The EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism entered its definitive period on 1 January 2026, covering cement, iron and steel, aluminium, fertilisers, electricity, hydrogen and certain downstream steel and aluminium products.
Trade coverage often blends the law in force with the proposed extension. Our database refuses to: the definitive regime and the 457-product proposal are two independent case cards with different statuses.
This separation is what makes the tracker later usable for compliance work.
Case status
The compliance timeline
1 January 2026 definitive start, certificate sales from 1 February 2027, annual surrender on 30 September. Each date has a source.
Scope of the measure
Two emissions paths
Actual verified embedded emissions versus default values. We note the data preparation needed for the first path and the penalty logic of the second.
Where steel structures sit
Existing CN codes for certain downstream steel and aluminium goods are flagged, with a cross-reference to the extension proposal.
Data box
| Field | Value as reported |
|---|---|
| Definitive start | 1 January 2026 |
| Certificate sales | From 1 February 2027 |
| Annual surrender | 30 September |
| Q1 2026 price | 75.36 EUR per tCO2e |
| Related card | R05 / M05 extension proposal, status: negotiating mandate |
All figures above are quoted with the unit and reference period used by the primary source. They are reproduced here for reference, not independently re-measured.
What has not been decided: verification note
The certificate price is quarterly and tracks EU ETS; it is not an annual average. The expansion proposal has its own card and a proposed or negotiating-mandate status.
What to watch next
Implementing acts on default values and the first reporting-cycle guidance.
Primary sources
- EU CBAM Regulation / EUR-Lex and implementing acts
- European Commission CBAM certificate pricing publications
- TARIC / CN code lists
Trade-remedy status changes. Check the official gazette or case file before relying on any rate or date in this entry.
Researched and written by the solarrack.wiki editorial desk. Every figure in this article carries a source and a verification note; where a claim could not be confirmed against a primary document, it is labelled as such. Corrections: [email protected]
