European Commission Sets New Guidance for EUDR

The European Commission has issued an updated guidance that sets the course for “a smooth and effective” implementation of the revised European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) on December 30, 2026, (for medium and large enterprises). Under the EUDR, any operator or trader who places on the EU market cattle, wood, cocoa, soy, palm oil, coffee, or rubber, as well as some of their derived products, must be able to prove that the products do not originate from recently deforested land or have contributed to forest degradation.

The European Council and Parliament adopted an amendment late last year to delay the December 2025 implementation for a year and to issue a simplified version of the regulation. The Commission has issued a new draft delegated act that removes certain products altogether. For the shipping industry, concerns have centered on paper products and their derivatives. Late last year, Parliament and the Council voted to completely exclude chapter 49 products (printed books, newspapers, journals, periodicals, magazines, etc.). While products under HS Code 49 have been removed from EUDR’s scope, those under HS Code 48 remain, carrying implications for suppliers. In the European Database, Chapter 48 covers “paper and paperboard; articles of paper pulp, of paper or of paperboard”. A full list of products that fall under this code can be found here.

See also:

• New Guidance document

• New FAQs – 90 pages, including a section on ecommerce and a new section regarding marketplaces, including on when the online marketplace is the operator and when it would be considered an intermediary and the relevant obligations.