CBAM intelligence

Cut through the noise on Europe's carbon border tax.

Independent analysis, deadlines, and practical tools for EU importers, customs declarants, and compliance officers navigating the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. No vendor pitch — until you decide you need one.

What is CBAM

A carbon price at the EU border, not just at home.

The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism extends the EU's carbon price to imported goods in carbon-intensive sectors. From January 2026, importers must surrender certificates that match the embedded emissions of what they bring in. Three things you should know:

01 / Who

If you import, you're in scope

Iron, steel, aluminium, cement, fertilisers, hydrogen, and electricity. If your CN code matches and your customs value crosses the threshold, the obligation lands on you — not on your supplier abroad.

02 / What

Quarterly reports, annual surrender

Embedded emissions per shipment, verified data from suppliers, and certificates purchased to cover the gap between the EU carbon price and any price already paid abroad. The math is not optional.

03 / When

The clock is already running

The transitional period ended December 2025. Definitive period starts January 2026. Quarterly deadlines, financial penalties for missed reports, and verifier requirements that take real lead time to set up.

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    Need to actually file?

    We write about CBAM. Tensig files it.

    If you've read enough and just want the reports out the door — connected to your customs data, verifier-ready, audit-trail included — Tensig handles the operational side end-to-end.

    See cbam.tensig.eu