Frequently asked questions.

Extended producer responsibility makes the brand that puts packaged goods on the market pay for collecting and recycling that packaging. Seven US states have enacted it: California, Oregon, Colorado, Washington, Minnesota, Maryland and Maine. Canada, the EU and the UK have their own schemes. You report how much packaging you supplied, by material, and you are invoiced by weight.

It depends on the jurisdiction and on the packaging level. Often it is the brand owner; for imports or marketplace sales it can be the importer or the seller of record. Instica works out who the producer is for each SKU and each packaging level in every place you sell, so you see where you carry the obligation before you collect any data.

Oregon fees have run since July 2025 and its 2026 program fees are payable in January 2027. Colorado dues fall due each January. From January 1, 2027, selling covered packaging in California requires a plan, membership or exemption. Maryland reports were due May 31, 2026. CAA sets report dates each cycle, and Instica shows each date with its source once it is published. Measuring 2026 packaging now means the figures are ready when a date is set.

Each state sets a revenue floor: California $1M in California sales, Oregon $5M global, Colorado $5M global, Washington $5M, and Minnesota, Maryland and Maine $2M. Instica applies the thresholds to your sales by region and shows where you are over or under them. Confirm the result with your own advisor.

In the US, all seven enacted states plus a watchlist of states with pending bills. In Canada, all 13 provinces and territories. In Europe, the 27 EU member states plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. The UK, including a Plastic Packaging Tax check. Switzerland is listed as stated, not obligated.

Measured data comes from weighing the actual components, with photographs. An estimate comes from a sampling method or a published average. Regulators allow estimates, but you are liable for the weights you report, and the method must be documented and corrected when better data exists. Every figure in Instica carries a tier: measured, supplier, estimated or declared.

On the web, on iOS or with a connected scale. You photograph the teardown, weigh each component, and confirm the grams. Instica stores the weights with the photos, the person who confirmed them and a version history. Packaging is modelled once, as shared specs, so one measurement can cover every SKU that uses the same carton.

Yes. Instica collects packaging data from suppliers and tags it as supplier data. Supplier figures are useful, but you remain liable for what you report. You can replace a supplier figure with a measured one at any time, and the report picks up the better number.

Estimate the rest with a documented sampling method. Instica generates the methodology document that describes how each figure was produced, and flags estimated figures so you can measure the largest ones first. When you later measure a SKU, the estimate is superseded and the change is recorded.

You import units sold by region from your sales channels using CSV and import presets. That includes direct-to-consumer shipping packaging, which many spreadsheets miss. Instica combines units sold with your packaging model to produce supplied weight by jurisdiction and material.

You do. Instica prepares the report figures, with a regulator file where its format is verified, walks you through the portal step by step, and keeps the receipt. Instica is not a producer responsibility organization, and questions of law stay with your counsel. A named signer in your organization signs off before you submit.

Weight per covered-material category at the component level, a count of plastic components, and a written methodology (§18980.5(d)). Instica records components, layers and materials, counts plastic components, and generates the methodology document from how each figure was produced.

Yes. Instica estimates your fees from published schedules, then checks the invoice you receive against your reported data, forecasts the year, and shows cost per SKU and per unit. It exports an accrual for your finance team. It does not state what you will owe in advance of the schedules being published.

Yes. When better data arrives, you correct the record, generate an amended report and submit the amendment yourself. The original, the change and the reason stay in the audit log.

A signed archive containing the records behind a report: weights, photographs, who confirmed each figure and when, and the methodology. Anyone can check that it is untampered on the public /verify page. The check runs in the browser against our published public keys, so you do not have to send the archive to us.

Yes, without using a seat. Invite them to chosen entities until a date you set, read only or able to edit figures. They cannot sign reports or change billing. Every record and every report keeps an audit log of who changed what and when.

The regulator or the producer responsibility organization decides that, not Instica. A confirmed record attests that a named person confirmed a stated weight at a stated time with the attached photographs. What Instica gives you is a defensible, evidence-backed record and a written method.

Free is $0. Starter is $990 a year ($99 a month billed monthly). Growth is $2,990 a year ($299 a month billed monthly). Scale is $7,990 a year, annual only. Every paid plan includes the full workflow through signed reports. Plans differ by records, entities and seats, and Scale adds SSO, SCIM provisioning and priority support. Annual billing is 2 months free.

One confirmed weight for one packaging component, so a box, its insert and its tape are three records. Supplier, estimated and declared figures do not count toward your record allowance. Starter includes 150 records a year, Growth 1,000 and Scale 5,000. Beyond that, overage is $1.50 per record, or $1.00 on Scale.

The public tools, plus a workspace with 10 measured records and one seat, a fee estimate and a watermarked report preview. It does not expire. Upgrade when you need more records, entities or seats.

No. Sign-up and checkout are self-serve, by card. If you have a question first, write to us from the contact page and a person will answer.

Data is encrypted in transit and at rest on US infrastructure, with automated backups. Sign-in supports email with a password or passkey, and MFA with an authenticator app. Scale adds SAML or OIDC single sign-on through your identity provider (such as Okta, Microsoft Entra ID or Google Workspace) and SCIM provisioning. Details are on the Trust page, with our subprocessor list and retention policy.

Yes. Your data is yours. You can export it at any time, and you can request deletion of your account and its data. The data retention page states how long each category is kept.

Yes. Roles are owner, admin, contributor, auditor and supplier guest. A named member can hold the permission to sign reports, and members can be limited to specific entities or brands.