CBAM 2026: How to Secure Contracts and the Supply Chain
Clauses on emissions data, verification, and CO2 costs
Legal checklist for importers, procurement teams, and legal departments
Updated: April 2026
From 1 January 2026, CBAM has entered its definitive phase: it is no longer just a transitional reporting issue, but a matter of import operations, authorisation, and contractual risk. In the definitive regime, CBAM obligations apply as a general rule to imports of CBAM goods, subject to the de minimis exemption for operators that do not exceed the cumulative annual threshold of 50 net tonnes; electricity and hydrogen remain subject to CBAM regardless of any quantitative threshold.
This news does not repeat the “when” already covered in your 2024 article: here we focus on the “how”, namely how to prevent CBAM from becoming a CO2 cost absorbed by the importer due to missing upstream data, disputes with suppliers, and operational friction in import clearance and annual compliance.
1) What really changes in 2026
Under the definitive regime, the key requirement for importing CBAM goods is the status of authorised CBAM declarant, which may apply to the EU importer or, where provided for, to the indirect customs representative. The process is handled through the CBAM Registry and the related authorisation modules; the application should be initiated well in advance of relevant imports in order to avoid delays, information requests, and customs regularisations.
Under the de minimis threshold, importers who do not exceed 50 net tonnes per year of CBAM goods fall within the exemption, with the exception of electricity and hydrogen. The threshold is calculated on the basis of the cumulative annual net mass of imported CBAM goods. For this reason, the assessment must be made on a forward-looking basis and monitored throughout the year together with procurement and customs operations.
In practical terms, exceeding the threshold means losing the exemption and may require alignment on CBAM handling for the year; it is therefore a threshold that must be monitored ex ante, not only ex post.
1.2 Operational enforcement at customs
In the definitive regime, CBAM compliance becomes part of the import chain: customs declarations relating to CBAM goods are subject to checks linked to authorisation status and the consistency of CBAM data. Any mismatch between authorisation, threshold management, and declaration data may result in operational delays, information requests, and the need for regularisation before goods are released.
2) Annual deadlines: 2026 compliance closes in 2027
Imports in 2026 fall within the first full annual cycle of the definitive regime in 2027. By 30 September 2027, the authorised CBAM declarant must submit the annual CBAM declaration for 2026 and surrender the CBAM certificates corresponding to the embedded emissions imported in 2026.
Contractual consequence: emissions data, verification, and supporting documentation must be obtained well before the deadline. If you do not impose obligations and timing requirements on the non-EU supplier, the economic, documentary, and compliance risk remains with the EU importer.
3) Certificate price: a budgetable CO2 cost
In 2026, the Commission publishes quarterly CBAM certificate prices, calculated on the basis of the average auction price of EU ETS allowances; the Q1 2026 price was published on 7 April 2026. Each quarterly price is calculated in the first week after the end of the quarter.
From 2027, publication will shift to a weekly cadence, and the operational purchase of certificates will take place through the common central platform starting in February 2027. For businesses, this means that in 2026 CBAM should be treated as a CO2 cost to be budgeted for individual projects and framework agreements, and allocated contractually through clear pass-through or absorption mechanisms.
4) Where the supply chain breaks down
4.1 Missing or unverified emissions data
CBAM requires data on embedded emissions calculated in accordance with the prescribed methods. In practice, the real problem is obtaining from the non-EU producer complete, consistent, and auditable information.
Typical risk: late or incomplete data leads to a fragile annual declaration, a higher CBAM burden, or disputes along the supply chain.
4.2 Reliance on default values
If usable and verifiable actual data cannot be obtained, the regime falls back to the default values laid down in the implementing acts for the definitive phase. The practical effect is potentially higher CBAM costs compared with actual emissions, and a greater difficulty in recovering the differential downstream if it has not been contractually anticipated through pass-through or price adjustment mechanisms.
4.3 Carbon price paid in a third country
CBAM allows, under certain conditions, consideration of a carbon price already paid outside the EU, but only if the information is documented and traceable. If this is not contractually managed, the EU company risks being unable to properly reflect it in the declaration and in the calculation of the payable amount.
5) Contracts and supply chain: the clauses that really matter
The objective is to avoid three scenarios: CBAM cost absorbed for lack of data, operational/import friction, and disputes with suppliers and intermediaries.
A) Emissions data clauses
Obligation to provide CBAM data
The supplier must provide embedded emissions data by product, batch, or period, in accordance with the applicable methodology and with minimum traceability of sources.
Format and standard
Mandatory template, units of measurement, plant boundaries, language, minimum evidence, and supporting documentation.
Contractual timing
Milestones aligned with the annual CBAM cycle and an escalation mechanism if the data is not delivered on time.
B) Verification clauses
Cooperation with verification
An obligation to support documentary checks and to respond within defined time limits to requests from the importer or verifier.
Right to audit
The importer’s right to carry out documentary audits and, where necessary, on-site audits or audits through third parties, with remedies in case of obstruction.
C) CO2 cost clauses
CBAM cost pass-through
A clear pass-through mechanism: formula, deadlines, and financial scope, including certificates, verification, and administrative costs.
Fallback for failure to deliver data
If the supplier fails to deliver verifiable data by date X, an automatic price adjustment or a penalty applies to cover the higher cost associated with default values.
Foreign carbon price
An obligation to declare and document carbon prices paid in third countries, where applicable.
D) Regulatory risk clauses
Change in law / CBAM change
If obligations, methodologies, scope, or implementing acts change, an obligation to adapt, a duty to renegotiate, and prompt documentary cooperation should apply.
In the definitive regime, CBAM is also a documentary chain: without cooperation and data-sharing clauses, the EU importer remains exposed when requests, verifications, or inspections arise.
6) Internal governance: the minimum model that works in an audit
To ensure CBAM remains more than just a legal issue, a minimum structure is needed:
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An internal CBAM Register with supplier, goods, CN code, installation, data status, and verification status.
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A clear RACI matrix: procurement collects, quality validates, legal contracts, finance budgets, customs manages imports.
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Data retention rules for the storage, retrievability, and version control of CBAM evidence, consistent with the applicable retention period (up to the end of the fourth year following the year in which the declaration was submitted or should have been submitted).
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A supplier escalation protocol with deadlines and responsibilities if data does not arrive or cannot be verified.
This structure is also useful because the definitive CBAM regime requires orderly and verifiable documentation throughout the supply chain.
7) 30–60–90 day checklist
Within 30 days
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Map CBAM goods, suppliers, and volumes.
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Verify authorisation status and the authorisation process.
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Insert the data obligation, timing requirements, and cost pass-through directly into purchase orders and contracts.
Within 60 days
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Define the verification process, who verifies, and on the basis of which evidence.
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Integrate audit rights and a data room.
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Update standard purchasing terms and framework agreements.
Within 90 days
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Finalise operational flows between procurement, customs, and finance.
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Define an internal CO2 pricing model based on published prices.
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Implement a supplier score for CBAM data to reduce the risk of default values.
How we can help
Studio Legale Rosano supports companies and industrial groups with:
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review of supply contracts on emissions data, verification, pass-through, and change in law;
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framework agreements and standard purchasing terms for international procurement;
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management of renegotiations and disputes when data does not arrive or the CBAM burden increases;
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coordination with customs and compliance teams to reduce operational risk and disputes.
06/05/2026
