CBAM timeline 2026 to 2034: deadlines, mark-ups and free allocation

Every date that matters for exporters, and why the CBAM cost per tonne roughly doubles between 2026 and 2034 even if the carbon price stays the same.

Checked against the EU rules on 6 October 2026.

Key dates

1 October 2023 to 31 December 2025: transitional period. Importers reported emissions but paid nothing.
1 January 2026: definitive period starts. Imports from this date carry a CBAM cost.
1 February 2027: CBAM certificates go on sale. Certificates for 2026 imports are priced at the quarterly average of EU ETS auction prices.
30 September 2027: first annual declaration and certificate surrender, for goods imported in 2026.
From 2027: the certificate price is set weekly. Each later year's declaration is due by 30 September of the following year.
2034: free allocation for EU producers ends, so the importer's deduction falls to zero.

Two things push the cost up even if the carbon price stays flat:

The mark-up on defaults rises from 10% in 2026 to 20% in 2027 and 30% from 2028.
The free allocation deduction shrinks. Importers deduct 97.5% of the EU benchmark in 2026, 95% in 2027, 90% in 2028, 77.5% in 2029, 51.5% in 2030, 39% in 2031, 26.5% in 2032, 14% in 2033 and nothing from 2034.

Year	Mark-up	Benchmark deducted	Cost a tonne	Cost a year
2026	10%	97.5%	€253	€25,253
2027	20%	95%	€287	€28,712
2028	30%	90%	€324	€32,426
2029	30%	77.5%	€337	€33,704
2030	30%	51.5%	€364	€36,364
2031	30%	39%	€376	€37,643
2032	30%	26.5%	€389	€38,922
2033	30%	14%	€402	€40,200
2034	30%	0%	€416	€41,633

See the same curve for your own products in the cost calculator, or for your whole range in the multi-product calculator. Both can be downloaded for Excel.

Dates follow Regulation (EU) 2023/956 as amended by Regulation (EU) 2025/2083. See the Commission's CBAM certificate price page for published prices.

General information for planning, not legal, tax or customs advice. See the disclaimer.