CBAM Reporting Regulation Questions and Answers

The CBAM Regulation only applies to goods originating from third countries and imported into the EU. Goods produced in EU outermost regions like La Réunion, Mayotte, Guadeloupe, and Martinique, are not subject to the CBAM.

All non-EU countries are generally subject to the CBAM unless they participate in the EU ETS or have an emissions trading system linked to it. This includes countries in the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland.

Yes. Reporting declarants may face penalties ranging between EUR 10 and EUR 50 per tonne of unreported emissions.

In the case of missing or incorrect CBAM reports, the National Competent Authority (NCA) may initiate a correction procedure, granting the possibility to rectify any raised error.

Penalties apply when:

• The reporting declarant has not taken the necessary steps to submit a CBAM report.

• The CBAM report is incorrect or incomplete, and the reporting declarant has not taken the necessary steps to correct the CBAM report after the competent authority initiated the correction procedure.

The CBAM main objective is to reduce carbon leakage. That being said the regulation impacts mainly basic materials but also certain finished products, such as steel fasteners. As the CBAM progresses, EU will review the results and determine if the CBAM scope should be broadened and if additional goods and sectors should be included.

Returned goods, as defined in Article 203 of the Union Customs Code, are goods that are released for free circulation and benefit from duty exemption because they were Union goods before. In terms of CBAM reporting obligations:

• CBAM reporting does not apply to returned goods during the transitional period.

• During the definitive period, reporting declarants will have to report returned goods in their annual CBAM declaration, however they must input ‘zero’ for the total embedded emissions.

After submission, a Declarant can modify and correct their first three CBAM reports until 31 July 2024. Also, in case a Declarant is unable to submit a CBAM report within the submission deadline due to technical errors, the declarant can request a delayed submission via the CBAM Transitional Registry.

In case of late submission, according to the EU’s CBAM website, declarants should contact the National Competent Authority (NCA) of the Member State where they are established. And in case the declarants are not registered, they should contact the NCA via the contacts points indicated in the document published on the Commission CBAM website under the “where to report” section. The Declarant will then have 30 days to submit the report.

The Importer is responsible when the importer lodges a customs declaration for release for free circulation of goods on its own behalf, and when the importer is also the declarant holding an authorisation to lodge a customs declaration and declares the imports;

The Indirect Customs Representative is responsible when the customs declaration is lodged by an appointed indirect representative: in cases where the importer is established outside of the Union, or when an indirect customs representative has agreed to the reporting obligations even when the Importer is established in the EU.

The appointed indirect customs representative has to be established in the EU and comply with the conditions for customs representation.

The importer is free to use different indirect customs representatives, each being accountable for the specific CBAM goods that they have introduced in their customs declaration. Each representative will show their own EORI number at the customs, which is the evidence of who is responsible for the CBAM reporting obligation.

An indirect customs representative can also carry out the CBAM reporting obligation and act as reporting declarant for multiple importers. In such case, the indirect customs representative must still submit one single quarterly CBAM report containing all the CBAM goods for which he has carried out the customs declaration. He cannot submit several quarterly CBAM reports for a single reporting period.

The rule is: the goods are attributed to a CBAM reporting declarant through the EORI number provided to the customs authorities. So by default, each subsidiary that has distinct EORI number and goods allocated to its EORI number has to submit a CBAM Report separately.

In a case that an Indirect Customs Representatives acts as the “reporting declarant” and submits the CBAM report for all the other group entities. In this case the Indirect Customs Representative must also be responsible for carrying out the customs obligations related to the goods covered by the CBAM report.

However, it is also possible for one group Entity to submit the reports as a “service provider” for other entities of the same Company. In this scenario:

• The other group entities would remain reporting declarants for the goods they imported and would therefore remain legally liable for the CBAM report, and

• The group entity acting as service provider would need to submit a separate CBAM report for the goods imported by each group entity, including for the goods it has imported itself.

No, verification by an external independent body will only be mandatory for 2026 CBAM exercise, hence verifications by certified auditors will be needed in 2027, when you need to validate your 2026 results. The EU will launch a secondary legislation for the definitive period in the coming years which will define the rules for verification of emissions.

If the total intrinsic value of the imported CBAM goods (one or more CBAM goods) included in one consignment does not exceed EUR 150, you do not need to report it. The overall value of the total CBAM goods in one consignment has to be considered, and if that value is below EUR 150 you would not need to include it in your CBAM Report.

A CBAM report that has already been submitted may still be corrected until two months after the end of the reporting quarter.

However for the first two quarterly reports, the Implementing Regulation allows for a longer period for corrections up until 31 July 2024.

There is no need to provide any original documents. However, according to Annex III section A.2 of the Implementing Regulation, your suppliers or your production facilities outside the EU should keep complete records of all data relevant for determining embedded emissions of the goods produced, including necessary supporting documents, for at least 4 years after the reporting period. These records may be requested by EU Member States in case of a review of the quarterly CBAM report.

A carbon price is the monetary amount paid in a third country, which can adopt various forms such as a tax, levy, fee or emission allowances under a greenhouse gas emissions trading system.

During the transitional period, reporting declarants must report the effective carbon price due in the jurisdiction where the CBAM good was produced.

During the definitive period, the disclosure of this information will give importers a rebate, to avoid double pricing of embedded emissions.

You can modify/correct the report as many times as you want, as long as the correction is done within the allowed timeframe stated in the legislation.

You are free to modify the report either by deleting the report and resubmitting it again, or by changing individual sets of information.