip fee appears in your demolition quote. The levy is not a separate invoice from the regulator. It is part of the disposal cost you carry for every tonne that leaves the site.
This is also why the property owner should care who handles disposal. The tonnage, the destination and the paperwork all decide the final bill. A contractor who manages hazardous waste handling and final site cleaning as part of the project keeps those decisions in one place.
2026–27 rates by state
The table shows the general rate for each state where the regulator’s current page states it. These figures apply to the 2026–27 financial year and are reset each year, so check the linked regulator page for any change.
| State | Area | 2026–27 general rate | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | Metropolitan Levy Area | $180.20 per tonne | NSW EPA |
| NSW | Regional Levy Area | $103.80 per tonne | NSW EPA |
| Queensland | Metropolitan Level 1 | $135 per tonne | Queensland Government |
| Queensland | Regional Level 2 | $100 per tonne | Queensland Government |
| South Australia | Metropolitan solid waste | $171 per tonne | SA EPA |
| South Australia | Non-metropolitan solid waste | $85.50 per tonne | SA EPA |
| Western Australia | Prescribed rate | $90 per tonne or $136 per cubic metre (anticipated from 1 July 2026) | WA Government |
Queensland’s table also sets higher rates for regulated waste: $215 per tonne for Category 1 and $165 for Category 2 in Metropolitan Level 1, and $198 and $137 in Regional Level 2. Queensland’s page states that its general rate includes construction and demolition waste.
For Victoria, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory, take the figure from the state EPA or the receiving facility when you quote a job, because the structure and rates differ from state to state.
What the rates mean on a real job
Here is an illustration using the published rates above, not a quote. Say a demolition sends 100 tonnes of mixed general waste to a facility that pays the levy at the general rate:
- NSW Metropolitan Levy Area: 100 × $180.20 = $18,020 in levy alone.
- NSW Regional Levy Area: 100 × $103.80 = $10,380.
- Queensland Metropolitan Level 1: 100 × $135 = $13,500.
The levy is only part of the gate fee, since the facility adds its own handling charge. But the arithmetic shows why tonnage is the number to manage. Every tonne diverted to lawful recycling is a tonne that does not carry that charge.
What the levy covers
Coverage depends on the state, and the detail matters for demolition.
NSW. The EPA defines construction and demolition waste as waste generated from construction or demolition works, including asphalt waste and excavated natural material. The levy is payable on waste received at a scheduled waste facility in the Metropolitan or Regional Levy Area. It is also payable on waste that originates in either area and is received at a scheduled facility outside them. Sending a load across the boundary does not remove the levy.
Queensland. The levy applies to waste disposed of to landfill. Recycled materials incur no levy.
Victoria. The EPA’s levy categories include municipal waste, industrial waste, priority waste, packaged asbestos, soil containing asbestos and fill material. It names construction and demolition waste from building, renovation, repair and road works as examples of industrial waste.
South Australia. The SA EPA removed the former $0 waste-fill rate from 1 December 2021. The metropolitan or non-metropolitan solid-waste rate now applies, and eligible licensees can receive a 10% daily-cover deduction.
Asbestos and hazardous material
Asbestos-containing material in a demolition is the line that moves the budget most. Victoria lists packaged asbestos and soil containing asbestos as their own levy categories, and Queensland sets separate regulated-waste rates. In NSW, untested material can be treated as hazardous by default, which we explain in our guide to the hazardous by default rule. Testing before demolition lets the waste be classified correctly. Our asbestos inspection and testing is built for exactly that step, and removing asbestos before demolition keeps the clean demolition waste separate from the regulated stream. For the legal paperwork on disposal, see how to verify legal asbestos waste disposal.
How sorting and recovery reduce the levy
The levy is designed to reward lawful recovery, and the rules say so directly.
- Queensland: recycled materials incur no levy.
- NSW: scheduled-facility operators may claim a deduction when waste is lawfully recycled, reused or disposed of off-site. Liability can arise if waste is stockpiled for more than 12 months or transported from the facility.
- NSW approved use: the EPA’s guidelines permit deductions for approved use of suitable recovered material in roads or other construction works, including foundational supports. The facility needs the required approval and the material must meet specified requirements.
- South Australia: where an on-site resource-recovery process produces recovered material, no levy is paid on that recovered material. Residual waste is levied when it is disposed of.
The pattern across states is the same: lawful recycling, reuse and approved construction use reduce liability, while prolonged stockpiling or unapproved use can trigger it. Separate concrete, brick, timber and metal at the source and you reduce the mixed load that is charged at the full rate. Our guide to demolition site recycling covers how to sort, recover and dispose of materials, and our page on demolition waste removal in Sydney explains how the waste leaves the site.
Estimating the volume before the job starts also helps you compare quotes on the same basis. Even a small project such as a re-roof produces a surprising tonnage, and a guide on how to estimate roof tear-off waste shows the kind of calculation that turns square metres into disposal weight.
Reuse on site is not automatically levy-free
Owners often assume that crushing concrete and using it on the same site avoids the levy. South Australia’s guidance shows why that is risky: an approved operational-use declaration or applicable standard is required, and unapproved use remains levyable. Victoria’s guideline similarly says material that needs unsuitable components removed before use in road building is subject to levy in its entirety, while specified cell-construction, capping and qualifying road materials can be excluded when conditions are met and records are kept. Settle the reuse plan and its approvals before demolition, not after.
Records and paperwork
The record-keeping duties fall on the facility, but they shape what you receive. In South Australia, landfill operators submit monthly levy returns, with returns due by the 28th of the following month and payment by the 28th of the month after. Depots use an approved weighbridge where available and keep levy records for at least five years. The EPA can estimate liability where records are inadequate.
For you, the practical outcome is simple. Keep every weighbridge docket and disposal receipt, and match them to the tonnage in your quote. If the project needs approvals first, our guides to demolition permits in Sydney, CDC demolition in NSW and demolition without a DA explain what is needed before the first load leaves.
Questions to settle before you sign a quote
- Does the quote list disposal separately from labour and plant?
- How is the waste classified: general, regulated or asbestos-containing?
- What is the expected tonnage, and which materials will be diverted to recycling?
- Which facilities will receive each stream, and in which levy area do they sit?
- Will you receive weighbridge dockets and disposal receipts at the end?
Our view: the levy rewards a plan
Most owners meet the levy as a surprise line in a quote. It should not be a surprise. It is a price on tonnes, and tonnes are something a demolition plan can control.
On our jobs we treat waste as part of the project, not as an afterthought. That means identifying asbestos and hazardous material before the machines arrive, managing hazardous waste handling properly, and finishing with a final site clean. When the waste is classified correctly and sent where it belongs, the levy reflects the real material on your site, not a worst-case guess.
Our commitment is safe, compliant work and environmentally responsible waste disposal. If you are budgeting a demolition, ask for the waste plan together with the price. It tells you more about the final cost than the headline figure does.
Tarek
Let us plan the waste with the demolition
Mission Demolition provides demolition and licensed asbestos removal for residential, commercial and industrial clients. Our services include house demolition, commercial and industrial demolition, asbestos inspection and remediation, strip-outs, site clearance and concrete cutting. Project management covers approvals, utility disconnections, hazardous waste handling and final site cleaning, so one team carries the job from approval to a clean site.
If you are planning a demolition, start with our demolition services page, or go to residential demolition for a house, industrial demolition and site clearance for larger sites, or interior strip out services for fit-outs.
FAQ
Is the construction and demolition waste levy the same in every state?
No. Each state sets its own rates, areas and categories. For 2026–27 the NSW metropolitan rate is $180.20 per tonne and the Queensland Metropolitan Level 1 rate is $135 per tonne, while Western Australia’s anticipated rate is $90 per tonne. Check the regulator for your state.
Do I pay the levy directly?
Usually not. The licensed facility is liable and passes the cost on through its gate fee, which is why the levy shows up inside your disposal charges. Queensland’s guidance says operators may charge customers a fee to cover their levy liability.
Can I avoid the levy by recycling?
Lawful recycling and approved reuse can reduce it. Queensland charges no levy on recycled materials, and NSW allows deductions for lawful recycling, reuse and approved construction use. The material must go to a facility that meets the rules.
Does asbestos waste cost more to dispose of?
Regulated and asbestos waste is treated as its own category in several states. Queensland’s regulated-waste rates are higher than its general rate, and Victoria lists packaged asbestos and soil containing asbestos as separate levy categories. Testing before demolition lets the waste be classified correctly.
When do the rates change?
Rates are set per financial year, with the 2026–27 rates applying from 1 July 2026. Check the relevant state regulator page for the current figure before you budget.
Sources
- Chapter 4, Parliament of Australia Senate committee report
- Waste levy rate schedule, Western Australian Government
- Landfill Levy Imposition on Construction and Demolition Waste, Sustainability 2020
- Guideline: Calculating waste levy and allowable rebate, EPA Victoria
- Levy rates, Queensland Government
- Waste levy areas and levy rates, NSW EPA
- Waste Levy Guidelines, NSW EPA
- Waste levy, EPA South Australia
- Waste levy and approved operational use guideline, EPA South Australia
- Estimate roof tear-off waste
