EUDR update: Commission announces 12-months EUDR postponement
EUDR update: Commission announces 12-months EUDR postponement, new guidance documents and updated FAQ + new technical provisions concerning TARIC system.
After the EUDR update at the 71st FEFPEB congress last week in Belgium, a lot happened and this is to inform you on the postponement proposal by the European Commission.
More time for a proper implementation and this is for the moment a relief for all stakeholders.
Nevertheless our efforts in this field, in close co-operation with other umbrella institutions, will continue.
So yesterday the European Commission announced the 12-month postponement (officially ‘phasing-in’) of the EUDR’s date of application to 30 December 2025 for large companies and 30 June 2026 for micro- and small enterprises.
The proposal has still to be approved by both the Parliament and Council but given the strong backing of the EPP to an extension, in addition to similar calls from a number of member states, it is likely to be cleared. If approved, it would make the law applicable on 30 December 2025 for large companies and 30 June 2026 for micro- and small enterprises. The Commission goes on to add “Since all the implementation tools are technically ready, the extra 12 months can serve as a phasing-in period to ensure proper and effective implementation.”
Guidance document and extended FAQ published today
The Commission published the additional guidance document which include details on the functionalities of the Information System, updates on penalties, and clarifications on critical definitions such as ‘forest degradation', ‘operator' in the scope of the law, and ‘placing on the market'. There is also further guidance on traceability obligations.
The guidance is divided into 11 chapters covering a diverse range of issues such as legality requirements, timeframe of application, agricultural use, and clarifications on the product scope. All of these are supported by tangible scenarios.
In addition, click here for the latest FAQ, features over 40 new additional answers to address questions raised by a diverse range of stakeholders from around the world.
Guidance on EU Deforestation Regulation
- For timber and timber products as defined in Article 2(a) of the EUTR, special rules apply, pursuant to Article 37(3) of EUDR:
- For timber and timber products produced before 29 June 2023 and:
- placed on the market before 30 December 2024, such products must comply with the rules of the EUTR;
- placed on the market from 30 December 2024 until 31 December 2027: the rules of EUTR continue to apply;
- placed on the market from 31 December 2027, such products shall comply with Article 3 of the EUDR.
- For timber and timber products produced from 29 June 2023 until 30 December 2024 and:
- placed on the market before 30 December 2024, such products must comply with the rules of the EUTR;
- placed on the market from 30 December 2024, such products must comply with the rules of the EUDR.
- Timber and timber products produced from 30 December 2024 must comply with the rules of the EUDR.
- For timber and timber products produced before 29 June 2023 and:
Country Benchmarking – most classified as low risk
The Commission will also publish the principles of the methodology it will apply to the EUDR benchmarking exercise, serving to classify countries as low, standard, or high risk, aiming to facilitate operators' due diligence processes and enable competent authorities to effectively monitor and enforce compliance.
Following the methodology applied, a large majority of countries worldwide will be classified as ‘low risk' to allow focus efforts where deforestation is most acute. The Commission plans to finalise the country benchmarking system through an Implementing Act by 30 June 2025.
SME factsheet - Obligations for SMEs operating under EUDR
- Less obligations for downstream SME operators: No need to exercise due diligence or submit a due diligence statement, when it was already done by the upstream operator, i.e. the operator that first put the commodity or derived product on the market.
- Lighter mitigation measures for all SME operators: SMEs are not required to put in place policies and procedures to mitigate risks of non-compliance of relevant products.
- No reporting obligations: SME operators are not subject to the annual reporting obligations of their due diligence system.
- EUDR - Myths vs. Reality: Debunking myths around the EU Deforestation Regulation.
Proposal for a Regulation amending Deforestation Regulation as regards the date of application
- (5) Implementing Regulation of [xx 2024] on the functioning of the information system pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 provides for an information system and access to it to operators and traders, and if applicable, their authorised representatives, competent authorities, and customs authorities, to implement their respective obligations laid down in the Regulation. Operators and traders thus would be able to register and submit due diligence statements even before the entry into application of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115.
- (8) However, to provide operators and traders with the information on assignment of risk to relevant countries of production well in advance before their due diligence obligations start to apply, the date by when the Commission is to classify countries or parts thereof, that present a low or high risk should be postponed only by 6 months.
Guidance on EU Deforestation Regulation
- For timber and timber products as defined in Article 2(a) of the EUTR, special rules apply, pursuant to Article 37(3) of EUDR:
- For timber and timber products produced before 29 June 2023 and:
- placed on the market before 30 December 2024, such products must comply with the rules of the EUTR;
- placed on the market from 30 December 2024 until 31 December 2027: the rules of EUTR continue to apply;
- placed on the market from 31 December 2027, such products shall comply with Article 3 of the EUDR.
- For timber and timber products produced from 29 June 2023 until 30 December 2024 and:
- placed on the market before 30 December 2024, such products must comply with the rules of the EUTR;
- placed on the market from 30 December 2024, such products must comply with the rules of the EUDR.
- Timber and timber products produced from 30 December 2024 must comply with the rules of the EUDR.
- For timber and timber products produced before 29 June 2023 and:
TARIC System
The European Commission has also adopted new technical provisions concerning the TARIC system (click here).
Considering that the obligations of the EUDR will apply to both the importing and exporting of products in scope to and from the Union, the customs declaration system will have to be uniform and will need to accommodate the differences existing between the export and import declarations. To that end, the Commission has created the following new TARIC measure types:
- 776: Import control on deforestation and forest degradation
- 777: Export control on deforestation and forest degradation
In addition, the Commission has introduced specific TARIC conditions and document codes to identify when a product is excluded or included in the scope of the EUDR and, in the former case, when the relevant due diligence statements have been provided or whether an exemption is applicable.
We keep you informed on further developments.