BCRS Shopify Guide: Set Up Singapore’s 10¢ Bottle Deposit

What Is BCRS, in Plain Terms?

BCRS is a government-mandated Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme, licensed by the National Environment Agency (NEA) and run by the not-for-profit Beverage Container Return Scheme Ltd. (BCRS Ltd.) on behalf of all beverage producers in Singapore.

BCRS Ltd. was established by a consortium of Singapore’s major beverage producers, Coca-Cola Singapore Beverages, F&N Foods, and Pokka and was licensed by the NEA on 29 July 2024 to design and operate the scheme for seven years from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2033.

The mechanics are straightforward:

The BCRS Timeline: What Each Date Means for Your Shopify Store

Three dates matter for Shopify merchants. Understanding which applies to your current stock is critical before you configure any fee rules.

Does the BCRS Deposit Apply to My Shopify Store?

Official NEA and BCRS Ltd. guidance is written primarily for producers (manufacturers and importers) and physical retailers, and doesn’t specify separate rules for e-commerce checkouts, delivery, or online price display. But two things make this unambiguous for online sellers:

If You’re a Retailer Reselling Third-Party Drinks

‘Supply’ isn’t limited to in-store sales. From 1 October 2026, it’s an offence for any person to supply a regulated beverage without the Deposit Mark, regardless of channel. The BCRS FAQ specifically calls out supermarket operators, but the underlying rule applies to the supply of regulated beverages, whether in-store, via delivery, or through an online storefront. (Source: BCRS FAQ)

For most Shopify merchants reselling third-party-branded drinks, the practical obligation is the same as the one FairPrice has already implemented: charge S$0.10 per eligible container at checkout, show it as a distinct line item, and apply it only to SKUs that actually carry the Deposit Mark.

Want to understand how Singapore’s BCRS works in real-world F&B operations? This overview of the Beverage Container Return Scheme at F&B outlets provides useful context on how the scheme is being implemented across Singapore.

If You Import or Manufacture Your Own Beverage Line

If you privately label or directly import beverages (a D2C juice brand, a health drink line, imported craft beer), you are a ‘Producer’ under the Resource Sustainability Act. This means:

• You must register directly with BCRS Ltd. as a producer, separate from just collecting the deposit at checkout.
• You must ensure your containers carry the Deposit Mark and BCRS-approved barcode before they can be sold in Singapore from 1 April 2026.
• You must submit monthly Put-to-Market declarations to BCRS Ltd. via the Producer Portal.

Barcode placement matters technically: BCRS requires vertical (ladder format) barcodes, with bars horizontal, placed on an even surface of the container for RVM scanning. (Source: BCRS FAQ)

Step-by-Step: Implementing the BCRS Deposit on Shopify

The cleanest way to do this without touching theme code is a dedicated fees-and-deposits app. FeeBee (by codelayer GmbH) is purpose-built for exactly this use case it already lists BCRS by name alongside Pfand (Germany), CRV (US), Statiegeld (Netherlands), and Pant (Nordics) as supported deposit types (Source: FeeBee, Shopify App Store listing).

Step 1: Audit your beverage catalogue

Before touching any app, tag or list every SKU that falls in the 150ml–3L plastic/metal beverage range. Cross-check against BCRS Ltd.’s registered products list, where available, since only Deposit-Marked stock should carry the fee (BCRS FAQ). During the transition period (through 30 September 2026), you may be selling both marked and unmarked versions of the same product; these need different treatment, so keep them as separate variants or SKUs if your supplier hasn’t fully transitioned yet.

Step 2: Install FeeBee from the Shopify App Store

Search for “FeeBee Fees and Deposits” in the Shopify App Store, or go directly to the listing, install it, and run the guided checkout setup, which automatically activates FeeBee’s checkout extension. No theme edits or developer time are required, and it works on every Shopify plan and theme. (Source: FeeBee)

Step 3: Create a BCRS deposit fee rule

Inside FeeBee:

• Choose a fixed fee (not a percentage) of S$0.10.
• Name it clearly for customers, e.g. ‘BCRS Deposit (Return Right)’. Clarity here matters because, like FairPrice, you want customers to understand this is a refundable deposit, not a price increase. (Source: FairPrice BCRS page)
• Set the fee to apply per container so a 4-pack correctly totals S$0.40, not S$0.10.
• Confirm the deposit is excluded from GST calculation.

Step 4: Scope the rule to the right products

Apply the fee rule to your tagged beverage collection (or individual SKUs) rather than store-wide. FeeBee supports targeting by product, collection, Shopify Market, or customer segment/tag, which is particularly useful for larger or multi-market stores managing more complex operations. Businesses operating at scale may also benefit from understanding the broader Shopify Plus benefits for business. (Source: FeeBee)

Step 5: Verify it shows up everywhere it needs to

FeeBee is designed to surface the fee consistently across the entire buying journey: product page, cart, checkout, Express Checkout (Apple Pay/Google Pay), order confirmation, and Shopify POS if you also sell in person.

Before going live, place a test order and confirm:

• Transparent fee presentation is important because unexpected charges at checkout can create friction and affect conversions. Improving your Shopify store conversion rate also involves making pricing and checkout costs clear before customers complete their purchase.
• Multipack quantities are calculated correctly (4 cans = S$0.40 deposit).
• The fee is non-removable by the customer in the cart. BCRS is a mandatory regulatory charge, not an optional add-on.
• Express checkout (Apple Pay, Shop Pay) shows the deposit correctly before the customer completes payment.

Step 6: Handle the transition period in your catalogue

Since unmarked stock can legally be sold without the deposit until 30 September 2026, don’t apply the fee rule to variants you know are still unmarked. Plan to retag your full catalogue as marked stock arrives. NEA expects widespread availability of Deposit-Marked containers by August–September 2026, and be ready to apply the deposit universally to regulated SKUs from 1 October 2026, when unmarked stock can no longer legally be sold.

Pricing

FeeBee offers a 14-day free trial and is free for development stores. The Premium plan, which includes POS support, Express Checkout (Apple Pay/Google Pay) support, and multi-market targeting, runs S$9.99/month after the trial period.

At under S$10/month, the cost of compliance is minimal against the risk of non-compliance. From 1 October 2026, selling unmarked regulated beverages without the deposit is an offence under the Resource Sustainability Act; a fine or enforcement action from NEA would cost considerably more.

Alternatives to FeeBee for BCRS Compliance

If you want to compare options before committing to FeeBee, two similar Shopify fee apps are worth evaluating:

• FeeLayer: Deposits & Surcharges supports per-item container deposit rules and checkout-level display. (Source: apps.shopify.com/feelayer-deposits-surcharge)
• Magical Fees specifically supports bottle-and-container deposit rules. (Source: magicalapps.com/apps/magical-fees/use-cases/container-deposits)

The underlying setup logic is the same regardless of which app you choose: fixed per-container fee, scoped to eligible SKUs, itemised and non-removable at checkout, excluded from GST. The choice between apps comes down to pricing structure, POS support requirements, and any specific features your store needs.

Which Products Are Eligible and Which Are Not?

One of the most common sources of confusion for Shopify merchants is determining exactly which products in their catalogue require the deposit to be applied. Here’s a clear breakdown:

What Happens If You Don’t Comply?

Non-compliance with BCRS from 1 October 2026 is not just a technical violation; it’s a criminal offence under the Resource Sustainability Act.

While the specific penalty schedule for retailers has not been publicly detailed in NEA’s published guidance, enforcement is coordinated by NEA. For businesses in violation, this typically means warning letters in the first instance, followed by escalating consequences for persistent non-compliance, including fines under the Resource Sustainability Act.

The practical risk for Shopify merchants is two-sided:

• Operational risk: Selling unmarked stock after 1 October 2026 exposes you to regulatory action.
• Inventory risk: Unmarked stock cannot legally be sold in Singapore after 30 September 2026. If you have significant unmarked inventory, plan clearance timelines carefully, particularly for products with longer shelf lives that you may have over-ordered.

The Unique Challenge of BCRS for Online Sellers Handling Delivery Returns

This is where online sellers face a complication that physical retailers don’t have: customers who order drinks online cannot conveniently return their empty containers to the retailer the way they would return to a FairPrice store.

Return Right machines are placed at fixed, physical locations (supermarkets with over 200m² floor area, community spaces, and public areas). A customer who ordered from your Shopify store receives their delivery, finishes the drinks, and must find a Return Right machine near them to claim the deposit; your store is not involved in that return process.

What This Means for Your Shopify Store?

• You collect the deposit at checkout; that’s your obligation. The refund process occurs directly between the customer and BCRS Ltd. when they use an RVM.
• You should communicate this clearly in your order confirmation email and/or product page. Customers need to know: (a) why they were charged the deposit, (b) that it’s refundable, (c) where they can find their nearest Return Right machine.
• BCRS Ltd. maintains a location finder for Return Right machines. Consider linking to it in your order confirmation or via a dedicated FAQ page. (Source: recycle.gov.sg/materials/beverage)

Handling Damaged Containers from Delivery

Return Right machines require containers to be uncrushed and scannable; the RVM reads the barcode on each container. If a beverage arrives damaged during delivery (dented can, cracked bottle), the customer may not be able to redeem the deposit at an RVM.
Set an internal process for this edge case:

• Include a note in your packaging guidelines to ensure beverages are packed with adequate protection.
• If a customer reports a delivery-damaged beverage that can’t be returned to an RVM, decide in advance whether your store policy is to refund the deposit on delivery-damaged cases; this is a customer service decision, not a regulatory requirement.
• Document any damaged-delivery deposit refund requests separately from regular product returns, mirroring how FairPrice handles this operationally.

How BCRS Compliance Improves Your Shopify Store’s AI Search Visibility?

There’s a practical GEO dimension to getting BCRS right on your Shopify store that most merchants won’t consider, but it matters for how your products appear in AI-generated search results.

As AI-driven shopping and agentic commerce continue to develop, accurate product data and transparent pricing will become increasingly important for how automated systems understand and transact with online stores. Agentic commerce and Shopify provides a broader look at how AI agents may shape future eCommerce experiences.

Why BCRS Compliance Signals Improve AI Citation?

• Structured product data: When your Shopify product pages for eligible beverages clearly state ‘S$0.10 BCRS deposit included’ in the product description and schema metadata, AI systems like Google AI Overviews and Perplexity can accurately cite your products in response to queries like ‘where to buy [beverage] online Singapore’. Incomplete or missing deposit information in your product data creates ambiguity that AI systems resolve by citing more complete competitors.
• Structured data depth: Websites with deep schema markup are crawled 17% more deeply by AI bots, with content extracted 12% more reliably. Your product pages should include Product schema (price, availability), AggregateRating schema (reviews), and correct BreadcrumbList schema. FeeBee’s checkout-level implementation handles the deposit logic; your Shopify theme’s schema needs to reflect the correct base price (pre-deposit) to avoid price discrepancies in AI-extracted data.
• AI crawler access: Verify that major AI crawlers GPTBot (ChatGPT), OAI-SearchBot, PerplexityBot, Google-Extended (AI Overviews), and ClaudeBot are not blocked in your Shopify store’s robots.txt settings or via Cloudflare Bot Fight Mode. 27% of companies inadvertently block these crawlers. If your product pages cannot be crawled by AI systems, they cannot appear in AI-generated product recommendations.
• Trust signals via compliance: A Shopify store that correctly implements BCRS with transparent deposit labelling, government-source product descriptions, and accurate GST-excluded pricing signals trustworthiness to both human buyers and AI systems evaluating product information quality.

BCRS Compliance Checklist for Shopify Sellers

• ✅ Tag every plastic/metal beverage SKU sized 150ml–3L as BCRS-eligible.

• ✅ Confirm which SKUs currently carry the Deposit Mark and BCRS-approved barcode (only these should carry the deposit and be refund-eligible).

✅ Install and configure a fee/deposit app (FeeBee or equivalent) with a S$0.10 fixed, per-container fee.
✅ Confirm the deposit is excluded from GST calculation.
✅ Show the deposit as a distinct, non-removable line item across the product page, cart, checkout, and receipts.
✅ If you privately label or import your own beverage products, register separately as a Producer with BCRS Ltd. and track monthly Put-to-Market declarations.
✅ Plan for full transition by 1 October 2026, when selling unmarked regulated beverages becomes an offence.
✅ Advise customers ordering for delivery that damaged/crushed containers may not be accepted at Reverse Vending Machines; set an internal process for damaged-delivery refund requests, mirroring FairPrice’s approach.

Future-Proof Your Shopify Store for BCRS Compliance

Getting your Shopify storefront ready for Singapore’s Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS) before October 2026 ensures your business remains fully compliant while delivering a seamless checkout experience. Optimising your Shopify store for clear product information, transparent fees, and a smooth buying journey can also help reduce customer confusion. By setting up fee automation and updating your SKU tags early, you safeguard your store against non-compliance risks and minimise operational friction.

Looking for expert support to integrate BCRS compliance into a complex Shopify or enterprise eCommerce workflow? Work with our Shopify Plus specialists or contact Verz Design to get started.