The CBAM is a new instrument of the European Union to address greenhouse gas emissions embedded in certain goods on their importation into the customs territory of the Union in order to prevent the risk of carbon leakage.
It is established by Regulation (EU) 2023/956 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 establishing a carbon border adjustment mechanism. [The Regulation can be accessed at: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32023R0956.]
Goods affected by the CBAM Regulation
The CBAM Regulation shall apply to goods falling under the Combined Nomenclature (‘CN’) codes set out in Annex I to the Regulation. The CN codes shall be those under Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87. The categories of goods that are covered include: cement, electricity, fertilisers, iron and steel; aluminium; and hydrogen.
CBAM periods and applicable obligations
Transitional period (1st October 2023 – 31 December 2025): During the transitional period, importers of goods shall report, to the European Commission, on a quarterly basis, information on the quantity of the imported goods, direct and indirect emissions from those goods, and related carbon costs due in the country of origin taking into account any rebate or other form of compensation available.
A report for a quarter of a calendar year shall be submitted no later than one month after the end of that quarter.
During the transitional period there is no obligation to get the reports verified by independent accredited verifiers. However, importers may wish to seek verification as a means to gain experience with that procedure.
During the transitional period there will not be any obligation to surrender CBAM certificates in respect of reported emissions.
Reporting shall be done through a web-based systems hosted by the European Commission.
Definitive period (from 1st January 2026): By 31 May of each year, and for the first time by 31 May 2027 for the year 2026, each authorised CBAM declarant shall submit, to the European Commission, an annual report on the total quantity of each type of goods imported during the preceding calendar year, total embedded emissions in the those goods, the total number of CBAM certificates to be surrendered corresponding to the total embedded emissions reported, and copies of verification reports issued by accredited verifiers.
All the processes during the definitive period will be performed through a CBAM registry that will be established and hosted by the European Commission.
Importers, indirect customs representatives, and authorised declarants
During the transitional period, reporting shall be done by the importer or, in the case of an importer established in a Member State of the EU appointing an indirect customs representative, and where the indirect customs representative so agrees, the indirect customs representative. Where the importer is not established in a Member State of the EU, the reporting obligation shall apply to the indirect customs representative.
During the definitive period, obligations relating to reporting and surrender of CBAM certificates shall be fulfilled by the authorised CBAM declarant. Information on the process to get authorisation as a CBAM declarant will be provided in due course.
The Competent Authority
The Malta Resources Authority (MRA) is the competent authority for the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Thge MRA may be contected for more information at: [email protected].
Importers and indirect customs representatives shall be notified, via the appropriate customs systems, of the reporting obligations due during the transitional period.
Registration of importers/indirect customs representatives onto the CBAM portal is open. Importers who have imported goods falling within the scope of CBAM as of 1st October 2023, are kindly being asked to register with the MRA. A registration form can be downloaded from https://mra.mt/mbm/cbam.”
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