European Union · Administrative guidance
EU maps CBAM verifier accreditation capacity
On 21 October 2026, the European Commission published a country-by-country snapshot of national bodies offering accreditation to verifiers under the definitive Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.
- Official document:
- CBAM accreditation state-of-play; Regulation (EU) 2023/956 Articles 6, 8 and 18
- Development date:
- 2026-10-21
Accreditation capacity remains uneven
The Commission's two-page table reports that 24 national accreditation bodies have agreed to provide CBAM accreditation and 20 are ready to accept applications. Seven bodies have agreed to accredit applicants established outside the EU and are already accepting those applications: the bodies in France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia and Sweden.[1][2]
The table is a practical capacity snapshot, not an amendment to the CBAM legislation or an accreditation certificate. It also shows current gaps: the bodies listed for Cyprus, Estonia, Ireland and Malta have not agreed to offer the service, while the Czech, Hungarian and Romanian bodies have agreed but are not yet ready to accept applications. Companies should check the live Commission list rather than assume that every national body is processing applications.[1][2]
Why verifier capacity matters
Where actual embedded emissions are used, Regulation (EU) 2023/956 requires an authorised CBAM declarant to have them verified by a verifier accredited under Article 18. The first annual declarations, covering 2026 imports, are due by 30 September 2027. The Commission's timeline says accredited verifiers can issue the first verification reports from January 2027 and declarants use verified emissions obtained through the CBAM Registry.[1][3]
As a general rule, an EU or EEA verification company applies to the accreditation body in its country of establishment, using another body only where the home country does not offer the relevant service. A verification company established outside the EU may apply to an EU body that accepts third-country applications. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2551 governs accreditation, oversight and the treatment of third-country applicants; acceptance of an application therefore does not itself establish accreditation.[1][4]
Action for importing groups and suppliers
Importing groups should identify the installations and goods for which actual embedded emissions will be used, confirm that each proposed verifier's accreditation scope covers the relevant activity, and plan registry and evidence flows with non-EU suppliers. The Commission's August guidance says a new accreditation process normally takes six to 12 months and encourages early applications and contracting so preliminary verification work and the required witness assessment can begin before the first report is issued. The 21 October capacity table should therefore be treated as an operational readiness control, not proof that a chosen verifier is accredited.[1][2][4][5]
Official sources
- [1] CBAM verification
European Commission, Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union · Document date: 2026-10-21
National Accreditation Bodies section and 21 October 2026 state-of-play link; roles at lines 74–103 and implementation timeline at lines 113–139.
- [2] State-of-play CBAM accreditation
European Commission, Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union · Document date: 2026-10-21
Complete two-page table read; country rows and four status columns, with totals of 24 bodies offering accreditation, 20 ready for applications, seven agreeing to accredit third-country applicants and seven already accepting them.
- [3] Regulation (EU) 2023/956 establishing a carbon border adjustment mechanism — consolidated text
European Parliament and Council / EUR-Lex · Document date: 2025-10-20
Articles 6(1), 8 and 18: first annual declaration by 31 May 2027 for 2026, verification of embedded emissions and accreditation of verifiers.
- [4] Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2551 on CBAM verifier accreditation
European Commission / EUR-Lex · Document date: 2025-11-20
Articles 3–5 and 24 and Annexes I–II: selection of accreditation body, applications, assessment, scopes, competence and list of bodies able to process third-country applicants.
- [5] Guidance on CBAM verification and accreditation for verifiers and national accreditation bodies
European Commission, Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union · Document date: 2026-08-24
Pages 111–116, section 9.2.1 and Table 11: application route, third-country applicants, assessment, witness audit, typical six-to-12-month process and activity-specific accreditation scopes.