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CBAM timeline: the dates that actually move money

By Jai Nischal Verma · Prices checked 31 Oct 2026 · EU law guide

CBAM Timeline, 2026 to 2034: The dates that actually move money

Law last checked: 31 October 2026. Figures below are copied from the EU texts linked in Sources. This is general information, not legal, tax or customs advice. Rules and prices change; confirm them before you import.

CBAM does not arrive as one cliff in 2034. It arrives as a stack of dates, and the expensive ones are easy to miss because 2026 feels quiet. You report, but you don’t buy certificates until February 2027. The phase-in, meanwhile, is already moving.

CBAM timeline from 1 January 2026 to 2034. 1 Jan 2026: Definitive regime starts. Over 50 t needs a declarant; hydrogen and power always do.; 7 Apr 2026: Q1 certificate price published: €75.36 per tonne of CO2e.; 6 Jul 2026: Q2 certificate price published: €75.28.; 5 Oct 2026: Q3 certificate price published: €82.32.; 4 Jan 2027: Q4 2026 price due. It was not published on the day we checked.; 1 Feb 2027: Certificate sales open on the common central platform.; 30 Sep 2027: First declaration and surrender, for 2026 imports. Then a 50% quarterly hold.; 2034: Free allocation for CBAM goods ends. Simplified paid share: 100%.CBAM timeline1 Jan 2026Definitive regime starts. Over 50 t needs a declarant; hydrogen and power always do.7 Apr 2026Q1 certificate price published: €75.36 per tonne of CO2e.6 Jul 2026Q2 certificate price published: €75.28.5 Oct 2026Q3 certificate price published: €82.32.4 Jan 2027Q4 2026 price due. It was not published on the day we checked.1 Feb 2027Certificate sales open on the common central platform.30 Sep 2027First declaration and surrender, for 2026 imports. Then a 50% quarterly hold.2034Free allocation for CBAM goods ends. Simplified paid share: 100%.
CBAM timeline from 1 January 2026 to 2034
Key CBAM dates
WhenWhat happensSource
1 January 2026Definitive regime applies. Authorised declarant status is required above 50 tonnes, and always for hydrogen and electricity.Regulation 2023/956; Commission definitive-regime page
7 April 2026Q1 2026 certificate price published: EUR 75.36.Commission price page
6 July 2026Q2 2026 price published: EUR 75.28.Commission price page
5 October 2026Q3 2026 price published: EUR 82.32.Commission price page
4 January 2027Q4 2026 price due. Not published on the day we checked.Commission price page
1 February 2027Member States start selling certificates on the common central platform.Regulation 2023/956, Article 20
30 September 2027First annual declaration and first surrender, for the 2026 calendar year. Same date every year after that, for the year just closed.Regulation 2023/956, Articles 6 and 22
From 2027, each quarter-endHold certificates equal to at least 50% of year-to-date embedded emissions, with the free-allocation adjustment taken into account. The duty is met by the end of the quarter after you cross the 50-tonne line.Regulation 2023/956, Article 22(2)
31 OctoberYou can ask for excess certificates to be bought back, at the price you paid, within the limits in Article 23.Regulation 2023/956, Article 23
1 November 2027Certificates bought for 2026 emissions that are still sitting there are cancelled, with no compensation.Regulation 2023/956, Article 24
2034No CBAM factor applies. Free allocation for these goods ends. On the simplified reading, the paid share is 100%.Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a); Commission Guidance No. 4
Dates checked against the consolidated CBAM Regulation, the Commission price page and Directive 2003/87/EC, 31 Oct 2026. How we got these numbers.

The phase-in beside the dates

The CBAM factor is the share of free allocation that EU producers of the same goods still receive. It is 97.5% in 2026 and steps down to nothing in 2034[4][7]. A simplified reading of “what importers pay” is one minus that factor. It is a useful map. It is not the surrender formula, which uses benchmarks[6].

CBAM phase-in, 2026 to 2034: share of embedded emissions paid under a flat (1 − CBAM factor) reading. 2026 2.5% paid, free-allocation factor 97.5%; 2027 5% paid, free-allocation factor 95%; 2028 10% paid, free-allocation factor 90%; 2029 22.5% paid, free-allocation factor 77.5%; 2030 48.5% paid, free-allocation factor 51.5%; 2031 61% paid, free-allocation factor 39%; 2032 73.5% paid, free-allocation factor 26.5%; 2033 86% paid, free-allocation factor 14%; 2034 100% paid, free-allocation factor 0%Share of emissions you pay, simplified phase-in2.5%20265%202710%202822.5%202948.5%203061%203173.5%203286%2033100%2034Green = share paid that year. Pale bar above it = CBAM free-allocation factor still left.PaidFree-allocation factor
CBAM phase-in, 2026 to 2034: share of embedded emissions paid under a flat (1 − CBAM factor) reading
CBAM factor and the simplified share you pay
YearCBAM factor (free allocation)Simplified share paidWhere it comes from
202697.5%2.5%Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a)
202795%5%Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a)
202890%10%Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a)
202977.5%22.5%Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a)
203051.5%48.5%Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a)
203139%61%Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a)
203226.5%73.5%Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a)
203314%86%Directive 2003/87/EC Art. 10a(1a)
20340%100%Directive: no CBAM factor from 2034; Commission guidance lists 0%
Factors checked against Directive 2003/87/EC Article 10a(1a) and Commission Guidance No. 4, 31 Oct 2026. How we got these numbers.

What this costs you

In 2026 the simplified share is 2.5%. On the 100-tonne example at the Q3 price, that is €370.44. In 2030 the simplified share is 48.5%. In 2034 it is 100%. The certificate price will not be €82.32 in those years; that number is only the Q3 2026 print[2]. Use the calculator and type the price that actually applies.

If you are still deciding whether the 50-tonne line even applies to you, start with the threshold checker, then the declarant steps.

Sources

Every dated figure on this page is taken from the EU texts below. Where a shipment example uses 100 tonnes and 1.8 tCO2e per tonne, that pair is an illustration, not a published default. Law last checked 31 October 2026. See our methodology and editorial policy. General information, not legal, tax or customs advice.

  1. [1] European Commission: CBAM definitive regime (from 1 January 2026): https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/carbon-border-adjustment-mechanism/cbam-definitive-regime_en (checked 31 Oct 2026)
  2. [2] European Commission: Price of CBAM certificates (quarterly table): https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/carbon-border-adjustment-mechanism/price-cbam-certificates_en (checked 31 Oct 2026)
  3. [3] Regulation (EU) 2023/956, consolidated 20 October 2025 (CBAM Regulation): https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/956/2025-10-20/eng (checked 31 Oct 2026)
  4. [4] Directive 2003/87/EC, consolidated (EU ETS), Article 10a(1a) CBAM factor: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2003/87 (checked 31 Oct 2026)
  5. [5] Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2548 (certificate price method): https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX%3A32025R2548 (checked 31 Oct 2026)
  6. [6] Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2620 (free-allocation adjustment): https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/2620/oj/eng (checked 31 Oct 2026)
  7. [7] European Commission Guidance No. 4 on the free-allocation adjustment (CBAM factor table, including 2034 at 0%): https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/document/download/3aa2c730-4f1b-4524-8f71-d9cfe4880ac7_en?filename=Guidance+No.+4+-+CBAM+calculation+of+the+free+allocation+adjustment+to+the+number+of+CBAM+certificates+to+be+surrendered.pdf (checked 31 Oct 2026)