Retailer

As of 1 January 2022, mattress manufacturers and importers are under an obligation to pay a waste management contribution for all mattresses sold from that date onwards. This includes single and double mattresses, toppers, and children’s and baby mattresses. (What do we mean by a mattress?)

From that same date, parties that collect discarded mattresses, such as local councils and waste companies, are entitled to compensation for these services. This compensation will be paid based on the number of mattresses they have collected and delivered to certified mattress recycling companies.

When am I liable to pay the contribution as a retailer and when as a manufacturer/importer?
If you import mattresses directly as a retailer, such as from a Belgian supplier, you are also liable to pay the waste management contribution as an ‘importer’.

If you only sell mattresses from Dutch manufacturers who all pay the waste management contribution to MRN, you do not have to register on the portal.
It is advisable in that case, however, to check that the supplier itemises the waste management contribution on the receipt, so that it is clear that the legally required contribution has been paid and to prevent the contribution from being levied twice.

If your foreign supplier files a statement on behalf of all their customers in the Netherlands, we would like to know who that supplier is. Whether or not this is a private label is irrelevant. The waste management contribution is payable by law to ensure a fair situation.

I have registered as a retailer; can I also register as a collector?
If you have registered as a retailer, but you also want to register as a collector, because you take back old mattresses, collect them, and deliver them to a certified recycling company, please note the following: you can register as a manufacturer/importer and collector under the same Chamber of Commerce number. However, these will then be two separate registrations, i.e. with two separate email addresses, because one has to pay the contribution while the other receives the compensation.

As a retailer, what is my role in mattress recycling?
MRN sets great store by collaboration across the supply chain. And that includes retailers. You are the consumer-facing final link in the supply chain. When a consumer buys a new mattress, we advise you to let the consumer know that MRN is facilitating mattress recycling on a large scale. However, for a mattress to be recyclable, it needs to be dry when it is handed in. This is also the moment to ask the consumer where they intend to take their old mattress. This website will soon have a handy list of all mattress collection points.

Collecting mattresses
As a retailer, you are not under an obligation to collect or take back old mattresses. We do encourage that, however. You can register as an official collection point. MRN will cover part of the costs involved in recycling and transporting mattresses. The percentage of these costs that will be compensated will gradually go up year by year and will reach 100% in 2028, which is when MRN will cover all the mattress collection and recycling costs.

If you are unable or unwilling to collect mattresses yourself, please refer customers to their local or regional waste and recycling facility. To be able to be recycled properly, a mattress needs to be as clean as possible when it is handed in, and it must at least be dry.

For more information, take a look at our FAQs.