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all what about my old mattress join Valumat legislation imports / exports environmental contributions annual declaration invoicing & payment take-back mattresses fees collectors inform mattress or not

I am a consumer. Where can I hand in my old mattress?

For the collection of discarded mattresses Valumat works together with the municipalities and intermunicipal waste associations. Their collection channels are well suited to the collection of these waste materials in an environmentally friendly way. It is also a guarantee of the correct processing and maximum recycling of your old mattress.

Please contact your municipality or your intercommunal waste company.

If your mattress in still in good condition, visit an authorised thrift shop. They will determine whether your mattress is still good enough for reuse.

Some final sellers accept your old mattress free of charge when you buy a new one from them. When they deliver matresses to your home, they may charge a fee for transportation.

I am a consumer. Can I take my old mattress to the recycling centre?

Enter your postcode and find out where you can take your discarded mattress free of charge .

If your mattress in still in good condition, visit an authorised thrift shop. They will determine whether your mattress is still good enough for reuse.

Some final sellers accept your old mattress free of charge when you buy a new one from them. When they deliver matresses to your home, they may charge a fee for transportation.

Am I a producer?

The definitions of “producer” are not formulated in exactly the same way in the three region’s but they always mean the same thing, namely a producer is any natural person or legal entity who is the first to bring mattresses onto the Belgian market or intends them for their own use. This can therefore be a mattress manufacturer as well as an importer, distributor or final seller.

This also applies to online sales or other forms of distance selling by non-Belgian companies to Belgian private individuals.

Care centres, holiday centres, nursing homes .. also fall under the heading ‘producer’ if they import mattresses from abroad.

Am I an importer?

A producer is any natural or legal person who is the first to bring mattresses onto the Belgian market. This can therefore be a mattress manufacturer as well as an importer, distributor or final seller.

This also applies to online sales or other forms of distance selling by non-Belgian companies to Belgian individuals.

Care centres, holiday centres, nursing homes ... also fall under the heading ‘producer’ if they import mattresses from abroad.

I am a foreign producer and I sell mattresses in Belgium. What should I do?

Are you a foreign company that exports and sells mattresses in Belgi&umuml;, then as importers, your Belgian customers have a take-back obligation.

However, as a foreign supplier you can take over the administrative modalities of the take-back obligation of your customers in Belgi&umuml;. You then join Valumat yourself and you make an annual declaration of the number of mattresses that you place on the Belgian market.

However, as an importer your Belgian customer remains subject to the take-back obligation. Your Belgian customers must therefore demonstrate to the regional authorities that their foreign supplier declares these mattresses to Valumat. They must therefore “mandate you”. This can be done via a “mandate form”.

What are the contributions?

When you join Valumat you pay an annual contribution.

Valumat's general assembly has set the following contributions for 2025:

	excluding VAT	including VAT
Children mattresses, excluding crib and cot mattresses^*	€ 3.51	€ 4.25
Mattresses and toppers^** ≤ 120 cm	€ 7.02	€ 8.50
Mattresses and toppers^** > 120 cm	€ 14.05	€ 17.00

^* Children mattresses: mattresses of 70 x 140 centimetres maximum, excluding crib and cot mattresses. Crib and cot mattresses are mattresses with a height of less than or equal to 40 mm and with a total surface area of 0.8 m² maximum.
^** Mattresses: products intended for sleeping and resting, suitable for human use for a long period of time, consisting of a strong cover, filled with core materials, and which can be placed on an existing supporting bed structure, including toppers. A topper is a thin mattress with a maximum thickness of ten centimetres that is placed on top of the normal mattress.

Comments on environmental contributions

The contributions are calculated in such a way that the income covers the expected expenses.
The Valumat contribution only applies to batches that come onto the Belgian market. Mattresses that are exported do NOT fall under the Valumat system.
A VAT percentage of 21% applies to the Valumat rates.
The contribution may vary over time, depending on the development of costs.
The general assembly of Valumat fixes the contributions annually. The aim is to always inform participants as soon as possible about any changes.

Why should I join Valumat?

Are you subject to the take-back obligation for mattresses as a producer or importer? Do you get lost in the red tape that entails the implementation of this obligation?

No problem, join Valumat.

Valumat then takes over the practical modalities of your take-back obligation. In this way, you comply fully with your legal obligations. In all three regions.

How do I join Valumat?

Are you subject to the take-back obligation for mattresses as a producer or importer? Do you get lost in the red tape that entails the implementation of this obligation?

No problem, join Valumat.

Valumat then takes over the practical modalities of your take-back obligation. In this way, you comply fully with your legal obligations. In all three regions.

Can I join Valumat retroactively at a later date?

If a producer or importer joins the Valumat system at a later date and they have already brought mattresses onto the Belgian market in 2021 and cannot demonstrate that they complied with the legislation through an individual plan, then upon entry into the Valumat system, the contributions will always be charged from 1 January 2021, the date of the entry into force of the take-back obligation.

In this way Valumat wants to avoid discrimination with regard to companies that have been affiliated with Valumat from the start of their activities and have therefore always paid their contributions.

By joining retroactively, you also avoid any fines for not individually complying with your take-back obligation.

Which companies are also affiliated with Valumat?

Wondering which companies are participating in the Valumat system for the implementation of their take-back obligation?
Check the list here.

How do I make my annual declaration?

Read all the information via this link.

What are the environmental contributions for?

A significant portion of the contributions serves to reimburse the costs of the use of the recycling centres, the transport and processing of discarded mattresses. Valumat reimburses final sellers for voluntary collection and the professional market for collection via a Valumat collector.
In addition to the operating costs, Valumat also provides a budget for research and development into an easily dismantlable and recyclable mattress.

Do I have to join Valumat to comply with the take-back obligation?

As a producer or importer, you can individually fulfil your legal obligations. However, this is a complex, costly and time-consuming matter.

You can also join Valumat that as a collective system implements the terms and conditions of the take-back obligation of its participants. This way you comply with your legal obligations. In exchange, you pay Valumat an annual contribution.

Where can I find the regulations on the take-back obligation?

Read all the information via this link.

When does Valumat invoice the environmental contributions?

Click here for more information about the annual declaration

Do I have to pass on the environmental contributions to my customers?

Participants in the Valumat system pass on the contribution defined by Valumat to their customersfrom 1 January 2021. On invoices between professionals (with VAT number, B2B) the contribution must be visibly displayed on the invoice. This can be done via a text line (including environmental contributions) or with explicit mention of the amount of the environmental contributions.

For sales to consumers (B2C) it is not necessary to specify this contribution on the invoice or receipt, but it is allowed. Ultimately, the environmental contribution is included in the total price of the mattress and paid by the consumer. The consumer can be informed via other means of communication (e.g. posters, price labels in the shop, mention in advertising brochures, etc.) that his total price includes the environmental contribution.

B2B invoicing options:

per invoiced item, stating the amount
grouped stating (total) amount
per invoiced item or grouped stating "environmental contributions included"

Click here for more information about legislation and pricing to customers (B2C).

How will the contribution be accounted for and how will it be included in the VAT return?

For the sake of clarity, it is the producers, the importers, who must join the Valumat management body. For each mattress put on the Belgian market by the producers, importers, they have to charge an environmental contribution. Be it to an end customer user (consumer/hotel/hospital/prison....) or to a wholesaler, vendor who will in turn pass on the contribution to the end customer.

For producers/importers, the environmental contribution to be charged is not included in the purchase and sale price. The environmental contribution and its VAT must therefore be charged to customers on top of the normal selling price and must be included in the VAT return as a supply of services. The collected contribution is subsequently transferred by the producers/importers to Valumat. Valumat will send an annual invoice for this.

The collection and transfer of the environmental contribution can be accounted for in various ways.

A first option is to first book the collection of these contributions as revenue (class 7) and to provide an "invoice to be received" (class 6) at the end of the financial year for the payment of the environmental contribution to Valumat. The Valumat management organisation will then request the contributions collected by the producer/importer via invoice at the beginning of the following year. This invoice balances the accrued commission "invoices to be received".
A second option is to book the collection of this environmental contribution to a waiting account (class 4), as is done for VAT. The contributions are then considered as invoiced and collected amounts that do not belong to the company, but as an amount that is 'set aside'. Producers/importers report the quantity of mattresses they place on the market at the beginning of the following year. On the basis of this declaration, the management organisation Valumat will charge the environmental contribution. The contribution charged by Valumat balances the account on which the contributions collected by the producer/importer were booked. The difference between the total environmental contributions invoiced in the financial year and the turnover to be found in the accounts will have to be explained when the VAT turnover agreement is drawn up.

Does the take-back obligation mean that I have to take back mattresses from my customers?

Contrary to most other waste streams for wich there is a take-back obligation, the final sellers of mattresses are not obliged to accept old mattresses from their customers. This is also the case for the brokers and producers or importers who sell mattresses to a final seller .

Valumat provides a financial incentive for final sellers who voluntarily accept discarded mattresses when purchasing a new mattress. For practical reasons, that amount is calculated on the basis of the collected tonnage (600 €/ton). This equates to approx. 9 € per mattress.

What happens if I do take back mattresses from my customers?

Valumat provides a financial incentive for final sellers who voluntarily accept discarded mattresses upon the purchase of a new mattress. For practical reasons, this amount is calculated on the basis of the tonnage collected (600 €/tonne). This equates to approx. €9 per mattress.

In exchange for compensation, you agree to take back mattresses from consumers free of charge when they buy a new mattress from you (principle of free take-back 1/1).

However, if you deliver a mattress to your customer, it may be possible to charge for transport costs.

The link to the communication material can be found here..

Do I get compensation when I take back old mattresses from my customers?

Valumat provides a financiëal incentive for final sellers who voluntarily accept discarded mattresses when purchasing a new mattress. For practical reasons, that amount is calculated on the basis of the collected tonnage (600 €/ton). This equates to approx. € 9 per mattress.

Payment to distribution for voluntary selective collection is offset by the commitment of the final seller to accept the mattresses offered free of charge when consumers buy a new mattress from them (principle of free acceptance 1/1).

When they deliver mattresses to their customers, they can charge for transport.

You can find a list of these final sellers here.

How do I become a collection point?

If you are a retailer and would like to voluntarily take back used mattresses from your customers free of charge when they purchase a new one, you can register as a collection point.

We expect you to store the mattresses in a dry place and to use a Valumat collector or recycling centre.

How do I find an Valumat collector or an approved reuse centre?

Each company must store discarded mattresses separately and have them collected by a collector approved by the regional authorities. They have the mattresses processed in licensed processing facilities.

Only when you use a Valumat collector or an approved reuse centre are you entitled to compensation for voluntary collection from consumers.

I am a professional user. Can I return my old mattress to the recycling centre?

Each company is legally obliged to store discarded mattresses separately and have them collected by a collector approved by the regional authorities. They have the mattresses processed in licensed processing facilities.

Only when you use a Valumat collector or an approved reuse centre are you entitled to compensation for voluntary collection from consumers.

How do I refer my customers to the recycling centre or a thrift shop?

Are you a final seller of mattresses and you do not collect old mattresses from your customers? Then you are legally obliged to inform your customers where they can take their old mattresses.

When they deliver mattresses to their customers, they can charge for transport.

Valumat will design and make available the appropriate communication material for this.

How do I inform my customers that I am a collection point?

Are you a final seller of mattresses and you collect old mattresses from your customers?
Valumat provides the appropriate communication material. Vendors who collect free of charge can put their name on the Valumat website.

I am a professional user. Where can I hand in my old mattress?

Only when you use a Valumat collector you are entitled to compensation for voluntary collection from consumers.

Click here for the list of Valumat collectors.

I am a mattress seller and would like to know all about the compensation I will receive when I take back old mattresses.

Read all the information via this link.

I am a professional manager of a facility and would like to know all about the compensation I receive when I have old mattresses collected.

Read all the information via this link.

I import my new mattresses myself, to whom do I pay the environmental contribution?

If you import mattresses yourself to sell them in Belgi&umuml; or to use them for the operation of your professional activity, then for these mattresses the legislator considers you to be the producer/importer and you must comply with the take-back obligation. You can find more info about joining Valumat as a producer here.

What guarantees does the Valumat system offer?

You comply with your legal obligations so you avoid fines.
You benefit from a flexible and clear system that has the recognition of the regions and sectoral federations concerned through the environmental policy agreements.
The costs are simple to budget.

I produce or import mattresses and sell them to my customer wholesaler, who in turn exports them. Do I have to pay a contribution to Valumat for this?

At the time of the sale from the producer or importer to the broker, it is not always clear who the ultimate user of the mattress will be.

Does your customer export the mattresses purchased from you? Then this customer can fill in a “declaration on word of honour export”.

You can deduct the quantities stated on this declaration from the quantities that you have placed on the Belgian market when completing your annual declaration.

Exports are taken to mean the physical shipment of mattresses outside Belgian territory that give rise to an exemption from VAT, to be stated on the invoice, in accordance with Article 39 (supplies outside the EU) or Article 39a (intra-Community supply), as defined in the value added tax code.

Foreign consumers who buy mattresses in Belgium do pay the contribution.

I export mattresses produced or imported by myself. Do I have to pay a contribution to Valumat for this?

No, you do not have to pay a contribution to Valumat on this. Your annual declaration only pertains to the mattresses that you have produced or imported to put on the Belgian market.

Are the participants' declarations audited? What about declarations made on their honour?

The regulations in the three regions require Valumat to audit the participants' declarations or have these audited. This will be done by an external party designated by Valumat and at the expense of Valumat. Valumat will also conduct audits on “declarations made on the participants' honour”.

As a producer, do I also have to pay an environmental contribution for mattresses that are delivered free of charge to a showroom or that are sold through outlets or to staff?

It makes no difference whether mattresses are delivered for free or against payment. In both cases, they remain mattresses which are placed on the market. They are therefore subject to a contribution, insofar as they are sold in Belgi&umuml;.

I buy mattresses that I bring out under my name on the Belgian market. (Private label). Can I ask my supplier to take over my administrative obligations towards Valumat?

If you, as a company, have mattresses produced for marketing under your own name (Private Label) on the Belgian market, then you have a take-back obligation. You must then either join the Valumat collective system or submit a waste plan yourself to the regions where you market your mattresses. This must be done in accordance with applicable regional legislation.

However, you can also mandate your supplier, if he agrees, to include the amount of mattresses he has delivered to you under your name (Private Label) in his annual declaration to Valumat. You still remain ultimately responsible, which means that you must be able to demonstrate that your supplier has taken over your obligations.

You can mandate multiple suppliers at the same time. You can do this via a mandate form.

What is the difference between an environmental contribution and a tax?

The contribution which participants pay Valumat is not a tax.

A tax or charge is imposed by the government and laid down in legislation.

The contribution to Valumat serves to cover the costs associated with the implementation of the take-back obligation. The general assembly of Valumat determines the contributions annually.

The regional authorities must approve the contributions.

If a foreign retailer delivers to a Belgian consumer, under which EPR does that sale fall, the Belgian or the foreign one?

If a Belgian consumer buys a mattress in a physical shop of a retailer abroad, he is subject to the legislation of that country and therefore pays the applicable EPR contribution there. The foreign producer is not subject to a take-back obligation in Belgi&umuml; and therefore does not pay a contribution to Valumat.
If the Belgian consumer buys a mattress online from a foreign retailer, the foreign shop is subject to a take-back obligation because of its sales activities in België. It must then join Valumat and pay a contribution to Valumat for the mattresses which it places on the Belgian market.

What about old slatted frames, box springs, cots. Are there rules about these too?

This take-back obligation only applies to mattresses and therefore not to box springs, sofa’s, the slatted bases and cots. There may still be an EPR for furniture in the future, but that is not yet specifically addressed.

Is it true that we are not obliged to state in our catalogue that the Valumat contribution is included?

More information via the following link: https://valumat.dev.cigar.agency/en/i-sell-mattresses/information-obligations-retailers

When do retailers/importers (B2C) on the one hand and on the other hand producers/importers (B2B) charge the Valumat contribution?

The definition of producer is not exactly the same in the three regio’ns. In the definition, placing products “on the market” is also described as, “selling”, “marketing”, “reselling” and “trading”.

It is generally assumed that the contribution is charged when a mattress is invoiced: when an invoice is issued to a Belgian, it is placed on the Belgian market.

Please note: producers and importers also pay a contribution if for some reason an invoice is not drawn up and the mattress is placed on the Belgian market.

As a producer, can I get compensation if I collect discarded mattresses from my customers?

As a producer, you are also entitled to compensation of € 600 /ton for the discarded mattresses that you collect from your customers. Please note: in that case, your customer will not receive any compensation.

The same terms and conditions apply as for final sellers and professionals:

You have the discarded mattresses collected by a Valumat collector or an approved reuse centre.
The type of mattress falls under the scope of the take-back obligation.
You store the mattresses in a dry and secure environment.
You agree on the modalities and costs of collection in mutual consultation with your collector.

When must I repay the environmental contribution to my customer?

Some final sellers take back mattresses from customers as part of promotions such as a “money-back guarantee”. In those cases you will pay back the amount of the mattress to your customer as well as the contribution.

If you resell this mattress, you will again charge an environmental contribution.

What about environmental contributions and discounts?

The environmental contribution is independent of the sale price of mattresses. So there are no discounts on environmental contributions.

What about the contribution on sofa beds?

When the filling is an integral part of the furniture and cannot be removed without damaging the furniture and resulting in it no longer having its original function, this filling is not considered a mattress.

If the mattress can be seen separately from the furniture, is removable and replaceable, it is considered a mattress and a contribution must be paid on this.

I am selling a box-spring bed with 2 mattresses and a topper. How much is the contribution?

You pay an environmental contribution on the 2 mattresses and on a topper, which means three times the environmental contribution at the applicable rate.

I sell covers and cores separately. Do I have to pay a contribution for these?

Covers and cores are not covered by the definition of mattresses. Therefore, no contribution has to be paid on these. It is the party that puts together a mattress using covers and cores that will place the mattress on the market and is therefore subject to a take-back obligation and will have to pay the contribution.

Tips for returning your used mattress

Return your used mattress as soon as possible. And importantly: dry.

If you want us to recycle your mattress properly, you must return it to a collection point in one piece, i.e. not cut into pieces, and dry.