Twelve Countries, Three Speeds on Bottle Deposits

As the EU's Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation takes effect, some countries have run bottle deposit systems for years, others are still building one, and a few have not started at all.

Table listing twelve EU countries covered by MrEast.eu with their deposit return system status, deposit value where known, and a brief note. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania show operational systems running for years. Finland shows an operational system valued at 0.10 euros, one of the oldest in Europe. Poland shows an operational system launched in October 2025. The Czech Republic shows a system in development, delayed, with a proposed value of about 0.12 euros. Slovakia shows an operational running system. Hungary shows an operational system launched in January 2024 valued at about 0.13 euros. Slovenia shows no operational system, though a legal basis exists. Romania shows an operational system running since November 2023 valued at about 0.10 euros. Croatia shows an operational system running since 2006 valued at about 0.06 euros. Bulgaria shows no operational system, with registration only through the ECOBULPACK registry.

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Exact deposit values for Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia were not confirmed in available sources and are marked accordingly. Data current as of August 25, 2026.