EU publishes new guidance on verifying CBAM emissions
The European Commission has explained how CBAM emissions information will be independently verified. For most UK e-commerce businesses, no general action is required.
- Who this affects
- Producers, suppliers and EU importers dealing in goods covered by CBAM commodity codes.
- What you should do
- No general parcel action is required. Check exact commodity codes if you sell covered iron, steel, aluminium or other CBAM goods.
- Current status
- 1 September 2026
- Last checked
- 24 Aug 2026
- Official source
- Open the primary source ↗
What is changing?
From 1 September 2026, accredited CBAM verifiers can apply for access to the EU CBAM Registry.
Before access is granted, a verifier must receive CBAM accreditation from a recognised national accreditation body, apply for Registry access and pass checks completed by the relevant EU national authority.
Verifiers must register within two months of receiving accreditation, but cannot register before 1 September 2026. From January 2027, accredited verifiers will be able to issue verification reports through the Registry. EU importers can then use those reports when completing CBAM declarations based on actual emissions.
Which products are covered?
CBAM applies to specific EU commodity codes in six sectors:
- Iron and steel
- Aluminium
- Cement
- Fertilisers
- Hydrogen
- Electricity
A product is not automatically covered simply because it contains steel or aluminium. Businesses must check its exact EU Combined Nomenclature—CN—code against the official CBAM product list.
Does this affect UK e-commerce sellers?
For most UK e-commerce businesses, no action is required. The legal CBAM responsibility normally sits with the EU importer or its indirect customs representative.
For most covered goods, a 50-tonne annual threshold applies to the EU importer. Electricity and hydrogen do not benefit from that threshold exemption.
Where an EU importer wants to use actual emissions figures rather than European Commission default values, the producer outside the EU must calculate the emissions and have them checked by an accredited verifier.
UK producers or suppliers of covered goods may therefore receive requests for emissions information from EU customers. Resellers may need to obtain it from the original manufacturer.
Businesses that think their products may fall within CBAM should confirm the commodity codes with their EU importer or customs representative. No changes are required for goods outside the CBAM product codes.