The new ‘de minimis’ exemption substantially reduces administrative burdens for the vast majority of importers, while maintaining environmental and climate objectives.
The European Union is firmly committed to economic growth that is compatible with protecting the environment and combating climate change. However, the ambitious challenges taken on by the Union carry the risk of relocating production to other countries with a lower level of climate ambition and increasing imports of more carbon-intensive products, in what is known as carbon leakage risk.
In order to address this risk, Regulation (EU) 2023/956 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 establishing a carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) was approved. According to this Community regulation, imports in certain sectors (cement, electricity, fertilizers, foundry, iron and steel, aluminum and hydrogen) may only be conducted by persons who have the status of authorized declarant and acquire sufficient certificates to cover the emissions implicit in the imported goods.
Experience since the introduction of CBAM has shown that the vast majority of implicit emissions from imported goods accumulate in a small proportion of importers. Consequently, in order to simplify financial and information obligations for small importers, but without renouncing the environmental and climate objective of the CBAM, the new Regulation (EU) 2025/2083 introduces a new ‘de minimis’ exemption. This exemption is based on a single, cumulative threshold for imports from all sectors (except electricity and hydrogen). Thus, where the cumulative net mass of goods imported during a given calendar year does not exceed 50 tons, the importer shall be exempted from the obligations laid down in Regulation (EU) 2023/956.
In any event, if, during a given calendar year, an importer exceeds such a single threshold, it must comply with the CBAM obligations in respect of all implicit emissions in all goods imported during the full calendar year, including, in particular, (i) the requirement to obtain the status of an authorized declarant, (ii) the obligation to submit a declaration relating to implicit emissions in all goods imported in that year and (iii) the obligation to purchase and deliver CBAM certificates in relation to such emissions.
The aim of this new single mass-based threshold is to ensure that at least 99% of the emissions implied by imported goods remain within the scope of the CBAM, allowing it to maintain its environmental and climatic nature, but at the same time substantially reducing administrative burdens for the vast majority of importers. That single threshold shall therefore be reviewed annually and may be amended by the Commission by means of delegated acts.
Importers of goods included in the affected sectors must carefully analyze these obligations to ensure proper compliance, paying special attention to the possible application of this new exemption.
