Brussels eases corporate obligations ahead of EU deforestation law implementation

Brussels – Another of the Green Deal’s landmark laws is lowering its head in the face of the new imperative for simplification and competitiveness. The European Commission is nudging the EU deforestation regulation (EUDR), whose implementation has already been delayed for a year. Ahead of its entry into force on December 31, 2025, Brussels published today (April 16) a series of measures that should reduce costs and administrative burdens for companies by about 30 percent.

With this simplification package, the Commission “maintains the commitment made towards the European Parliament and the Council,” reads a note from the EU executive. After a chaotic tussle over the possible amendment of the regulation, the European Commission had promised — particularly to the European Parliament, where the European People’s Party and the right-wing parties tried hard to water down the law already passed — that it would “provide further clarifications on the legislation and explore further simplifications, while fully respecting the objectives of the regulation.”

In a written statement attached to the agreement by which the EU institutions confirmed the one-year delay of the regulations on December 4, the Commission pledged to “alleviate the burden on businesses by reducing administrative requirements and eliminating unnecessary red tape.” Specifically, the provision, called EUDR (Deforestation-free Products Regulation), aims to prevent the entry into the single market of products that result from the over-exploitation of forested areas, imposing greater control of corporate supply chains. The tightening affects palm oil, wood, beef, and rubber in particular, but also several associated materials, such as leather, chocolate, furniture, printed paper, and charcoal.

First, Brussels updated the guidance for companies, EU member state authorities, and partner countries, clarifying how to comply with the regulations and demonstrating that their activities are not involved in deforestation processes. The guidance document “reflects input from member states, partner countries, business and industry,” the European Commission points out. Still in the works, however, is the benchmarking system, through which the EU will identify low-, medium- and high-risk countries, which “will be adopted by June 30, 2025, following discussions with Member States.”

In essence, the simplification measures introduced today mean that large companies will, for example, be able to reuse deforestation impact statements when goods previously on the EU market are re-imported. They can submit certifications annually instead of for each shipment or batch on the EU market. It will be sufficient for European companies to collect due diligence declaration reference numbers from their suppliers and use those references for their own declarations.

“We are committed to implementing the EU rules on deforestation in a spirit of close cooperation, transparency, and open dialogue. Our goal is to reduce the administrative burden on businesses while preserving the objectives of the regulation,” said Jessika Roswall, EU Commissioner for the Environment. During 2024, the European Commission held over 300 meetings with stakeholders to facilitate the implementation of the regulation.