CBAM news and rule changes for non-EU steel and aluminium producers
Latest: UK publishes illustrative CBAM rates: £9.69/tCO2e for steel, £9.79 for aluminium (16 October 2026). The latest EU rule
now in force: Default values corrected — Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1740 (31 July 2026).
This page lists 36 dated events — 20 rule changes and 16 industry news items — each with
what it means for a producer outside the EU and a link to the official source.
Only what affects your numbers or your customers' requests. Dates are the dates of the events;
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On 16 October 2026 the UK government published illustrative UK CBAM rates of £9.69 per tCO2e for iron and steel and £9.79 per tCO2e for aluminium, based on the average UK ETS price for July to September 2026; the rates that apply from 1 January to 31 March 2027 will be published before the end of 2026.
What it means for you: If you also sell to the United Kingdom, these figures show the order of magnitude your UK customers may pay per tonne of embodied emissions from 2027; they are illustrative only and are not the rates that will apply. Note: cbamfile.com covers the EU CBAM only and does not calculate the UK CBAM.
On 16 October 2026 the UK government published a draft Default Values Force of Law Notice setting UK CBAM default values for 1 January 2027 to 31 December 2028, based on EU data weighted to UK imports, with a 10% mark-up in all sectors except fertiliser; country-specific default values are planned from 2029.
What it means for you: If you also sell to the United Kingdom and cannot supply actual emissions data, your UK customers would fall back on these default values from 2027; they are still a draft. Note: cbamfile.com covers the EU CBAM only and does not calculate the UK CBAM.
On 14 October 2026 the House of Commons approved, by 319 votes to 115, the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (Calculation of CBAM Rate and Determination of Carbon Price Relief) Regulations 2026, made on 13 July 2026 and in force from 1 January 2027.
What it means for you: If you also sell to the United Kingdom, these rules set how your UK customers' CBAM rate is calculated and how relief for a carbon price paid abroad is determined from 2027. They are separate from the EU rules. Note: cbamfile.com covers the EU CBAM only and does not calculate the UK CBAM.
By approval no. 18814 of 13 October 2026, announced on 14 October 2026, Türkiye's Directorate of Climate Change extended the deadline for installations in the TR-ETS pilot period to submit their first Monitoring Methodology Plans to 27 January 2027.
What it means for you: If your plant is in the Turkish pilot ETS, you have until 27 January 2027 to submit your first monitoring plan in Türkiye. This is a Turkish obligation and does not change your EU CBAM data.
On 5 October 2026 the Commission published the CBAM certificate price for the third quarter of 2026 at €82.32 per tonne of CO2e, up from €75.28 for the second quarter and €75.36 for the first.
What it means for you: The price applies to emissions in goods your customers imported between July and September 2026. To estimate what your customer pays per tonne of product, multiply the certificates per tonne shown on your country page by this price. The Q4 2026 price is scheduled for 4 January 2027.
Türkiye's Directorate of Climate Change published on 1 October 2026 the Procedures and Principles for the TR-ETS pilot period (approval no. 18626 of 30 September 2026): it covers 2026 and 2027 emissions from installations above the threshold in power, cement, iron and steel, aluminium and fertilisers, with reporting only for 2026, 100% free allocation for 2027, and surrender for 2027 due by the last business day of November 2028.
What it means for you: If your plant is covered, you must report 2026 emissions in Türkiye and submit verified activity level reports (2026 by 30 April 2027). With 100% free allocation for 2027, little or no carbon price will actually be paid under the pilot, so little or nothing can be deducted from your EU customers' CBAM certificates for those years.
The Commission's review found that the 50-tonne annual threshold exempted 0.87% of embedded emissions between April 2025 and March 2026 — below the 1% limit — so the threshold stays as it is.
What it means for you: EU buyers importing less than 50 tonnes of CBAM goods a year still owe nothing and may not need your data; most of your customers' volume remains in scope.
On 15 September 2026 the European Parliament adopted its negotiating position, by 464 votes to 50 with 159 abstentions, on extending CBAM beyond basic materials to finished steel and aluminium goods such as fasteners, wire, springs and household articles.
What it means for you: Nothing changes yet: Parliament now negotiates with the member states, and the current list of covered CN codes stays in force until an amending regulation is adopted. If you make finished goods from steel or aluminium that are not covered today, expect to be asked for data once the extension is law.
The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (Emissions and Verification) Regulations 2026 were made on 8 September 2026 and apply from 1 January 2027, setting the UK's rules for embodied emissions and their verification.
What it means for you: If you also sell to the United Kingdom, your UK customers will ask for embodied-emissions data under a separate UK regime from 2027. Note: cbamfile.com covers the EU CBAM only and does not calculate the UK CBAM.
On 2 September 2026 China's Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued the national carbon market allowance cap and allocation plan for power generation for 2025 and 2026 and for the steel, cement and aluminium smelting sectors for 2026 (Guohuan Guiqihou [2026] No. 1).
What it means for you: Chinese steel and aluminium producers receive allowances under this plan for 2026; only a carbon price actually paid, after free allocation, could later count against your EU customers' CBAM certificates.
The Commission published the procedure for accredited verifiers to join the CBAM Registry, with access from 1 September 2026.
What it means for you: Verification of your 2026 data can begin, and the first verification reports are expected from January 2027. Until your figures are verified, describe them as verification-ready.
Türkiye published the implementing regulation for its national emissions trading system in the Official Gazette of 27 August 2026 (issue 33353).
What it means for you: A Turkish carbon price may later be relevant to the CBAM deduction for a carbon price paid, but only for a price actually paid after any free allocation. Check whether your plant is covered.
The Commission published guidance for verifiers and national accreditation bodies on verifying embedded emissions under CBAM.
What it means for you: It shows what your verifier will check — documents, the site visit and your monitoring plan — so it is worth reading before you book one.
The European Commission published guidance for the CBAM definitive period, including documents on calculating embedded emissions and sector guidance for iron and steel and for aluminium.
What it means for you: The guidance explains how the calculation is done and what a verifier will look for. It is not legally binding — the implementing acts prevail — but it is what your EU customer and their verifier will follow. The help texts in the calculator cite it.
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1740 of 20 July 2026, published on 31 July 2026, corrects the default values in Annexes I and IV of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2621 and applies from 1 January 2026.
What it means for you: The correction fixes erroneous and missing default values, units and production-route indicators, and it applies retroactively to the whole of 2026. If you compared your figure with a default value before August 2026, check it again. Every country page and the CN code page on this site use the corrected values.
The Commission published the CBAM certificate price for the second quarter of 2026 at €75.28 per tonne of CO2e, after €75.36 for the first quarter (published 7 April 2026).
What it means for you: The price is the weighted average of EU ETS auction prices for the quarter. To estimate what your customer pays per tonne of product, multiply the certificates per tonne shown on your country page by this price. The Q3 2026 price is scheduled for 5 October 2026.
EU member states agreed their position on extending CBAM to downstream goods and on anti-circumvention measures, ahead of negotiations with the European Parliament.
What it means for you: Finished steel and aluminium parts may come into scope, proposed from 2028. Nothing changes until the amending regulation is adopted.
The Commission published a draft implementing regulation on how a carbon price paid in the country of production can reduce the CBAM certificates an importer must surrender; the consultation ran until 10 June 2026.
What it means for you: Only a price actually paid counts, after free allowances, rebates and exemptions are deducted, and it must be backed by a certified carbon price report from the producer. The deduction is claimed by the EU declarant, not by you. Where free allocation covers most emissions, the deduction will be small. The rules are still a draft.
Importers that applied for authorised CBAM declarant status by 31 March 2026 may keep importing above the 50-tonne threshold while their application is processed.
What it means for you: An EU customer without that status cannot import CBAM goods above 50 tonnes a year — worth checking before you agree volumes.
The Finance Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 18 March 2026; it introduces a UK carbon border adjustment on aluminium, cement, fertiliser, hydrogen, iron and steel imported from 1 January 2027.
What it means for you: UK customers will need embodied-emissions data from 2027, under rules that differ from the EU's. Note: cbamfile.com covers the EU CBAM only and does not calculate the UK CBAM.
The Commission published the registration and form-filling guides for non-EU installation operators in the CBAM Registry's operator portal (O3CI).
What it means for you: You can register your installation and share your emissions data once with every EU customer. It is free; it needs an EU Login account.
Decision 263/QĐ-TTg of 9 February 2026 approved emission caps for Viet Nam's pilot emissions trading system for 2025–2026, covering steel facilities among others.
What it means for you: Vietnamese steelmakers may face a domestic carbon price; only a price actually paid, after free allocation, could later count against CBAM.
From 1 January 2026 importers need authorised declarant status above 50 tonnes a year, and the first annual declaration and certificate surrender are due by 30 September 2027.
What it means for you: Goods you produce and export to the EU in 2026 are the first that cost your customer money. Record your actual emissions for the full calendar year.
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2621, adopted on 16 December 2025 and published on 31 December 2025, sets the default values that apply from 1 January 2026.
What it means for you: These are the figures your customer uses when you send no verified data, plus a mark-up of 10% in 2026, 20% in 2027 and 30% from 2028. They were later corrected by Regulation (EU) 2026/1740.
Implementing Regulations (EU) 2025/2547 on calculating embedded emissions and 2025/2620 on benchmarks, and Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2551 on the accreditation of verifiers, were published on 22 December 2025.
What it means for you: Regulation 2025/2547 sets how your figures must be calculated; Regulation 2025/2551 governs who may verify them.
The Commission proposed extending CBAM to around 180 steel- and aluminium-intensive downstream products from 1 January 2028, with anti-circumvention measures, together with a separate decarbonisation fund for EU industry.
What it means for you: If you make finished goods from steel or aluminium that are not covered today, they may come into scope from 2028.
Regulation (EU) 2025/2083 was published on 17 October 2025: it sets a 50-tonne annual threshold per importer, moves the first annual declaration to 30 September 2027 and starts certificate sales on 1 February 2027.
What it means for you: Some small buyers drop out of CBAM altogether; larger ones still need your data by mid-2027.
India notified greenhouse-gas emission-intensity targets under its Carbon Credit Trading Scheme for aluminium, cement, chlor-alkali and pulp and paper, for 2025-26 and 2026-27.
What it means for you: Indian aluminium smelters now have compliance targets. Any CBAM deduction would depend on the EU's rules for a carbon price actually paid, which are still a draft.
Türkiye's Climate Law No. 7552 was published in the Official Gazette of 9 July 2025, providing the legal basis for a national emissions trading system.
What it means for you: The first step towards a Turkish carbon price — relevant to CBAM only once a price is actually paid.
China's Ministry of Ecology and Environment announced that the national emissions trading system would cover the steel, cement and aluminium sectors, adding around 1,500 companies.
What it means for you: Chinese producers face a domestic carbon price; only a price actually paid, after free allocation, could count against CBAM.
The Commission's CBAM page lists the current Communication Template for installations under 18 December 2024; the file itself is dated 13 December 2024 (version 2.1).
What it means for you: This is the Excel file EU importers ask producers to fill in. It was written for the transitional period, and no newer version has been published.
The transitional period ran from 1 October 2023 to 31 December 2025: importers reported embedded emissions quarterly but paid nothing. The reporting rules are in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/1773.
What it means for you: Your first CBAM data requests date from this period.
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