QLD FAQs

As part of the scheme, you can receive a refund for most aluminium, glass, plastic, steel and liquid paperboard beverage containers between 150ml and 3L. As of November 1 2023, this includes wine and spirit bottles. A comprehensive database of eligible containers can be found here.

The container refund scheme aims to reduce the amount of beverage container litter in the environment. Eligible containers are most commonly consumed away from home and make up most container litter in the environment.

Excluded containers are commonly consumed in the home and can still be recycled either through existing kerbside collection or drop-off services. Any beverage container less than 150ml or more than 3L

This includes:

• Undiluted cordial
• Fruit or vegetable juice concentrate
• Registered health tonics
• Plain milk
• Containers over 1 litre in size for:
• Flavoured milk
• Pure fruit juice
• Pure vegetable juice
• Cask water

Your containers need to be empty, whole, and identifiable: 

They must not be broken into pieces or filled with liquid. The barcode must be visible and scannable for our Reverse Vending Machines to accept them.  Crushed cans or containers missing a label, can be returned through our Drop & Go service, as long as the operator can tell they’re eligible. 

Preferably, lids should be left on beverage containers before taking them to a container refund point, but containers will be accepted either way.

There are several reasons why a container refund point operator may refuse to accept your containers: This includes:

• They are contaminated (i.e. contain sand, dirt, paint, petrol, noxious substances etc.)
• The container is not recognisable as an eligible container (i.e. crushed beyond recognition or broken in the case of glass).
• The container is not eligible under the scheme.
• The container refund point operator has reason to believe the container has been purchased interstate.
• The container refund point operator has reason to believe the container has already been redeemed or has been deposited from any kerbside recycling operator.

TOMRA has more than 39 return points throughout South East QLD. Our Self-Serve Kiosks are conveniently located in the carparks of shopping centres so you can return on the go! We have 10 large Recycling Centres across Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Toowoomba – all with friendly staff, Reverse Vending Machines and the additional capacity to process large volumes through our Express Bag Drop service. 

At TOMRA, we have 3 options to return your containers: 

Reverse Vending Machines  

Available at all TOMRA locations. Reverse Vending Machines allow you to return your containers quickly and get your refund right away. Simply insert your empty containers into the chute at the front of the machine. Containers will be scanned to ensure they are eligible for a refund.  When you’ve finished depositing the containers, the Reverse Vending Machine will issue the refund. You have the choice of how to receive your refund, with options including a cash voucher, digitally to your bank/PayPal account, or as a donation to a charity, school, sports or community group. For more information on how to get your refund, view our Refund section   

Express Bag Drop 

Available at our Recycling Centres – Kunda Park, Geebung, Tingalpa, West End, Salisbury, Seventeen Mile Rocks, Crestmead, Ipswich, Toowoomba and Varsity Lakes. Express Bag Drop is the quick and easy way to return your containers – (especially in bulk!)  Simply take your bags of containers to the designated bag drop area – usually near our roller door – then provide our friendly staff with your Containers for Change Member number, and we will do the rest!  You’ll be in and out in under 5 mins. Your refund will go into your nominated bank or PayPal account within 48 hours of processing.  Easy as!  

Tip ‘n’ Go 

Available at selected Recycling Centres – Geebung, West End, Ipswich, Crestmead and Salisbury. Our Tip ‘n’ Go makes doing your container return effortless! Just tip your bottles and cans into the red robot’s mouth, press start and watch our machine sort your containers! Once all your containers have been tipped in and sorted, you will receive a voucher, redeemable at Woolworths. Please collect any ineligible containers from our orange robot and take them to the nearest bin for recycling.  

TOMRA sort the containers into material types after they’re returned by customers. The sorted containers are then transported to a processing facility. Here, the processor prepares the material for recycling – usually by crushing the materials into bales. 

Accredited recyclers purchase the materials off a secure online auction portal which they recycle into new products. If the materials are recycled into a new eligible container, the journey starts again! 

Simply return your containers at a Reverse Vending Machine and select the ‘Voucher’ option at the end of your session. 

You will receive a voucher to redeem at our redemption partner (either Woolworths or Coles). The redemption partner will be listed on the voucher itself, and can be taken to any store in that chain state-wide. 

Simply present this voucher at the customer service desk to exchange for cash or at the checkouts to discount your grocery shop. 

To get your refund directly into your bank account, register for a Containers for Change Member number here.  

Choose the “Bank account” option if you wish to receive your refunds by electronic transfer. Provide your account name, BSB and account number as indicated, then click “Save”. Once you have saved your bank details, check the box “Make this my preferred payment method” to set it. 

At the RVM, scan your member number barcode before returning your containers. Your refund will be transferred to your nominated bank account within 1 business day. 

To get your refund directly into your PayPal account, first register for a Containers for Change Member number here.  

Choose the “PayPal” option if you wish to receive your refunds as deposits into your PayPal account. To link your PayPal to your Containers for Change member number account, you’ll be prompted to log in to PayPal.  
Once you have logged in and linked both accounts, check the box “Make this my preferred payment method” to set it.  

At the RVM, scan your member number barcode before returning your containers. Your refund will be transferred to your PayPal account within 1 business day. 

There’s hundreds of charity, community groups, schools and not for profits in QLD you can easily donate to! For both methods of donating below, 100% of your refund will go directly to the cause’s nominated bank account:

1. Simply visit the find a cause page and search for your favourite charity or cause. Click to expand for more information and you will see a barcode. Take a screenshot or photo of the charities member number barcode, then scan it under the barcode reader at the RVM. 
2.  Alternatively, to set your own member number barcode to donate every time to a charity, select your cause, then then mark the checkbox “Set as my charity” that you’ll find below the charity details. Scroll down to the bottom of the list to add the selected charity to your payment methods. Once you have set a charity as your donation option, check the box “Make this my preferred payment method” to finalise and set it. 

You can contact our hotline on 1300 11 88 88 – our dedicated team of customer service professionals will work with you to ensure that your refund is recognised. 

TOMRA offers the ability to donate to any cause that has registered with Containers for Change, at all of our locations. To find out more, visit our Refund section!
  

Each month, our Recycling Centres choose a different charity to be featured on our A1 boards onsite. This is usually chosen by our staff – who would be happy to take suggestions of which cause to feature next.  

Containers for Change is all about reducing litter and increasing Queensland’s recycling rates. The scheme aims to incentivise recycling by offering a 10 cent refund for every eligible beverage container returned to our refund points across Queensland. Any container returned to a refund point is recycled into new material for a cleaner Queensland. 

The Container Refund Scheme (CRS) was introduced to help clean up our state by encouraging Queenslanders to recycle their recyclable drink containers. Before the scheme started in November 2018, drink containers were the second most littered item in our environment and Queensland had one of the lowest recycling rates in Australia at around 44%. Plus, almost three billion drink containers are generated each year in our state alone! 

Container Exchange (COEX), a not-for-profit company, was established after being appointed as the Product Responsibility Organisation by the Queensland Government and is responsible for managing Queensland’s container refund scheme, Containers for Change. 

COEX is focussed on reducing beverage container litter and increasing recycling to keep Queensland beautiful. COEX’s responsibilities include: 

• Collecting funds from beverage manufacturers to fund the cost of the scheme, 

• Overseeing the operation of refund points, logistics providers, processors and other service providers required to deliver the scheme, and 
• Overseeing the online auction portal where accredited recyclers can purchase the containers collected from the scheme to be recycled. 

Containers for Change is funded by beverage manufacturers who sell eligible beverage containers  in Queensland, taking responsibility for reducing the environmental impact of their containers. Each manufacturer contributes a fee for every eligible container they sell in Queensland to Container Exchange, the not-for-profit that manages the scheme.