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Member And Signatory Obligations

Maintaining a compliant status as a Brand Owner Signatory is essential for maintaining Membership to the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) and the use of exclusive APCO resources and tools. This includes access to the Packaging Recyclability Evaluation Portal (PREP) and the Australasian Recycling Label (ARL).


To comply with the Covenant, Brand Owner Signatories are required to participant in a list of actions, set out in the Australian Packaging Covenant (‘the Covenant’): See Section 10 Part C of the Covenant for a full list of actions.


Three of these annual obligations include completing an annual APCO Annual Report and APCO Action Plan, as well as making annual financial contributions in the form of membership fees payable to APCO.


Failure to meet any of these obligations may trigger the Non-compliance procedure and may lead to suspended use of Member exclusive resources and tools.


Non-Compliance Procedure

The Non-compliance Procedure commences when APCO becomes aware that a Member has failed to meet one of the obligations set out under Section 10 Part C of the Covenant. The procedure continues until the Member’s outstanding obligation is completed or when the final step of the Non-compliance Procedure expires.


In the instance where the Member fails to complete the obligation at the conclusion of the Compliance Procedure, APCO will withdraw the business as a Signatory to the Covenant, and in some cases be required to notify relevant state or territory governments that the business is no longer a Signatory to the Covenant. Full details of the Non-compliance Procedure can be seen under Schedule 5 Part D of the Covenant.


The Non-compliance Procedure includes 4 steps:

  1. Show cause notice - APCO gives notice to the Signatory asking it to show cause as to why it should not be deemed non-compliant with the Covenant's obligations. Within 30 days, the Signatory is to provide a written response to APCO.
  2. Non-compliance notice - APCO gives a second notice to the Signatory stating that it intends to remove the business as a Signatory to the Covenant. The notice states that it will take effect in 30 days.
  3. Intent to Refer notice - If APCO deems it suitable, APCO will issue a final notice stating it intends to remove the business as a Signatory to the Covenant. Non-compliant Signatories are also provided the chance to appeal the non-compliance status through an Appeals Process. The Signatory has an additional 30 days to meet the obligation. 
  4. Referral notice - Following the expiry of the period stated in the Intent to Refer notice to a Brand Owner Signatory, APCO notifies all state or territory governments that the business is no longer a Signatory.


For resources related to Member Compliance, visit our resources centre.