The European Parliament has approved updates to the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), providing much-needed relief for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and occasional importers. As part of the “Omnibus I” legislative package, the revised rules introduce a new de minimis mass threshold, exempting imports of up to 50 tonnes per importer per year from CBAM obligations.
This replaces the earlier exemption that applied only to low-value goods.
This change is expected to ease the regulatory burden on approximately 90% of importers, mostly SMEs, by sparing them from complex compliance tasks such as emissions reporting, verification, and obtaining special authorisations. Despite the exemption, 99% of total CO₂ emissions from CBAM-covered goods—such as steel, aluminium, cement, and fertilisers—will remain within the mechanism’s scope, ensuring the environmental integrity of the system is maintained.
The reform also includes measures to simplify administrative processes. These include more streamlined procedures for authorising CBAM declarants, verifying emissions data, and managing financial responsibilities. Anti-abuse provisions have been introduced to prevent misuse of the exemptions and maintain a level playing field.
The updated legislation was adopted with overwhelming support: 617 votes in favour, 18 against, and 19 abstentions.
It now awaits formal approval from the Council of the EU. Once published in the EU Official Journal, it will come into force three days later. A further review is scheduled for early 2026, which may expand the CBAM to cover more sectors and address carbon leakage concerns for EU exporters.
