On 18 December 2024 the Council of the EU adopted a one-year postponement of the deforestation regulation. Which products it covers, what the new deadlines are and what importers should prepare.
The European Parliament approved on 17 December 2024, and the Council of the EU formally adopted on 18 December, a one-year postponement of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on deforestation-free products, known by its English initials, EUDR. The regulation, in force since 29 June 2023, was due to apply from 30 December 2024, and from 30 June 2025 to micro and small enterprises. With the postponement, the new deadlines are 30 December 2025 for large companies and 30 June 2026 for micro and small enterprises. The official announcements do not mention medium-sized companies separately, so they should check their date in the text published in the Official Journal.
What the regulation covers
The regulation covers seven commodities: cattle, wood, cocoa, soya, palm oil, coffee and rubber, and some derived products, such as leather, chocolate, tyres and furniture. Anyone placing them on the EU market, trading in them or exporting them has to show that they do not come from recently deforested land and have not contributed to forest degradation. The reference date is 31 December 2020: products from land deforested after that date are not allowed.
To show this, the operator must apply a due diligence system: gather information on origin, including the geolocation of the plots where each commodity was produced, assess the risk and submit a statement before placing the product on the market. The Commission has to classify countries by risk, low, standard or high; with the postponement, that classification is delayed by six months, to 30 June 2025 at the latest.
Why it is being postponed
The Council had already said in October that the postponement aims to give “legal certainty, predictability and sufficient time” for a smooth transition and effective implementation, and allows third countries, operators and traders to prepare. More than 200 civil society organisations from more than 40 countries had asked for it to be rejected, and several business associations in food, media, packaging and timber considered it “simply unfeasible” to apply the regulation at the end of the year.
The agreement does not change the content of the regulation, only the dates. Parliament had tried to introduce changes, including a “no risk” category of countries, but they were dropped in the negotiation with the Council. Clarifications and simplifications of the reporting and documentation obligations are expected during 2025. For the postponement to take effect before the original date of application, the text must be signed and published in the Official Journal of the EU before the end of the year.
What importers should prepare
An extra year does not mean waiting. Companies that import or trade in these commodities, or in products that contain them, such as food, leather goods, footwear, tyres or furniture, should already know what they buy, from which suppliers and from which plots, and whether they can obtain their geolocation. It is worth reviewing supplier contracts and traceability clauses, and deciding who in the company will be responsible for the due diligence statement.
If the company buys through a distributor, it is worth asking what information the distributor has and whether it can pass it on. A good first step is to make an inventory of the affected products, with their origin and customs code, and check what data is missing. After that, you can start with the suppliers and products of greatest volume and extend to the rest, so as to reach the new date with the supply chain already documented. Ask your adviser how this applies to your case.
A year’s margin is time to put the supply chain in order, not to forget about it.
This article is general information. It is not legal, tax or investment advice, and it does not take anyone’s particular circumstances into account.
