Funding
Product Care Recycling is an industry funded not-for-profit. The British Columbia lights program is funded entirely by Environmental Handling Fees (EHFs) remitted to Product Care by its industry members. The fees are utilized for collection, transportation, recycling and safe disposal of returned products, as well as program administration and communication.
The Environmental Handling Fees may be displayed as a separate charge by vendors, sometimes described as an eco-fee, environmental handling fee, or recycling fee on the receipt.
The Environmental Handling Fee is part of the price of regulated products and therefore subject to applicable sales taxes. While the taxes are remitted to the government, the fee itself is not remitted to the government.
In BC, fees have been applied to the sale or supply of:
- all lights/lamps since July 1, 2010, and
- all ballasts and fixtures (including retail, industrial, commercial and institutional sales) as of October 1, 2012.
| Lamps | Current EHFs (per unit) | |
| Fluorescent tubes measuring less than or equal to 2 feet | $0.20 | |
| Fluorescent tubes measuring greater than 2 feet and up to or equal to 4 feet | $0.40 | |
| Fluorescent tubes measuring greater than 4 feet | $0.80 | |
| Compact fluorescent lights (CFL) / Screw-in induction lamps | $0.15 | |
| Light emitting diodes (LED) | $0.15 | |
| High intensity discharge (HID) and other: UV-C, germicidal, UHP, neon, etc. | $1.10 | |
| Incandescent / Halogen | $0.05 | |
| Lamps | Current EHFs (per package) | EHFs effective April 1, 2026 (per unit) |
| Miniature bulb package (per-package)¹ | $0.10 | Replaced with the Small lamps subcategory below |
| Small lamps1 | – | $0.03 |
While there are no changes to Fixtures category A, Fixtures category B and Large outdoor fixtures EHFs in 2026, please note the transition of Designated small fixtures/decorative light strings to three separate subcategories as outlined below.
¹ The miniature bulb package product subcategory has been replaced by the small lamps product subcategory as of April 1, 2026.
| Fixtures | Current EHFs (per unit) | EHFs effective April 1, 2026 (per unit) |
| Designated small fixtures / decorative light strings² | $0.15 | Replaced with subcategories below |
| Designated small fixtures | – | $0.15 |
| String lights ≤ 50 lamps | –
| – $0.50 |
| Ribbon / tape lights ≤ 10 meters > 10 to 30 meters > 30 meters | – | – $0.50 $1.00 $1.50 |
| Fixtures | Current EHFs (per unit) | |
| Fixture category A: portable, small outdoor, decorative, light commercial, emergency, chandeliers, ceiling fans, linear fixtures etc. | $0.15 | |
| Fixture category B: non-linear, commercial, and industrial etc. | $0.15 | |
| Large outdoor fixtures: flood, sports, highway, street, etc. | $0.15 | |
² The designated small fixtures / decorative light strings subcategory has been replaced by the small fixtures, string lights, and ribbon / tape lights product subcategories as of April 1, 2026.
No Ballasts EHF changes in 2026.
| Ballasts | Current EHFs (per unit) |
| Ballasts / Transformers (not integrated into lamps or fixtures) | $0.15 |