Frequently Asked Questions

Implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation

Version 3 – October 2024

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This document is a working document drafted by the Commission services intending to provide
information to national authorities, EU operators and other stakeholders for the implementation of
Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the making available on the Union market
as well as export from the Union of certain commodities and products associated with deforestation
and forest degradation and repealing Regulation (EU) No 995/2010 (referred to in this document as
‘the Regulation’, ‘this Regulation’ or “EUDR”). This document only reflects the views of the Commission
services. It is not legally binding and does not engage the Commission’s liability.

Table of Contents
1. Traceability .............................................................................................. 8
1.1. Why and how must operators collect coordinates? ......................................................... 8
1.2. Should all commodities (imported, exported, traded) be traceable? .............................. 8
1.3. How does it work for bulk-traded or composite products? (NEW) .................................. 9
1.4. Are mass balance chains of custody allowed? .................................................................. 9
1.5. What if part of a product is non-compliant? ..................................................................... 9
1.6. What are the rules for land that is not real-estate? ....................................................... 10
1.7. What is the size of the area (hectares) that can be covered by a polygon? (NEW) ....... 10
1.8. Does geolocation need to be provided by means of polygons in all cases? (NEW) ....... 10
1.9. How should polygons in digital format be declared? (NEW) .......................................... 10
1.10. What if property registers or titles are unavailable? ...................................................... 11
1.11. Can an operator use the producer’s geolocation data?.................................................. 11
1.12. Should operators verify the geo-location? ...................................................................... 12
1.13. Should due diligence be repeated for products from the same land? ........................... 12
1.14. Can a polygon cover several plots of land? ..................................................................... 12
1.15. What if a relevant commodity is produced on a plot of land within a single estate
property, including also other plots of land? (NEW)...................................................................... 12
1.16. Should polygons be provided by means of circumference? ........................................... 13
1.17. How should the place of production of mixed goods be declared? (NEW) .................. 13
1.18. Under which circumstances can operators declare more plots of land in a due diligence
statement than those actually concerned by the production of the specific commodity placed on
the market? What are the implications of a “declaration in excess”? (NEW) ............................... 14
1.19. How will geolocation allow claims to be checked in practice?....................................... 15
1.20. How will the EU check the validity of a no-deforestation claim? ................................... 15
1.21. What type of checks may EU Member States Competent Authorities carry out in third
countries in case a product is deemed potentially non-compliant with the EUDR? (NEW).......... 15
1.22. Will Competent Authorities use the definitions in the Regulation? .............................. 15
1.23. What is supply chain traceability? ................................................................................... 16

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 1.24. How will traceability work for products from multiple countries? ................................ 16
1.25. What is the ‘date or time range of production’? (NEW) ................................................. 16
1.26. How does traceability work for cattle? ........................................................................... 17
1.27. What if upstream suppliers do not provide required information? ............................... 17
1.28. Should coordinates be provided for land in countries classified as low-risk ? .............. 18
1.29. Does the legality requirement apply to deforestation-free land? ................................. 18
1.30. Are there legal obligations for non-EU countries? .......................................................... 18
1.31. How can producers share the geolocation data when certain governments prohibit the
sharing of such data? (NEW) ............................................................................................................ 18

2. Scope ..................................................................................................... 19
2.1. What products are included in the Regulation? ............................................................. 19
2.2. What about listed products that do not contain listed commodities? .......................... 19
2.3. Does the Regulation apply regardless of quantity or value? .......................................... 20
2.4. What about commodities produced in the EU? .............................................................. 20
2.5. How does the Regulation apply to wood used for packaging? ...................................... 20
2.6. Would the return of a relevant empty packaging by the retailer to its supplier be
considered ‘making available on the EU market’ when the concerned packaging was placed on
the EU market in its own right (i.e. standalone packaging) prior to the return? (NEW) ............... 21
2.7. Does trading with relevant second-hand products on the EU market fall in the scope of
the Regulation? NEW ...................................................................................................................... 21
2.8. Does recycled paper/paperboard fall under the scope of the Regulation? ................... 21
2.9. What are CN and HS Codes and how should they be used? ........................................... 21
2.10. When is there a “supply” of a relevant product, meaning it is placed or made available
on the market in the course of a commercial activity? To what extent are companies in scope
when they use relevant products in their own business or process them (NEW)? ....................... 22
2.11. When is there a need to exercise due diligence and submit a DDS if the same natural
or legal person processes a relevant product multiple times in the course of their commercial
activity (NEW)? ................................................................................................................................. 24
2.12. Is bamboo in scope of the EUDR? What about other products that do not contain or
have been made using relevant commodities, but that are listed in Annex I (NEW)? .................. 25

3. Subjects of obligations ........................................................................... 25

3.1. Who is considered an operator? ...................................................................................... 25
3.2. What does “in the course of commercial activity” mean? ............................................. 25
3.3. What does ‘relevant legislation of the country of production’ mean? .......................... 26
3.4. What are the obligations of non-SME operators further down the supply chain? ....... 26
3.5. What are the obligations of SME operators further down the supply chain? (NEW) ... 27

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 3.6. Will operators and large traders further down the supply chain have access, in the
Information System, to geolocation information in due diligence statements submitted by
upstream operators to the Information System? (NEW)................................................................ 27
3.7. What happens if a non-EU based operator places a relevant product or commodity on
the EU market? Under which circumstances will non-EU based operators have access to the
Information System? (NEW) ............................................................................................................ 27
3.8. Which companies are non-SME traders and what are their obligations?...................... 28
3.9. Are organizations that are not SMEs and sell to consumers (retailers) classified as
traders? (NEW) ................................................................................................................................. 28
3.10. How does the amendment of Art. 3 of Directive 2013/34/EU by Commission Delegated
Directive (EU) 2023/2775, which adjusts criteria that define which companies are SMEs, impact
SMEs under the EUDR? (NEW) ......................................................................................................... 28
3.11. Who is liable in case of a breach of the Regulation? (NEW) ........................................... 29
3.12. Who is the operator in the case of standing trees or harvesting rights? ....................... 29
3.13. How does the Regulation apply to company groups? (NEW) ......................................... 29

4. Definitions ............................................................................................. 29
4.1. What does ‘global deforestation’ mean? ........................................................................ 29
4.2. What does ‘plot of land’ mean?....................................................................................... 30
4.3. Which criteria does wood need to comply with? ........................................................... 30
4.4. What are the compliant harvesting levels? ..................................................................... 30
4.5. How should the phrase ‘without inducing forest degradation’ within the definition of
‘deforestation-free’ for relevant products that contain or have been made using wood be
understood? (NEW) ........................................................................................................................ 31
4.6. How should the question of whether a wood product is free of forest degradation be
assessed and what is the relevant time period under consideration? (NEW) .............................. 31
4.7. Can a wood product be free of forest degradation if it was harvested from a forest that
has undergone structural changes after 31 December 2020 that were not induced by harvesting
activities? (NEW) .............................................................................................................................. 32
4.8. In some cases, evidence for wood harvesting operations inducing ‘forest degradation’
may not be evident for some time after a wood product has been placed on (or made available,
or exported from) the European Union market. Can operators be liable for events that happen
after the submission of the due diligence statement? (NEW)....................................................... 33
4.9. Does the definition of “forest degradation” disincentivize the deliberate planting and
seeding of trees, which may be an important practice for the protection and restoration of
forests? (NEW) .................................................................................................................................. 34
4.10. How to apply “trees able to reach those thresholds in situ”? (NEW) ............................ 34
4.11. Which forest land use change complies with the Regulation? (NEW) ........................... 34
4.12. Would a natural disaster count as deforestation? .......................................................... 34
4.13. Will ‘other wooded land’ or other ecosystems be included? ......................................... 35
4.14. Is rubber cultivation considered as ‘agricultural use’ under the Regulation? (NEW) .... 35

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5. Due Diligence ......................................................................................... 35
5.1. What are my obligations as an EU operator?.................................................................. 35
5.2. What is an 'authorised representative’? ......................................................................... 36
5.3. Can companies conduct due diligence on behalf of subsidiaries? ................................. 36
5.4. What about re-importing a product? .............................................................................. 37
5.5. Which customs procedures are affected? ....................................................................... 37
5.6. Does placing on the market of products not produced in the EU require customs
clearing? 37
Would a customs declaration be sufficient documentation in this context? (NEW)..................... 37
5.7. What is the role of certification or verification schemes? .............................................. 37
5.8. The European Commission is preparing a guidance that will provide further
explanations on the role of certification and third-party verification schemes in risk assessment
and risk mitigation. How long should documentation be kept? (NEW)......................................... 37
5.9. What are the criteria for ‘negligible risk products’? ....................................................... 38
5.10. Are ‘negligible risk products’ exempt? ............................................................................ 38
5.11. Could certain commodities from a given country be considered ‘negligible risk’? ....... 38
5.12. When checking compliance with the ‘deforestation-free’ requirement, what is the
point in time the checks should focus on? (NEW) .......................................................................... 38
5.13. What products would require documentation by operators and traders in the context
of their due diligence obligations? (NEW) ....................................................................................... 39
5.14. When will non-SME operators have to produce their first annual reports pursuant to
Art. 12(3) of the Regulation? (NEW) ................................................................................................ 39
5.15. Will there be a template for the due diligence statement that actors in the seven
commodity sectors covered by the Regulation need to fill? (NEW) .............................................. 39
5.16. Will there be a set of pre-determined format or list of questions to perform due
diligence? (NEW) .............................................................................................................................. 39
5.17. Do operators and traders (and/or their authorised representatives) who wish to place,
make available or export relevant products on/from the EU market, have to register in the
Information System? (NEW) ............................................................................................................ 39
5.18. Will the Commission issue further details concerning the satellite imagery tools to be
used to check compliance of relevant products (for instance, on minimum resolution)? (NEW) 40
5.19. How often should due diligence statements be submitted in the Information System,
and can they cover multiple shipments/batches? What about situations where relevant
products may be placed on the market successively over a period of time (NEW)? .................... 40
5.20. What is the latest date for submitting a DDS (NEW)? .................................................... 41

6. Benchmarking and partnerships............................................................. 42

6.1. What is country benchmarking? ...................................................................................... 42
6.2. What is the methodology? ............................................................................................... 42
6.3. How can stakeholders contribute? .................................................................................. 42

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 6.4. Can countries share relevant data with the Commission? ............................................. 43
6.5. Will legality risks be considered? ..................................................................................... 43
6.6. What support is provided for producer countries and smallholders? ........................... 43
6.7. What are the different elements of the Team Europe Initiative? .................................. 44
6.8. How does the Team Europe initiative relate to the CSDDD?.......................................... 44
6.9. How can we mitigate the risk of operators avoiding certain supply chains or certain
producer countries/regions that are benchmarked as 'high risk'? ................................................ 45
6.10. How will the EU ensure transparency?............................................................................ 45

7. Supporting implementation ................................................................... 45

7.1. What is the Information System and the 'EU Single Window'? ..................................... 45
7.2. What data security safeguards will they have? .............................................................. 46
7.3. How can operators and traders register? ........................................................................ 46
7.4. Can the system store frequently used data?................................................................... 46
7.5. Can the system help farmers identify the geolocation? ................................................. 46
7.6. Can a due diligent statement be amended? ................................................................... 46
7.7. Who can view the geolocation data stored in the Information System? (NEW) ........... 47
7.8. Which data format is needed for the geolocation to be uploaded in the Information
System? What format will be accepted to attach the geo-location coordinates to the due
diligence statements in the Information System? (NEW)............................................................... 47
7.9. When will the Information System be ready? (NEW) .................................................... 47

8. Timelines ............................................................................................... 47
8.1. When does the Regulation enter into force and into application? ................................ 47
8.2. What about the period between these dates? ............................................................... 47
8.3. How to prove that the product was produced before the Regulation entered into
force? What are the rules for the production of cattle products? (NEW) ..................................... 48

9. Other questions ..................................................................................... 48

9.1. What are the obligations for operators and non-SME traders when they place on the
EU market or export a relevant product which is made of a relevant product or a relevant
commodity that was placed on the EU market during the transitional period (i.e., the period
between the entry into force of the Regulation (29 June 2023) and its entry into application (30
December 2024)? ............................................................................................................................. 48
9.2. What evidence is necessary to prove that the product was placed on the market
before the date of entry into application (i.e. what documents are accepted as evidence of
‘placing on the market’)? (NEW)..................................................................................................... 50
9.3. Can products placed on the EU market during the transition period be mixed with
products that comply with the Regulation and which are placed on the EU market after the
transition period if it can be proven that each batch within was either placed on the EU market
during the transition period, or is compliant with the Regulation? (NEW) ................................... 50

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 9.4. How will the mixing of commodities stocked during the transitional period with
commodities to be placed on the market after 30 December 2024 work in practice, in particular
in the Information System? (NEW) .................................................................................................. 50
9.5. When does the transitional period start and end in practice? (NEW) ........................... 50
9.6. How should Competent Authorities conduct checks on products which were placed on
the EU market during the transitional period to ensure compliance with the Regulation? NEW 51
9.7. Will the Commission issue guidelines? ............................................................................ 51
9.8. Will the Commission issue commodity-specific guidelines? .......................................... 51
9.9. What are the reporting obligations for operators? ........................................................ 51
9.10. What is the EU Observatory on deforestation and forest degradation? ....................... 52
9.11. What constitutes high-risk, and how long can a suspension take place? ...................... 52
9.12. How does the Regulation link to the EU Renewable Energy Directive?......................... 53

10. Penalties ................................................................................................ 53

10.1. What does it mean that the penalties laid down by the EU Member States are without
prejudice to the obligations of Member States under Directive 2008/99/EC of the European
Parliament and of the Council? (NEW) ............................................................................................ 53
10.2. What is the maximum level of fine? (NEW) .................................................................... 53
10.3. With regards to the Public Procurement Directive, is it for EU Member States to
decide, when implementing the Regulation, whether self-cleaning should be enabled? (NEW) 54
10.4. According to Art. 25(3) EUDR, “Member States shall notify the Commission of final
judgments” and penalties imposed on legal persons. The Commission will publish a list of these
judgments on its website. Does this refer to all administrative decisions or o court rulings?
(NEW) 54
10.5. I have cut down a few small trees on my property where I now raise some cows. I
intend to sell the timber and the meat of the cows on a local market in the EU. Will there be
penalties imposed on me for selling them as I cut the trees? (NEW) ............................................ 54
10.6. What do I do if I have IT related issues on the information system? (NEW) ................. 54

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1. Traceability
1.1. Why and how must operators collect coordinates?

The Regulation requires operators and traders which are not SMEs placing covered products
on the EU market to collect geographic coordinates of the plots of land where the
commodities were produced.

Traceability to the plot of land (i.e., the requirement to collect the geographic coordinates of
the plots of land where the commodities were produced) is necessary to demonstrate that
there has been no deforestation at the specific location of production. Geographic
information linking products to the plot of land is already used by part of the industry and a
number of certification organisations. Remotely sensed information (air photos, satellite
images) or other information (e.g., photograph in the field with linked geotags and time
stamps) may be used for verifying if the geolocation of declared commodities and products is
linked to deforestation.

The geolocation coordinates need to be provided in the due diligence statements that
operators are required to submit to the Information System (IS) ahead of the placing on the
EU market or export from the EU of the products. It is therefore a core part of the Regulation,
which prohibits the placing on the EU market, or the export, of any product covered by the
Regulation’s scope whose geolocation coordinates have not yet been collected and submitted
as part of a due diligence statement.

Collecting the geolocation coordinates of a plot of land can be done via mobile phones,
handheld Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) devices and widespread and free-to-use
digital applications (e.g. Geographic Information Systems (GIS)). These do not require mobile
network coverage; only a solid GNSS signal, like those provided by Galileo.

For plots of land of more than 4 hectares used for the production of commodities other
than cattle, the geolocation must be provided using polygons, meaning latitude and longitude
points of six decimal digits to describe the perimeter of each plot of land. For plots of land
under 4 hectares, operators (and traders which are not SMEs) can use a polygon or a single
point of latitude and longitude of six decimal digits to provide geolocation. Establishments
where cattle are kept can be described with a single point of geolocation coordinate.

Please note that the Regulation does not impose direct obligations on producers in third
country (unless they are directly placing products on the EU market).

1.2. Should all commodities (imported, exported, traded) be traceable?

The traceability requirements apply to each batch of imported/exported/traded relevant

commodities.

The Regulation requires that operators (or traders which are not SMEs) trace every relevant
commodity back to its plot of land before making a relevant product available or placing it on
the EU market, or before exporting it. Consequently, the submission of the due diligence
statement which includes geolocation information is a requirement for the relevant

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products to be imported (customs procedure ‘release for free circulation’) and to be exported
(customs procedure ‘export’) and the consignment for transactions within the EU market.

1.3. How does it work for bulk-traded or composite products? (NEW)

For products traded in bulk, such as soy or palm oil for instance, this means that the operator
(or traders that are not SMEs) needs to ensure that all plots of land involved in a shipment
are identified and that the commodities are not mixed at any step of the process with
commodities of unknown origin or from areas deforested or degraded after the cut-off date
of 31 December 2020.

For relevant composite products, such as e.g. wooden furniture with different wood
components, the operator needs to geolocate all the plots of land where the relevant
commodity (wood, for example) used for the manufacturing process has been produced. The
relevant commodities’ components may be neither of unknown origin nor from areas
deforested or degraded after the cut-off date.

In the case of composite products containing multiple different relevant commodities or

products (for example, a chocolate bar containing cocoa powder, cocoa butter and palm oil),
the operator placing such a product on the EU market will need to conduct due diligence only
on the main commodity and (derived) products deemed relevant under the EUDR, this being
the commodity contained in the left column of Annex I. For example, for chocolate bars (Code
1806) the relevant commodity linked to it is cocoa. This means that the due diligence
obligation and information requirements extend only to relevant products listed in the right
column of Annex I under the relevant commodity which the chocolate bar contains or has
been made using, which in this case is the cocoa powder and cocoa butter under the
commodity cocoa.

1.4. Are mass balance chains of custody allowed?

The Regulation requires that the commodities used for all products falling under the scope be
traceable to the plot of land.

Mass balance chains of custody that allow for the mixing, at any step of the supply chain, of
deforestation-free commodities with commodities of unknown origin or non-deforestation-
free commodities are not allowed under the Regulation, because they do not guarantee that
the commodities placed on the EU market, or exported, are deforestation-free. Therefore,
the commodities placed on the EU market, or exported, need to be segregated from
commodities of unknown origin or from non-deforestation-free commodities at every step of
the supply chain. As mass balance is therefore to be ruled out, full identity preservation is not
needed.

1.5. What if part of a product is non-compliant?

If part of a relevant product is non-compliant, the non-compliant part needs to be identified

and separated from the rest before the relevant product is placed on the EU market or
exported, and that part may be neither placed on the EU market nor exported.

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If identification and separation cannot be done, for instance because the non-compliant
products have been mixed with the rest, then the whole relevant product is non-compliant
as it cannot be guaranteed that the conditions of Art. 3 of the Regulation are met and
therefore it may be neither placed on the EU market nor exported.

For instance, when bulk commodities have all been mixed and are linked to several hundred
plots of land, the fact that one of the plots of land has been deforested after 2020 would
make the whole relevant batch non-compliant.

A product would however not be non-compliant where 100% of relevant commodities or

relevant products placed on the EU market 1) can be traced to the plot of land, 2) are legal
and deforestation free within the meaning of the Regulation, and 3) at no point in time has
been mixed with commodities of unknown origin or non-deforestation-free.

1.6. What are the rules for land that is not real-estate?

What happens with public or communal land that does not fall within the concept of “real-
estate property”?

The Regulation requires that commodities placed on the EU market or exported must have
been produced or harvested on the land designated as a plot of land. The absence of a land
registry or formal title should not prevent the designation of land that is de facto used as a
plot of land (see below).

1.7. What is the size of the area (hectares) that can be covered by a polygon? (NEW)

There is not a fixed threshold on the minimum or maximum size for plots of land in the
Regulation, as long as the plot of land captures the precise area of production and enjoys
sufficiently homogeneous conditions to allow an evaluation of the aggregate level of risk of
deforestation and forest degradation associated with relevant products produced on that
land. See also question 1 in relation to the geographic coordinates for plots of under 4 ha.

There is no limit in the area of polygons that can be imported into the Information System,
but the total file size of the DDS cannot exceed 25 Mb.

1.8. Does geolocation need to be provided by means of polygons in all cases? (NEW)

No. For plots of land of a size below four hectares (only), geolocation can be described with
one latitude and longitude point only. In case of cattle, no polygons but only single geolocation
points required, notably for all ‘establishments’ (as defined in Art. 2(29) of the Regulation ),
where a cattle has been held.

1.9. How should polygons in digital format be declared? (NEW)

The detailed rules for the functioning of Information System will be established through an
implementing act. Stakeholders will be informed and consulted on these developments via
the Multi-Stakeholder Platform on Protecting and Restoring the World’s Forests. Relevant
information will also be made publicly available on the Commission’s website.

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The Information System will, where possible, facilitate the work of operators by allowing
some widely used digital geolocation formats to be uploaded directly into the system when
declaring polygons in a due diligence statement. Currently the Information System supports
GeoJSON fileformat and WGS-84, with EPSG-4326 projection. The Information System will
evolve over time, based on feedback from users.

1.10. What if property registers or titles are unavailable?

How can operators and traders that are not SMEs obtain geolocation data in countries
where property registers are incomplete and where farmers may lack IDs or titles over their
land?

Farmers can collect the geolocation of their plots of land regardless of whether they are
entered or not in a land registry or the lack of IDs or titles over their land. Unless they are
direct suppliers of the operators or operators themselves, no personal information is required
from the farmers and the geolocation of the plot used to supply commodities for placing on
the EU market is sufficient.

As regards the legality requirement in relation to land use right (Art. 2 (40)(a) of the
Regulation) the Regulation requires compliance with relevant national laws. If farmers are
legally allowed to sell their product under national laws (which might lack a property register
and where some farmers might lack IDs), then that would also mean that operators (or traders
that are not SMEs) would meet the legality requirement when sourcing from those farmers.
If possession of a land title is not required under domestic law to produce and commercialise
agricultural products, then it is not required under the Regulation. Operators (or traders that
are not SMEs), nonetheless, would need to verify that there is no risk of illegality in their
supply chains.

There are many different means that operators (or traders that are not SMEs) already use
today to collect the legality (and geolocation) information: some resort to mapping directly
their suppliers, while others rely on intermediaries like cooperatives, certification bodies,
national traceability systems or other companies. Operators (or traders that are not SMEs)
are legally responsible for ensuring that the geolocation and legality information is correct,
regardless of the means or intermediaries they use to collect that information.

1.11. Can an operator use the producer’s geolocation data?

Yes, but it is the operator who is ultimately responsible for its accuracy and not the producer
who provides it. The Regulation does not apply to producers which do not directly place
products on the European Union market (and thus do not fall under the definition of
operators and traders).

In such a case, the operator will have to ensure that the area where the relevant commodity
was produced is correctly mapped and that the geolocation corresponds to the plot of land.
Among measures which the operator can use are support for suppliers to meet requirements
of this Regulation, in particular for smallholders, through capacity building and other
investments.

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1.12. Should operators verify the geo-location?

Operators and traders which are not SMEs need to verify and be able to prove that the
geolocation is correct.

Ensuring the truthfulness and precision of geolocation information is a crucial aspect of the
responsibilities that operators and traders must fulfil. Providing incorrect geolocation details
would constitute a breach of the obligations of operators (and traders that are not SMEs)
under the Regulation.

1.13. Should due diligence be repeated for products from the same land?

The geolocation information obligation to be provided in the due diligence statements, via
the Information System, is connected to each relevant product. Operators (or traders that are
not SMEs) will thus need to indicate this information each time they intend to place, make
available on the EU market or export a relevant product. The due diligence must be repeated
(i.e. updated) for each relevant product, including providing the geolocation coordinates
accordingly.

1.14. Can a polygon cover several plots of land?

Polygons are to be used to describe the perimeter of the plots of land where the commodity
has been produced. Each polygon should indicate one single plot of land, whether
contiguous or not. Where relevant products are made of commodities from several plots of
land, several polygons must be provided in one due diligence statement. A polygon cannot be
used to trace the perimeter of an area of land that might include plots of land only in some
of its parts.

1.15. What if a relevant commodity is produced on a plot of land within a single estate
property, including also other plots of land? (NEW)

The situation may be best described with the following illustration.

i) If the relevant commodity (soy, in the example) is produced in area B, which

geolocation should be provided?

Based on definition of plot of land (“land within a single real estate property”) the operator
should provide only the geolocation of the plot of land where the relevant commodity is
produced (area B, in the example)
ii) What if deforestation in area C is legal and after the cut-off date?

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 - if no relevant commodity is produced in area C, deforestation in area C does not affect
the compliance of soy produced in area B
- If another relevant commodity (e.g. cattle) is produced in area C, then cattle is non-
compliant (non-deforestation free), but soy from area B is, in principle, compliant
- If the same commodity is produced in areas B and C (soy), the operator will have to
achieve negligible risk , taking into particular account the high risk of mixing within the
single property (Article 10(2)(j))

iii) What if the legal status of the real estate property A is affected by illegality
within the meaning of the Regulation (for instance, if there is illegal
deforestation in area C)? Is the soy produced in area B affected?

The soy produced in area B is not legal, and therefore not compliant, since the legal status of
the area of production (so not the plot of land, but the whole property, in line with Art. 2 (40))
is not complying with the relevant legislation of the country of production.
1.16. Should polygons be provided by means of circumference?

There is neither an obligation nor a possibility to provide the plot of land information by
means of circumference. For plots of land of more than four hectares (for the production of
the relevant commodities other than cattle), geolocation has to be provided using polygons
(not a unique central point with a circumference) with sufficient latitude and longitude points
to describe the perimeter of each plot of land.

1.17. How should the place of production of mixed goods be declared? (NEW)

The operator needs to declare the place of production of all goods effectively shipped to the
EU.

For example, if compliant goods from multiple places of production are mixed into the same
silo, stack, pile, tank, etc., and then some of those goods are placed on the EU market:

• The place of production declared should include the place of production of all goods
that entered the silo since it was last empty (and could therefore potentially be
included in the shipment)
• If the silos are not regularly emptied, the operator would need to declare the place of
production of all goods that entered the silo during a period of time that ensures that
commodities of unknown place of production are not mixed up in the process. For
instance, when downloading part of the goods stored in the silo, this could be safely
done by declaring the geolocation of all previous goods that entered the silo up to a
minimum of 200% of the silo capacity, provided that the silo works in first-in first-out
system. This approach applies to relevant commodities or products stored in stacks,
tanks, etc. and all continuous processing.
• Declaring the place of production of x amount of goods that entered the silo, where x
is the amount placed on the EU is not allowed under the Regulation, as it would
violate the prohibition under the Regulation of placing products of unknown origin on
the Union market.

13
This is without prejudice to the transitional provisions as described in section 9.

1.18. Under which circumstances can operators declare more plots of land in a due
diligence statement than those actually concerned by the production of the specific
commodity placed on the market? What are the implications of a “declaration in excess”?
(NEW)

The thrust of the regulation requires a correspondence between the commodities/products

placed on the market and the plots of land where they are effectively produced (hence, the
regulation is built on the principle of strict traceability, whereby operators need to collect the
precise geolocation coordinates corresponding to the plots of land of production). However,
an operator can, in specific circumstances, provide geolocation coordinates for a limited
number of plots of land higher than those where the commodities were produced:
Operators may declare "in excess" only in situations where a bulk commodity is fully traced
to the plot of land and is not being subject to mixing with commodity of unknown origin or
non-compliant commodities. When such bulk commodity is mixed up along the logistical or
production process, for instance in silos for storage, onboard ships for transportation, or in
mills during the production process, the operator can resort to a declaration in excess if and
when only a part of the whole is placed on the market. Operators are required to obtain
traceability data that is as granular as possible.
If the operator declares ‘in excess’ in the due diligence statement, the operator assumes full
responsibility for compliance of all plots of land for which geolocation is provided, regardless
of whether such plots of land are concerned by the production of commodities/products
eventually placed on the market. If one plot of land ‘geolocalised’ in the due diligence
statement is not compliant, the entire set of plots of land ‘geolocalised’ is non-compliant. In
these cases the operator declaring plots of land in excess also has to fully carry out due
diligence in compliance with the obligations under the EUDR, for all plots of land declared
(including those in excess) and has to provide evidence that 1) the risk of non-compliance
(regarding the deforestation-free and the legality requirement) has been assessed in
accordance with Art. 10(2) EUDR for all plots of land, 2) that, in such assessment, the operator
has taken particular account of criteria (i) and (j), of Art. 10 EUDR, and 3) that such risk is
negligible for all plots of land. In more detail, the operator has to consider the existence of a
risk if connecting relevant products to the plots of land where the relevant commodities were
produced is difficult according to Art. 10(2)(i) EUDR, and also if the risk of circumvention of
the Regulation or of mixing with relevant products of unknown origin is non-negligible
according to Art. 10(2)(j) EUDR. The operator has to mitigate these risks to negligible level
before placing or making available such products on the market or exporting them.
With no prejudice to the above-mentioned case scenarios, traceability practices that aim to
declare an excessive amount of plots of land (for instance, on a regional or country-wide basis)
are generally not in line with the rules of this regulation. Such practices would not allow
operators to comply with their core due diligence obligations, in particular mitigating risk of
circumvention (i.e., it is not possible to conduct due diligence as per Art. 8 of the Regulation

14
on an entire country). It would also hinder the work of EU Member States Competent
Authorities, making it difficult (or even impossible) to comply with their obligations to carry
out checks as per Art. 16.
1.19. How will geolocation allow claims to be checked in practice?

How will geolocation allow for checking the validity of a no-deforestation claim in practice?
Is it aligning satellite navigation positioning and deforestation maps? Will there be baseline
maps that forest areas or areas that have undergone deforestation and forest degradation?
How will it work if geolocation of farms, plantations or concessions are not available?

It is the responsibility of the operator (or traders that are not SMEs) to collect the geolocation
coordinates of the plots of land where the commodities were produced. If the operator
cannot collect the geolocation of all plots of land contributing to a relevant product, then they
should not place that product on the EU market or export it, in accordance with Art. 3 of the
regulation.

Operators (and traders which are not SMEs) and enforcing authorities may cross-check the
geolocation coordinates against satellite images or forest cover maps to assess if the products
meet the deforestation-free requirement of the Regulation.

1.20. How will the EU check the validity of a no-deforestation claim?

The EU Member States’ Competent Authorities (EUMS CAs) should carry out checks to
establish that the relevant commodities and products that have been or are intended to be
placed on or made available on the EU market or exported, come from deforestation-free
plots of land and were produced legally (in accordance with Art. 16 of the Regulation ). This
includes conducting checks on the validity of the due diligence statements, and the overall
compliance of the operators and traders with the provisions of the Regulation.

For more information on the scope of EUMS CAs obligations, please refer to Articles 18 and
19 of the Regulation.

1.21. What type of checks may EU Member States Competent Authorities carry out in
third countries in case a product is deemed potentially non-compliant with the EUDR?
(NEW)

Competent Authorities may conduct field audits in third countries pursuant to Art. 18(2)(e) of
the Regulation, provided that such third countries agree, through cooperation with the
administrative authorities of those third countries.

It should be noted that the Regulation does not require the EU Member States’ Competent
Authorities to consult producing countries if a product is assessed ‘potentially non-compliant'
or ‘non- compliant’.

1.22. Will Competent Authorities use the definitions in the Regulation?

In the context of the implementation of this Regulation, Competent Authorities of EU

Member States will use the definitions set out in Art. 2 of the Regulation.

15
A Regulation is a binding legislative act in the EU. It must be applied in a harmonized manner
in its entirety in the 27 EU Member States.

1.23. What is supply chain traceability?

The information, documents and data which operators and traders that are not SMEs need
to collect and keep during 5 years to demonstrate compliance with the Regulation are listed
in Art. 9 and Annex II as well as in Art. 2(28) of the Regulation as regards data related to
geolocation.

Operators (and traders which are not SMEs) should exercise due diligence with regard to all
relevant products supplied by each particular supplier. Therefore, they should put in place a
due diligence system, which includes the collection of information, data and documents
needed to fulfil the requirements set out in Art. 9; risk assessment measures as described in
Art. 10; and risk mitigation measures as referred to in Art. 11 of the Regulation. The
requirements for the establishment and maintenance of due diligence systems, reporting and
record keeping are listed in Art. 12 of the Regulation. The operators will have to communicate
to operators and to traders further down the supply chain all information necessary to
demonstrate that due diligence was exercised and that no or only a negligible risk was found.

Operators and traders further down the supply chain that receive such information may base
their own due diligence on the information received, but the fact that another operator or
trader further up in the value chain has carried out a due diligence does by no means disapply
their own obligations.

Operators and traders which are not SMEs are required to ensure that the information on
traceability that they supply to enforcing authorities in the Member States through the due
diligence statement submitted to the Information System is correct.

The development and functioning of the Information System will be in line with the relevant
data protection provisions. In addition, the system will be equipped with security measures
that will ensure the integrity and confidentiality of the information shared.

1.24. How will traceability work for products from multiple countries?

Operators and traders that are not SMEs are required to ensure that the required information
on traceability that they supply to competent authorities in the Member States is
correct, regardless of the length or the complexity of their supply chains.

Traceability information can be added up along supply chains. For instance, a large, bulk
shipment of soy that has been sourced in several hundred plots of land from several countries
would need to be associated with a due diligence statement that includes all relevant
countries of production and geolocation information for every single plot of land from all of
these countries that have contributed to the shipment.

1.25. What is the ‘date or time range of production’? (NEW)

Operators (and traders that are not SMEs) are required to collect information on the date or
time range of production under the obligations set out in Art. 9 of the Regulation. This

16
information is needed to establish whether the relevant product is deforestation-free. That is
why it applies to the commodities covered by the Regulation that are placed on the EU market
or to the commodities that are used for the production of relevant products covered by the
regulation.

For commodities other than cattle, the date of production refers to the date of harvesting of
the commodities, and the time range of production refers to the period/duration of the
production process (for instance, in the case of timber, “time range of production” would
refer to the duration of the relevant harvesting operations). The date of production and the
time range of production should both be related to the designated plots of land.

If more precise information is not available, due to the specificities of the production, the crop
year and/or harvesting season could be used.

For relevant products under the commodity “cattle”, the time range of production refers to
the lifetime of the animal from the moment the cattle was born until the time of slaughtering.
If live cattle (HS Code 0102 21, 0102 29) is placed on the EU market (e.g., by importing or by
the first selling of a cow after it was born in the EU), all geolocations until the first placing on
the EU market will have to be collected and submitted with the due diligence statement
(DDS). If live cattle is subsequently made available on the EU market, non-SME traders will be
obliged to collect and add all additional geolocations of establishments where the cattle were
kept after the first placing on the EU market (see Art. 9(1)(d) of the Regulation). In the case
of SME traders, they will not have to add their geolocations nor issue new DDS, but should
keep the information relating to the relevant products they intend to make available on the
market for at least 5 years as set out in Art. 5(3) and 5(4).

To note that, according to Art. 1(2) of the Regulation, and in line with the definition of
“produced” in Art. 2(14), the EUDR does not apply to cattle and cattle derived products if the
cattle was born before the entry into force of the Regulation, i.e. before 29 June 2023.

1.26. How does traceability work for cattle?

Would it be enough to provide the geolocation of the land where the calf was born?
Some cattle may be moved to one or more locations before slaughter.
Operators (or traders that are not SMEs) who place on the EU market cattle products must
geolocate all establishments associated with raising the cattle, encompassing the birthplace,
farms where they were fed, grazing lands, and slaughterhouses (but only geolocation
corresponding to one latitude and one longitude point, not polygons, is required for each of
these ‘establishments’).
1.27. What if upstream suppliers do not provide required information?

If an operator (or trader that is not an SME) placing a commodity on the EU market is unable
to obtain the information required by the Regulation from its suppliers, they must refrain
from placing the relevant products on the EU market or exporting them from the EU as that
would result in a violation of the Regulation.

17
1.28. Should coordinates be provided for land in countries classified as low-risk ?

There is no exception for the traceability requirement via geolocation. The operators also
have to assess the complexity of the relevant supply chain and the risk of circumvention of
the Regulation and the risk of mixing with products of unknown origin or origin in high-risk or
standard-risk countries or parts thereof (Art. 13 of the Regulation). If the operator obtains or
is made aware of any relevant information that would point to a risk that the relevant
products do not comply with the Regulation or that the Regulation is circumvented, the
operator must fulfil all the obligations under Art. 10 and 11 of the Regulation and must
immediately communicate any relevant information to the competent authority.

1.29. Does the legality requirement apply to deforestation-free land?

Relevant commodities cannot be made available on the EU market or exported from the EU
unless they have been produced in accordance with the relevant legislation of the country of
production pursuant to Art. 3(b) of the Regulation (the so-called “legality requirement”).

The obligations under Art. 3 are cumulative, meaning they all have to be fulfilled: (1) the
legality requirement (Art. 3(b)) ; (2) the ‘deforestation-free’ requirement (Art. 3(a)) and (3)
the requirement for the commodities or products to be covered by a due diligence statement
(Art. 3(c) of the Regulation).

1.30. Are there legal obligations for non-EU countries?

There are no legal obligations applicable to non-EU countries. This Regulation sets out
obligations for operators and traders (as defined in chapter 2 of the Regulation) as well as for
the EU Member States and their Competent Authorities (see chapter 3 of the Regulation).

However, many countries around the world have taken action to enhance deforestation-free
supply chains, strengthen public traceability systems on relevant commodities, etc., thereby
facilitating the tasks of companies under this Regulation. This is welcome, as such
developments can greatly help operators and traders to comply with their obligations.

1.31. How can producers share the geolocation data when certain governments prohibit
the sharing of such data? (NEW)

One of the core requirements for operators and traders under this Regulation is to collect the
geolocation information on the plot(s) of land where commodities and products placed on or
exported from the EU market have been produced (Art. 9(1)(d) of the Regulation). Operators
and traders cannot rely on the existence of national laws prohibiting the sharing of such
(public) data with operators and traders in order to be exempt from the obligation to collect
and upload that data into the Information System. Operators and traders must submit the
geolocation information as part of their obligations; otherwise, the operators and traders
cannot comply with the requirements on due diligence according to Art. 8 and, therefore
cannot place on, make available on or export relevant products from the EU market.

°°0°°

18
2. Scope
2.1. What products are included in the Regulation?

The Regulation applies only to products listed in Annex I. Products not included in Annex I are
not subject to the requirements of the Regulation, even if they contain relevant commodities
in the scope of the Regulation. For example, soap will not be covered by the Regulation, even
if it contains palm oil.

Likewise, products with an HS code not included in Annex I, but which might include
components or elements derived from commodities covered by the Regulation – such as cars
with leather seats or natural rubber tyres – are not subject to the requirements of the
Regulation.

N.B.: The Regulation foresees that the list of relevant products and product descriptions may
be amended by the Commission by means of a delegated act. In addition, the Commission
will assess the need and the feasibility of making a legislative proposal to the European
Parliament and to the Council to extend the scope of the Regulation to further commodities,
based on an impact assessment of relevant commodities on deforestation and forest
degradation. The first review of the commodity scope is to take place within two years of the
entry into force of the Regulation.

2.2. What about listed products that do not contain listed commodities?

… made of a commodity … not made of a

listed in Annex I commodity in Annex I

Relevant product listed Subject to the Regulation

Not subject to the Regulation
in Annex I… (EUDR)

Other product not listed

Not subject to the Regulation Not subject to the Regulation
in Annex I…

Products included in Annex I that do not contain, or are not made of, the commodities listed
in Annex I are not covered by the Regulation.

“ex” before the HS code of products in Annex I means that the product described in the annex
is an “extract” from all the products that can be classified under the HS code. For instance,
code 9401 might include seats made of raw materials other than wood, but only wooden
seats are subject to the requirements of the Regulation. Similarly, HS 0201 covers “Meat of
bovine animals, fresh or chilled”, whereas ex 0201 in Annex I of the Regulation covers only
“Meat of cattle, fresh or chilled”, meaning cattle of the genus Bos and it’s sub-generas : Bos,
Bibos, Novibos and Poephagus, but bison (Bison genus) or buffalo (Syncerus genus) meat are
not covered by the Regulation.

19
In case the relevant product, e.g. “ex 4011 New pneumatic tyres, of rubber” is made from a
mix of synthetic and natural rubber then the operator (or non-SME trader) has to exercise
due diligence only for the natural rubber ingredient.

2.3. Does the Regulation apply regardless of quantity or value?

There is no threshold volume or value of a relevant commodity or relevant product,

including within processed products, below which the Regulation would not apply.

Operators and traders placing or making available on the EU market or exporting a relevant
product included in Annex I, whatever its quantity, are subject to the obligations of the
Regulation.

2.4. What about commodities produced in the EU?

Commodities produced inside the EU are subject to the same requirements as products
produced outside the EU. The Regulation applies to products listed in Annex I, whether they
are produced in the EU or imported.

For instance, if an EU company produces chocolate (code 1806, which is included in Annex I),
then it will be considered as an operator subject to the obligations of the Regulation, even if
the cocoa powder used in the chocolate has already been placed on the EU market and
fulfilled the due diligence requirements (see also question 38 on operators down the supply
chain).

2.5. How does the Regulation apply to wood used for packaging?

For example, in the case of a producer selling packaging to manufacturers (to protect the final
product - not to be sold as a final product to consumers), the text "not including packaging
material used exclusively as packaging material to support, protect or carry another product
placed on the market" in Annex I under Wood HS code 4415 should be understood as
follows:

If any of the concerned packaging is placed on the EU market or exported as a product in its
own right (i.e. standalone packaging), rather than as packaging for another product, it is
covered by the Regulation and therefore due diligence requirements apply.

If packaging, as classified under HS code 4415, is used to ‘support, protect or carry’ another
product, it is not covered by the Regulation.

Packaging materials used exclusively as packaging material to support, protect or carry

another product placed on the EU market is not a relevant product within the meaning of
Annex I of the Regulation, regardless of the HS code under which they fall.

User manuals accompanying shipments are also falling under this exemption unless they are
purchased in their own right.

20
2.6. Would the return of a relevant empty packaging by the retailer to its supplier be
considered ‘making available on the EU market’ when the concerned packaging was
placed on the EU market in its own right (i.e. standalone packaging) prior to the return?
(NEW)

As long as the concerned packaging is placed on or made available on the market or exported
as a product in its own right (i.e. standalone packaging), rather than as packaging for another
product, it is covered by the Regulation and therefore the relevant due diligence requirements
apply (see Q. above). This should apply as long as the concerned packaging is used for
commercial purposes in its own right.
However, once the concerned packaging becomes a packaging material used exclusively as
packaging material to support, protect or carry a product, it is then not covered by the scope
of the Regulation.
2.7. Does trading with relevant second-hand products on the EU market fall in the scope
of the Regulation? NEW

Second-hand products which have completed their lifecycle and would be otherwise disposed
of as waste (see Recital 40 and Annex I) are not subject to the obligations of this Regulation.
2.8. Does recycled paper/paperboard fall under the scope of the Regulation?

Most recycled paper/paperboard products contain a small percentage of virgin pulp or pre-
consumed recycled paper (for example, discarded paperboard scraps from cardboard box
production) to strengthen the fibres.

Annex I states that the Regulation does not apply to goods if they are produced entirely from
material that has completed its lifecycle and would otherwise have been discarded as
waste as defined in Article 3, point (1), of Directive 2008/98/EC. So, no obligations applies
under the regulation to the recycled material.

On the contrary, if the product contains non-recycled material, then it is subject to the
requirements of the Regulation and the non-recycled material will need to be traced back to
the plot of origin via geolocation.

Annex I also clarifies that generally, by-products of a manufacturing process are subject to the
Regulation. In the case of paper/paperboard which constitutes a recovered (waste and scrap)
product, such paper and paperboard is exempt from the scope according to Annex I (see
Chapter 47 and 48 of the Combined Nomenclature).

2.9. What are CN and HS Codes and how should they be used?

The nomenclature governed by the Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description

and Coding System, commonly known as "HS Nomenclature", is an international
multipurpose nomenclature which was elaborated under the auspices of the World Customs
Organization (WCO). This nomenclature assigns six-digit codes to classify goods and applies
worldwide. Countries/ regions can add additional numbers to the universal six-digit HS
Nomenclature for more detailed classification.

21
The Combined Nomenclature (CN code) of the European Union is an eight-digit commodity
code that further subdivides the global HS Nomenclature into more specific goods to address
the needs of the European Community.

The CN code is the basis for the declaration of goods for import into or export from the
European Union, and also for intra-EU trade statistics. Commodities and products in Annex I
of the Regulation are classified by their CN codes. Relevant products in Annex I of the
Regulation are classified in the Combined Nomenclature set out in Annex I to Regulation (EEC)
No 2658/87.

At import, when releasing goods for free circulation as defined in Art. 201 of the UCC
Regulation (EU) No 952/2013, the CN code can be further subdivided to a ten-digit TARIC code
specifically created to address the needs of the EU legislation. When declaring goods for
export procedure as defined in Art. 269 of the UCC Regulation (EU) No 952/2013, the final
subdivision can go up to an eight-digit CN code.

Supply chain members need to classify their products based on Annex I to the basic CN
Regulation (Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature
and on the Common Customs Tariff) to establish whether the Regulation applies to them. The
HS codes can evolve every 5 years. The EU’s CN Regulation is adopted each year, to reflect
any updates.

See for more information: Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff
and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff

2.10. When is there a “supply” of a relevant product, meaning it is placed or made

available on the market in the course of a commercial activity? To what extent are
companies in scope when they use relevant products in their own business or process
them (NEW)?

A distinction has to be made between the person in the supply chain which imports or
domestically places a relevant product on the EU market and persons further down the supply
chain:
If a person places on the EU market a relevant product manufactured or produced in the EU,
it is thereby supplying the product on the market for the first time. A supply presupposes an
agreement (written or verbal) between two or more legal or natural persons for the transfer
of ownership or any other property right concerning the product in question; it requires that
the product has been manufactured or that the commodity, if placed on the market without
manufacturing, has been produced (see Art. 2(14) EUDR). Such an activity is relevant under
the EUDR, no matter if the relevant product is placed on the market for a) the purpose of
processing, b) distribution to commercial or non-commercial consumers or c) use in the
business of the operator itself (see Art. 2(19) EUDR). The company is an operator and needs
to exercise due diligence and submit a DDS.
If a relevant product is to be placed under customs procedure “release for free circulation”
in the course of a commercial activity and not intended for private use or private
consumption, it is assumed to be intended to be placed on the market, irrespective of a

22
“supply” or irrespective of an agreement (written or verbal) between two or more legal or
natural persons for the transfer of ownership or an equivalent right concerning the product
in question.
After a product has been placed on the market, it is “supplied” on the market for distribution,
consumption or use if there is an agreement between two or more legal or natural persons
for a transfer of ownership or an equivalent concerning the product in question (e.g. a sale or
a gift agreement) after the stage of manufacture (and production in the case of commodities)
being made available has taken place. The EUDR does generally not establish obligations on
those who offer logistical services along the supply chain (e.g. shipping agents/transport
agents or customs representatives are not ‘operators’ or ‘traders in the meaning of the EUDR)
as far as they do not place product on the market or export.
These situations may be explained by a few examples:
1) Car company B buys leather of cattle (relevant product) from EU tannery T to
manufacture a car using the leather of cattle for the car seats. Car company B places
the car (non-relevant product) on the market by selling it to end consumers. Car
company B is not an operator, as the car it is supplying on the market is not a relevant
product in Annex I, nor a trader, as it is not supplying the leather of cattle (individually)
- on the market.
2) Car company B imports (i.e., place under customs procedure “release for free
circulation”) leather of cattle to manufacture cars. Car company B is an operator when
importing the leather for its own business operations. B needs to exercise due
diligence and submit a DDS prior to the release for free circulation.
3) Farmer D buys soya bean meal (relevant product) from a crushing company inside the
EU market and feeds it to his chicken (non-relevant product) which he then sells. D is
not an operator when selling the chicken, as the chicken are not a relevant product in
Annex I, nor a trader, as he is not supplying the soya bean meal on the market.
However, D would be an operator if he imported (i.e. placed under customs procedure
“release for free circulation”) the soya bean meal to feed to the chicken (see above
scenario 2).
In case the farmer feeds soya relevant products to cattle (relevant product) please
refer to Recital 39.
In the examples below, the persons process or use relevant products in their business. They
are only subject to the Regulation in those cases in which they are supplying relevant products
on the market:

4) Company A buys from retailer B in a third country and imports (i.e., places under
customs procedure “release for free circulation”) wooden tables and seats (relevant
products). The furniture will be used by A’s own employees during working hours. A is
an operator and needs to exercise due diligence and submit a DDS prior to the release
for free circulation of the wooden tables and seats.
5) Company D buys wooden tables and seats (relevant products) from EU operator B who
has imported them from a third country and who has already carried out due diligence

23
 and submitted a DDS. Company D will use the furniture for its own employees during
working hours. The furniture is not supplied, hence D is not subject to the EUDR.
6) EU-established farmer F harvests his own soy beans (relevant products) and processes
the soy beans into soy flour (relevant product) which is used to feed his chicken at his
own farm. As farmer F is not supplying the soy beans and soy flour on the market (for
example, to another legal or natural person), they are not placed on the market and F
is not subject to the EUDR.
7) EU-established farmer F harvests his own soy beans (relevant products) and processes
them into soy flour (relevant product) which he sells to EU-established farmer G.
Farmer F is an operator with regard to the soy flour, as it is being supplied to farmer
G.
8) EU-established company B harvests its own forest and processes the logs into wood
chips (relevant product) from the logs (relevant product). It uses the wood chips as
fuel for heating its own facilities. As B is not supplying the logs or wood chips on the
market, there is no placing or making available on the market and B is not subject to
the EUDR.
9) Company C buys wood chips (relevant product) from an EU operator who has already
carried out due diligence and submitted a DDS. Company C uses the wood chips as
fuel for heating their own facilities. As C is not supplying the logs or wood chips on the
market, there is no placing or making available on the market and C is not subject to
the EUDR.
10) Company C buys wood chips (relevant product) from an EU operator who has already
carried out due diligence and submitted a DDS. Company C uses the wood chips to
produce electricity. As C is not placing or making available a relevant product on the
market, C is not subject to the EUDR.
2.11. When is there a need to exercise due diligence and submit a DDS if the same natural
or legal person processes a relevant product multiple times in the course of their
commercial activity (NEW)?

In case of multiple occasions of internal processing (relevant product X is being processed into
relevant product Y and subsequently into relevant product Z by the same company),
obligations arise only for the placing on the market of the last relevant product (product Z).
This can be demonstrated by the following example:
Non-SME chocolate company C buys cocoa beans (relevant product) from EU operator I and
processes them into cocoa powder (relevant product) and subsequently into food
preparations containing cocoa (relevant product). Company C then places the food
preparations on the market by selling them to company D. In this case, obligations apply only
for the food preparations, so company C needs to ascertain the compliance of the due
diligence and submit a DDS prior to placing them on the market.
If company C was an SME, it would not be required to exercise due diligence or submit a DDS
for food preparations, provided that operator I already exercised due diligence for the cocoa
beans contained in the processed products (see Art. 4(8) EUDR). In that case, company C

24
would only be required to retain the due diligence reference number obtained from operator
I.
2.12. Is bamboo in scope of the EUDR? What about other products that do not contain or
have been made using relevant commodities, but that are listed in Annex I (NEW)?

Products made solely from bamboo are not in scope of the EUDR. Article 1 (1) EUDR defines that for
the EUDR the ‘relevant products’ are only those that contain or are made from relevant commodities,
amongst them ‘wood’. The definition in Article 2 (2) EUDR also clarifies that for the purposes of the
EUDR the HS codes listed in Annex I are only pertinent to identify which products are captured by the
EUDR.

In accordance with the FAO explanatory notes, bamboo is a non-wood forest product, consequentially
bamboo does not fall under the commodity wood.

°°0°°

3. Subjects of obligations
3.1. Who is considered an operator?

As defined in Art. 2(15) of the Regulation, an operator is a natural or legal person who places
relevant products on the EU market (including by importing them) or exports them from the
EU in the course of a commercial activity.

This definition also covers companies that transform one product of Annex I (which has
already been the object of due diligence) into another product of Annex I. For example, if
company A, based in the EU, imports cocoa butter (HS code 1804, included in Annex I), and
company B, also based in the EU, uses that cocoa butter to produce chocolate (HS code 1806,
included in Annex I) and places it on the EU market, both company A and B would be
considered operators under the regulation.

Operators placing on the EU market products listed in Annex I that have not been subject to
due diligence in a prior step of the supply chain (for example importers sourcing cocoa) are,
regardless of their size, subject to the obligation of filing a due diligence statement.

3.2. What does “in the course of commercial activity” mean?

Commercial activity is understood as an activity taking place in a business-related context.

The combined definitions of “operator” (Art. 2(15)) and of ‘in the course of a commercial
activity’ (Art. 2(19)) in the Regulation imply that any person, who places a relevant product
on the EU market for selling (with or without transformation) or as a free sample, for the
purpose of processing or for distribution to commercial or non-commercial consumers, or for
use in the context of its commercial activities, will be subject to the due diligence
requirements and have to submit a due diligence statement.

25
3.3. What does ‘relevant legislation of the country of production’ mean?

Relevant commodities and products can only be placed on the EU market if they comply with
the three requirements of Art. 3 of the Regulation, namely (1) they are deforestation-free
(Art. 3(a)), (2) comply with the relevant legislation of the country of production (Art. 3(b)),
and (3) are covered by a due diligence statement (Art.3(c) ).

"Relevant legislation" may include, among others, national laws (including relevant secondary
law) and international law as applicable in domestic law. The Regulation provides a list of
legislative areas without specifying particular legal acts, as these differ from country to
country and may be subject to amendments. According to the definition, the legislation listed
in letters (a) to (h) must be interpreted as being concerned with the legal status of the area
of production. Additionally, for the different fields of legislation, the meaning and purpose
stipulated in Art. 1(1)(a) and (b) EUDR should be taken into account. Therefore, among others,
legislation with a link to the protection of forests, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions
or the protection of biodiversity is relevant.

Relevant documentation is required for the purposes of the risk assessment pursuant to Art.
9(1)(h) and 10 of the Regulation. Such documentation may, for example, consist of official
documents from public authorities, contractual agreements, court decisions or impact
assessments and audits which may have been carried out. In any case, the operator has to
verify that these documents are verifiable and reliable, taking into account the risk of
corruption in the country of production.

The Commission will elaborate on the Regulation requirements on legality in the Guidance
document during the Summer.

3.4. What are the obligations of non-SME operators further down the supply chain?

Operators further down the supply chain are those who either transform a product listed in
Annex I (which has already been subjected to due diligence) into another product listed in
Annex I or export a product listed in Annex I (which has already been subjected to due
diligence). Their obligations vary depending on whether they are Small and Medium-sized
Enterprises (SMEs) or not.

When submitting their due diligence statement in the Information System, non-SME
operators further down the supply chain may refer to due diligence performed earlier in the
supply chain by including the relevant reference number for the parts of their relevant
products that were already subject to a due diligence. However, pursuant to Art. 4(9) of the
Regulation they are obliged to ascertain that due diligence was carried out and they retain
legal responsibility in the event of a breach of the Regulation (Art. 4(10)). Ascertaining that
due diligence was properly carried out may not necessarily imply having to systematically
check every single due diligence statement submitted upstream. For example, the
downstream non-SME operator could verify that upstream operators have an operational and
up-to-date due diligence system in place, including adequate and proportionate policies,
controls, and procedures to mitigate and manage effectively the risks of non-compliance of
relevant products, to ensure that due diligence is properly and regularly exercised. If the
upstream operator is a non-SME, the downstream operator may refer to the results of an
26
independent audit that non-SME operators must have in place to check the existence and
regular use of internal policies, controls and procedures based on Art. 11 (2)(b) Based on its
risk assessment, however, the downstream operator may also decide to ascertain that due
diligence was exercised for all due diligence statements, taking into account that they retains
responsibility under Art. 4(10).

For parts of relevant products that have not been subject to due diligence, non-SME operators
should exercise due diligence in full and submit a due diligence statement.

3.5. What are the obligations of SME operators further down the supply chain? (NEW)

Operators further down the supply chain are those who either transform a product listed in
Annex I (which has already been subjected to due diligence) into another product listed in
Annex I or export a product listed in Annex I (which has already been subjected to due
diligence).

SME operators further down the supply chain retain legal responsibility in the event of a
breach of the Regulation. However, in respect of parts of their products that have been
subject to a due diligence, they are neither required to a) exercise due diligence for parts of
their products that were already subject of due diligence exercise; nor to b) submit a due
diligence statement in the Information System (Art. 4(8) EUDR). But they still have to provide
due diligence reference numbers obtained from previous steps in the supply chain upon
request of the competent authorities.

For parts of relevant products that have not been subject to due diligence, SME operators
should exercise due diligence in full and submit a due diligence statement.

3.6. Will operators and large traders further down the supply chain have access, in the
Information System, to geolocation information in due diligence statements submitted by
upstream operators to the Information System? (NEW)

Upstream operators will be able to decide whether the geolocation information contained in
their due diligence statements submitted in the IS will be accessible and visible for
downstream operators via the referenced due diligence statements inside the Information
System.

3.7. What happens if a non-EU based operator places a relevant product or commodity
on the EU market? Under which circumstances will non-EU based operators have access
to the Information System? (NEW)

If a natural or legal person established outside the EU places relevant products on the market,
according to Art. 7 EUDR the first person established in the Union who makes such products
available on the market should be deemed to be an operator within the meaning of the
Regulation.

This means that in this case, there will be two operators within the meaning of the Regulation
– one established outside and one inside of the EU.

27
Non-EU based operators will only have access to the Information System if they have a valid
EORI number, as only in this case they will need to submit a due diligence statement after
having conducted due diligence prior to lodging a customs declaration. They will have access
to the system in the role of an operator and not as an authorised representative, as according
to Art. 2(22) of the Regulation, the authorised representative must be established in the
Union.

3.8. Which companies are non-SME traders and what are their obligations?

A non-SME trader is a trader which is not a small and medium-sized undertaking pursuant to
Art. 2(30) of the Regulation. This provision refers to the definitions provided in Art. 3 of
Directive 2013/34/EU.

This will essentially include any large company that is not an operator and commercialises the
products included in Annex I on the EU market, for instance, large supermarket or retail
chains.

By virtue of Art. 5(1) of the Regulation, the obligations of large traders are the same as those
of large downstream operators : a) they need to submit a due diligence statement; b) when
doing so, they may rely on due diligence previously carried out in the supply chain but, in such
a case, they are subject to the provisions of Art. 4(9) ; c) they are liable in case of breach of
the Regulation, including for due diligence carried out or a due diligence statement submitted
by an upstream operator.

3.9. Are organizations that are not SMEs and sell to consumers (retailers) classified as
traders? (NEW)

A retailer organisation can either qualify as an ‘operator’ (if it qualifies as ‘natural or legal
person who, in the course of a commercial activity, places relevant products on the EU market
or exports them’) or as ‘trader’ (if it qualifies as ‘any person in the supply chain other than the
operator who, in the course of a commercial activity, makes relevant products available on
the market’) under the Regulation, depending on specific situations.

3.10. How does the amendment of Art. 3 of Directive 2013/34/EU by Commission

Delegated Directive (EU) 2023/2775, which adjusts criteria that define which companies
are SMEs, impact SMEs under the EUDR? (NEW)

The adjusted sizes for SMEs in the Directive 2013/34/EU apply in EU Member States only after
having been transposed into national law. Therefore, for the purposes of the Regulation, the
adjusted size criteria will apply to companies established in the European Union only after
such transposition in the Member State in which a company is established.

However, it should be noted that for Art. 38(3) of the Regulation and the entry into application
of the Regulation by 30 June 2025, it is decisive whether an operator was established as a
micro-undertaking or small undertaking by 31 December 2020. This is dependent on the
national law of the EU Member States implementing Directive 2013/34/EU and the size
thresholds contained therein which was in force by 31 December 2020.

28
The initial Directive 2013/34/EU clarified that medium-sized undertakings “shall be
undertakings which are not micro-undertakings or small undertakings and which on their
balance sheet dates do not exceed the limits of at least two of the three following criteria: (a)
balance sheet total: EUR 20 000 000; (b) net turnover: EUR 40 000 000; (c) average number
of employees during the financial year: 250.” Delegated Directive (EU) 2023/2775 modifies
this in a way that the threshold for balance sheet total is now EUR 25 000 000, and net
turnover EUR 50 000 000, see Art. 1(3) Delegated Directive (EU) 2023/2775.

3.11. Who is liable in case of a breach of the Regulation? (NEW)

All operators retain responsibility for the compliance of the relevant product they place on
the EU market or export. The Regulation also requires operators (or traders which are not
SMEs) to communicate all necessary information along the supply chain.

Non-SME traders also retain responsibility for relevant products they make available on the
EU market.

3.12. Who is the operator in the case of standing trees or harvesting rights?

Standing trees as such do not fall within the scope of the Regulation. Depending on the
detailed contractual agreements, the ‘operator’ at the moment of harvesting could be either
the forest owner or the company that has the right to harvest relevant products, depending
on who is placing the relevant product on the EU market or exporting it from the EU.

3.13. How does the Regulation apply to company groups? (NEW)

The due diligence obligations apply to ‘persons’ in accordance with Art. 2(20) EUDR,
regardless of whether they are members of a company group or not.
°°0°°

4. Definitions
These definitions are the basis for the obligations for companies and stakeholders in third
countries that have commercial relations with the EU, as well as for EU competent authorities.

4.1. What does ‘global deforestation’ mean?

‘Global deforestation’ means deforestation taking place worldwide (both in the EU and
outside) in line with the definition set out in Art. 2 of the Regulation (i.e. the conversion of
forest to agricultural use, whether human-induced or not).

Deforestation and forest degradation are among the main drivers of climate change and
biodiversity loss - the two key global environmental crises of our time.

The main cause of deforestation and forest degradation worldwide is the expansion of
agricultural land for the production of commodities such as soy, beef, palm oil, wood, cocoa,
rubber or coffee. As a major economy and consumer of these commodities, the EU is

29
contributing to deforestation and forest degradation worldwide. The EU, therefore, has the
responsibility to contribute to ending it.

By promoting the production and consumption of ‘deforestation-free' commodities and

products and reducing the EU's impact on global deforestation and forest degradation, the
Regulation is expected to bring down EU-driven greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity
loss.

4.2. What does ‘plot of land’ mean?

The "plot of land" – the subject of geolocation under the Regulation – is defined in Art. 2(27)
as "land within a single real estate property, as recognised by the law of the country of
production, which possesses sufficiently homogeneous conditions to allow an evaluation of
the aggregate level of risk of deforestation and forest degradation associated with relevant
commodities produced on that land." For purposes of this Regulation, the key factor is to
identify the plot of land used to produce commodities intended to place on the EU market –
it is not necessary to list all plots owned by a single owner if some of these plots are not used
to produce commodities covered by the Regulation or are not intended to be placed on the
EU market.

4.3. Which criteria does wood need to comply with?

The wording of the deforestation-free definition in Art. 2(13)(b) of the Regulation (“….in
case of relevant products that contain or have been made using wood…”) singles out wood
from the product scope, creating the impression of a ‘special case’ and raising a question
regarding the applicability of the “deforestation-free” criterion in Art. 3(a) of the Regulation
to wood. Does wood need to comply with both criteria, related to deforestation and forest
degradation, or only forest degradation?

In order to meet the requirements of the Regulation, wood needs to comply with both
criteria: a) it needs to have been harvested from land not subject to deforestation after 31
December 2020; and b) it needs to be harvested without inducing forest degradation after 31
December 2020.

4.4. What are the compliant harvesting levels?

If a wood operator in 2022 harvests 20% of a forest with a 100% cover and lets the land
naturally regenerate, would the harvested wood comply with the Regulation? In 30 years,
once the forest will have been regenerated, could the same operation take place with the
same conclusion on compliance with the Regulation?

Under the regulation, “forest degradation” means structural changes to forest cover, taking
the form of the conversion of primary forests or naturally regenerating forests into plantation
forests or into other wooded land, and the conversion of primary forests into planted forests
(Art. 2(7)).

This definition covers all categories of forests defined by the Food and Agriculture
Organisation of the United Nations. Therefore, forest degradation under the Regulation

30
consists of transforming certain types of forests into other kinds of forests or other wooded
land.

Different levels of wood harvesting are allowed, provided that this does not result in a
transformation falling under the definition of degradation.

4.5. How should the phrase ‘without inducing forest degradation’ within the definition
of ‘deforestation-free’ for relevant products that contain or have been made using wood
be understood? (NEW)

The element of the ‘deforestation-free’ definition referring specifically to forest degradation

requires that wood needs to have “been harvested from the forest without inducing forest
degradation after 31 December 2020” (Art. 2(13)(b) EUDR). The reference to ‘inducing’ creates
a causal link between the wood harvesting and the process of forest degradation.

This reflects the fact that forests may be impacted by other processes, including climate
change, disease outbreaks, fires, etc. These potential forms of forest degradation are beyond
the scope of the Regulation; the EUDR addresses forest degradation driven by the forestry
activities associated with wood harvesting and subsequent regeneration of the forest.

The relevant products would not be compliant with the Regulation if they were sourced from
an area where harvesting activities induced forest degradation. Operators could take into
account all data and information available at the date of harvest, mainly forest management
legislation of the country, forest management plans, but also reforestation plans and planned
post-harvesting activities, restoration and conservation plans, other types of plans,
management procedures, etc. - to assess whether there is a risk that the harvest induces
forest degradation.

If the degraded status of the forest persists over time, any future harvesting on a plot of land
where wood harvesting operations have provoked forest degradation after 31 December 2020
would not be ‘deforestation-free’ and the relevant products could not be placed on the
market. On the contrary, if in the future the forest is regenerated and its status changes into
a forest category that would not have been considered as falling under the definition of forest
degradation in the first place, then the wood extracted from new harvesting activities on that
plot of land could be considered ‘deforestation-free’.

4.6. How should the question of whether a wood product is free of forest degradation be
assessed and what is the relevant time period under consideration? (NEW)

Under the Regulation, “forest degradation” means structural changes to forest cover, taking
the form of the conversion of primary forests or naturally regenerating forests into plantation
forests or into other wooded land, and the conversion of primary forests into planted forests
(Art. 2(7)).

‘Forest degradation’ means:

Structural changes to forest cover,
taking the form of conversion of
1) Primary forests 2) Naturally regenerating forests

31
 into into
a) Planted b) Plantation c) Other wooded a) Plantation b) Other wooded
forests forests land forests land

To comply with the forest degradation element of the ‘deforestation-free’ definition,

operators will need to establish whether the forest type prior to and including 31 December
2020 was primary forest or naturally regenerating forest (the two forest types to which the
‘forest degradation’ definition applies), then assess whether the forestry activities associated
with wood harvesting, as well as planned post-harvesting activities, could cause or bring about
(induce) a conversion, or have caused a conversion, to a different forest type amounting to
‘forest degradation’.

It is important to take into account the relevant forest management legislation of the country,
including forest sustainable management plans or legal framework for sustainable harvesting,
as well as information and data on the pre-harvest state of the forest, the harvesting regime
and its likely impacts, the regeneration treatments, other planned forest protection and
restoration measures, and other information relating to the risk assessment criteria detailed
in Article 10 of the Regulation.

If there is evidence indicating that harvesting activities may induce forest degradation*, then
the wood product cannot be placed on, made available on, or exported from, the EU market
unless this risk is mitigated to no or negligible level.

If, at the moment of harvest, the intended end-purpose of the plot of land (reforestation or
conversion) is not known, then there is a risk that these harvesting activities may induce forest
degradation. Hence those wood products cannot be placed on, made available on, or exported
from, the EU market unless this risk is mitigated to no or negligible level.

*Some examples of indications that harvesting activities may induce forest degradation could
include:
• management plans (or other available information) indicating that proposed
harvesting and regeneration activities may be insufficient to prevent forest
degradation in line with the definitions of the Regulation,
• harvesting activities carried out deviate from those proposed in the forest sustainable
management plan or those authorized by the legal framework of the country,
• post-harvest planting and forest management plan appears to meet the criteria for
‘planted’ or ‘plantation forest’, in line with the definitions of the Regulation, or
• planned regeneration measures (i.e. planting or seeding) or the absence of such
planned measures.

4.7. Can a wood product be free of forest degradation if it was harvested from a forest
that has undergone structural changes after 31 December 2020 that were not induced by
harvesting activities? (NEW)

Yes, if forest degradation after 2020 is provoked by other processes like climate change,
disease outbreaks, or fires that are unrelated to the harvesting operations or deforestation
activities, the products of harvesting activities on those plots of land could still be considered

32
deforestation-free, provided that the harvesting operations themselves do not induce forest
degradation.

In those cases, it would be important to have sufficient data and evidence to demonstrate
that any change in forest status between the two time periods was unrelated to wood
harvesting.

In addition, when the purpose of the harvesting of trees is forest protection – for instance,
when harvesting damaged wood after a storm or a fire; or when cutting infected trees to
prevent the spread of pests and disease –, it should not be understood that harvesting has
“induced” the forest degradation. In those cases, it would be important to have sufficient data
and evidence to demonstrate the actual purpose of the tree harvesting.

4.8. In some cases, evidence for wood harvesting operations inducing ‘forest
degradation’ may not be evident for some time after a wood product has been placed on
(or made available, or exported from) the European Union market. Can operators be liable
for events that happen after the submission of the due diligence statement? (NEW)

Would the relevant wood products be considered deforestation free?

The relevant products would not be compliant with the Regulation if they were sourced from
an area where harvesting activities induced forest degradation in the period prior to
submitting a due diligence statement.

In submitting the due diligence statement, an operator assumes responsibility for the due
diligence process and the compliance of the relevant products with Article 3 a) and b). In this
process the operator should take into account all relevant information and data, including for
the risk factors set out in Article 10.

A breach of the due diligence obligations could be found, for example, if the risk assessment
part of the due diligence has not been properly conducted, because relevant information or
specified criteria were overlooked, including post-harvesting plans for the plot of land.

Where the due diligence was found not to have been properly conducted, any downstream
operators or traders would not be able to rely on an existing due diligence statement for the
relevant products.

In contrast, where due diligence was properly exercised at the time, and the relevant products
were compliant when they were placed on the market, the compliant status of the relevant
products – and those of derived products – will not change based on events that occur after a
product has been placed on the market (or exported) that could not have been identified as a
potential risk at the time of submitting a due diligence statement. Nor will this affect the
compliance status of the operator.

33
4.9. Does the definition of “forest degradation” disincentivize the deliberate planting and
seeding of trees, which may be an important practice for the protection and restoration of
forests? (NEW)

In certain forest types, deliberate planting or seeding may be an effective and preferred
method of forest restoration, including after natural events (e.g. storms, fire) or following
management measures for invasive alien species, pests or disease., or to promote
regeneration on hard environments including poor soils, drought, frost and or where effects
of climate change are noticeable. Therefore, and while the conversion of primary forest or
naturally regenerating forest to plantation forest would constitute “forest degradation”,
under the Regulation the definition ‘plantation forest’ excludes “forests planted for protection
or ecosystem restoration, as well as forests established through planting or seeding, which at
stand maturity resemble or will resemble naturally regenerating forests”.
This exception should logically also apply to ‘planted forests’.

4.10. How to apply “trees able to reach those thresholds in situ”? (NEW)

How should we apply the clause “trees able to reach those thresholds in situ” related to
tree height and canopy cover in the definition of “forest” in Art. 2(4) of the Regulation?

If the woody vegetation has or is expected to surpass more than 10% canopy cover of tree
species with a height or expected height of 5 metres or more, it should be classified as
“forest”, based on the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) definition. For example,
young stands that have not yet but are expected to reach a crown density of 10 percent and
a tree height of 5 metres are included under the definition of “forest”, as are temporarily
unstocked areas, whereas the predominant use of the area remains forest.

4.11. Which forest land use change complies with the Regulation? (NEW)

Deforestation is defined in Art. 2(3) of the Regulation as “conversion of forest to agricultural

use.” Is any other forest land-use change compliant with the Regulation?

Deforestation under the Regulation is defined as conversion of forest to agricultural use.

Conversion for other uses such as urban development or infrastructure does not fall under
the deforestation definition. For instance, wood from a forest area that has been legally
harvested to build a road would be compliant with the Regulation.

4.12. Would a natural disaster count as deforestation?

The definition of “deforestation” in the Regulation encompasses the conversion of forest to

agricultural use, whether human-induced or not, which includes situations due to natural
disasters. A forest that has experienced a fire and is then subsequently converted into
agricultural land (after the cut-off date) would be considered as “deforestation” under the
Regulation. In this specific case, an operator would be prohibited from sourcing commodities
within the scope of the Regulation from that area (but not because of the forest fire).
Conversely, if the affected forest is allowed to regenerate, it would not be deemed to amount
to “deforestation”, and an operator could source wood from that forest once it has regrown.

34
4.13. Will ‘other wooded land’ or other ecosystems be included?

The Regulation relies on the definition of ‘forest’ of the Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO) of the United Nations. This includes four billion hectares of forests – the majority of
habitable land area not already used by agriculture – which encompasses areas defined as
savannahs, wetlands and other valuable ecosystems in national laws.

The first review of the Regulation to be done within one year of the entry into force will assess
the impact of further expanding the scope to ‘other wooded land’. The second review to be
done within two years of the entry into force of the Regulation will assess the impact of
expanding it to ecosystems beyond ‘forests’ and beyond ‘other wooded land’.

The conversion from primary or naturally regenerating forest to plantation forests or to other
wooded land is already part of the definition of ‘forest degradation’, and wood products
coming from such converted land cannot be placed on the EU market or exported.

4.14. Is rubber cultivation considered as ‘agricultural use’ under the Regulation? (NEW)

Yes, rubber cultivation falls within the definition of ‘agricultural plantation’ under the
Regulation, which means ‘land with tree stands in agricultural production systems, such as
fruit tree plantations, oil palm plantations, olive orchards and agroforestry systems where
crops are grown under tree cover’. This definition includes all plantations of relevant
commodities other than wood. Agricultural plantations are excluded from the definition of
‘forest’’. This means that the replacement of a forest with a rubber plantation would be
considered as deforestation under the Regulation.

°°0°°

5. Due Diligence
5.1. What are my obligations as an EU operator?

As a general rule, operators (and traders which are not SMEs) will have to set up and maintain
a Due Diligence System, which consists of three steps.

As step one, they would need to collect the information referred to in Art. 9 of the Regulation,
such as the commodity or product which they intend to place (or make available in case of
non-SME traders) on the EU market or export, including under customs procedures ‘release
for free circulation’ and ‘export’, as well as the respective quantity, supplier, country of
production, evidence of legal harvest, among others. A key requirement, in this step, is to
obtain the geographic coordinates of the plots of land where the relevant commodity was
produced and to provide relevant information – product, CN code, quantity, country of
production, geolocation coordinates – in the due diligence statement to be submitted via the
Information System. If the operator (or traders which are not SMEs) cannot collect the
required information, it must refrain from placing (or making available in case of non-SME
traders) on the EU market or exporting the relevant product concerned. Failing to do so would
result in a violation of the Regulation, which could lead to sanctions.

35
If the operator (or traders which are not SMEs) cannot collect the required information, it
must refrain from placing the affected products on the European Union market or exporting
from it. Failing to do so would result in a violation of the Regulation, which could lead to
potential sanctions.

In step two, companies will need to feed the information gathered under the first step into
the risk assessment pillar of their Due Diligence Systems to verify and evaluate the risk of non-
compliant products entering the supply chain, taking into account the criteria described in
Art. 10 of the Regulation. Operators need to demonstrate how the information gathered was
checked against the risk assessment criteria and how they determined the risk.

In step three, they will need to take adequate and proportionate mitigation measures in case
they find under step two more than a negligible risk of non-compliance in order to make sure
that the risk becomes negligible, taking into account the criteria described in Art. 11 of the
Regulation. These measures need to be documented.

Operators sourcing commodities entirely from areas classified as low risk will be subject to
simplified due diligence obligations. According to Art. 13 of the Regulation, they will need to
collect information in line with Art. 9, but they will not be required to assess and mitigate risks
(Art. 10 and 11 ) unless the operator obtains or is made aware of any relevant information,
including substantiated concerns submitted under Art. 31 , that would point to a risk that the
relevant products do not comply with this Regulation (Art. 13(2) ).

5.2. What is an 'authorised representative’?

Pursuant to Art. 6 of the Regulation, the operator and the trader may mandate authorised
representatives to submit a due diligence statement on their behalf. In this case, the operator
and trader will retain responsibility for the compliance of the relevant products.

If the operator is a natural person or microenterprise, it may mandate the next operator or
trader in the supply chain to act as its authorised representative, provided it is not a natural
person or micro-enterprise. In this case, the mandating operator retains responsibility for the
compliance of the product.

According to Art. 2(22) of the Regulation, the authorised representative must be established
in the EU and must have received a written mandate from an operator or trader.

5.3. Can companies conduct due diligence on behalf of subsidiaries?

The internal organisation and due diligence policy of a group of companies (a mother
company and its subsidiaries) is not governed by the Regulation. The operator or trader that
places or makes available on the EU market or exports a relevant product, is responsible for
the compliance of the product and for overall compliance with the Regulation. Hence, it is its
name that should be provided in the due diligence statement, and it should retain the full
responsibility under the Regulation.

36
5.4. What about re-importing a product?

What are my due diligence statement obligations if I am re-importing a product that was
previously exported from the EU?

Where an operator (or trader that is not an SME) re-imports a product that was previously
exported and places it under the customs procedure ‘release for free circulation’, the same
obligations apply as if the product was placed for the first time on the EU market. When
exported, the relevant product loses its customs status of ‘Union good’ and that relevant
product is considered to be a new product when subsequently re-placed or re-made available
on the EU market. Already existing due diligence statements can help the operator to
exercise due diligence.

5.5. Which customs procedures are affected?

Relevant products placed under other customs procedures than the ‘release for free
circulation’ or ‘export’ (e.g. customs warehousing, inward processing, temporary admission
etc.) are not subject to the Regulation.

5.6. Does placing on the market of products not produced in the EU require customs
clearing?

Would a customs declaration be sufficient documentation in this context? (NEW)

Yes, placing on the market relevant commodities or relevant products produced outside of
the EU requires customs clearance prior to placing on the market. In this context, only a
customs declaration (neither a bill of lading nor a other commercial or logistics document)
would be considered as adequate evidence, if it can be directly linked to the product in
question.

5.7. What is the role of certification or verification schemes?

Certification schemes can be used by supply chain members to help their risk assessment to
the extent the certification covers the information needed to comply with their obligations
under the regulation. Operators and traders which are not SMEs will still be required to
exercise due diligence and they will remain responsible for any breach.

5.8. The European Commission is preparing a guidance that will provide further
explanations on the role of certification and third-party verification schemes in risk
assessment and risk mitigation. How long should documentation be kept? (NEW)

How long should the operator keep the documentation used for the due diligence exercise?
Do SME traders have to keep the relevant information about the relevant product they
place or make available on the EU market or export? What is considered as the beginning
of this duration?

Operators should collect, organise, and keep for five years from the date of the placing on the
EU market or export of the relevant commodities and relevant products the information
gathered based on Art. 9 of the Regulation, accompanied by evidence. Based on the

37
provisions of Art. 10(4) and Art. 11(3) of the Regulation, operators should be able to
demonstrate how due diligence was carried out and what mitigation measures were put in
place in case risk was identified. Relevant documentation about these measures must be
saved for at least five years after the due diligence exercise was carried out. Operators must
also keep record of the due diligence statements for five years from the date when the
statement is submitted in the Information System, which is prior to the date of placing the
product on the EU market or exporting it. In that regard, non-SME traders have the same
obligations as the operators.

SME traders must keep the information listed in Art. 5(3) of the Regulation for at least five
years, including the due diligence reference numbers from the date of the making available
on the EU market or export of relevant products.

5.9. What are the criteria for ‘negligible risk products’?

‘Negligible risk’ refers to the level of risk that applies to relevant products to be placed on the
EU market or exported from the EU, where, on the basis of a full assessment of product-
specific and general information, and, where necessary, of the application of the appropriate
mitigation measures, those commodities or products show no cause for concern as to not
being in compliance with Art. 3 points (a) or (b) of the Regulation.

5.10. Are ‘negligible risk products’ exempt?

Can we understand “negligible risk” under Art. 2(26) of the Regulation read together with
Art. 10(1) as providing an exemption from the Regulation?

No. Operators and traders [that are not SMEs] may only reach a conclusion on ‘negligible risk’
(which is a pre-condition for placing or making available on the EU market or exporting
relevant products) as a result of conducting due diligence (pursuant to Art. 4(1) of the
Regulation). Conducting due diligence is a core obligation of operators and traders under this
Regulation, which is not subject to any exemption.

Please note that the ‘negligible risk’ element does not apply to commodities (there is no ‘risk
status’ for each commodity in the Regulation).

5.11. Could certain commodities from a given country be considered ‘negligible risk’?

Could palm oil, rubber, coffee, cacao, or timber from a given country be considered ‘negligible
risk’?
No. See question above.

5.12. When checking compliance with the ‘deforestation-free’ requirement, what is the
point in time the checks should focus on? (NEW)

The assessment of whether the commodity has contributed to deforestation is conducted by

looking backwards in time to see if the crop land used to be a forest (in line with definition in
Art. 2) since the cut-off date of the Regulation (namely, 31 December 2020).

38
5.13. What products would require documentation by operators and traders in the
context of their due diligence obligations? (NEW)

Documentation is only required for the products in scope of the regulation (HS-Codes listed in
Annex I). No documentation is required for articles produced with commodities that are out
of scope (namely, if they are not listed in Annex I).
5.14. When will non-SME operators have to produce their first annual reports pursuant to
Art. 12(3) of the Regulation? (NEW)

The EUDR will be enforceable from 30 December 2024 (except for micro and small companies,
where the date is 30 June 2025). Art. 12(3) requires relevant companies to publish an annual
report about their activities to comply with requirements under the EUDR. As 2025 will be the
first year for which the EUDR applies, the first report (covering the year 2025) will have to be
published after 30 December 2025.

Companies which have already reported relevant elements covered in Art. 12(3) EUDR in the
context of their reporting obligations under other EU relevant legislation (such as the EU
Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive) do not have to repeat the reporting.

5.15. Will there be a template for the due diligence statement that actors in the seven
commodity sectors covered by the Regulation need to fill? (NEW)

The template for operators and traders' due diligence statement is the same for all commodity
sectors (see Annex II of the Regulation) on which the form in the Information System is based.
5.16. Will there be a set of pre-determined format or list of questions to perform due
diligence? (NEW)

No. Operators and traders must comply with their respective due diligence obligations in
accordance with Articles 8, 9, 10 and 11 of the Regulation. Achieving no or negligible risk is a
pre-requisite for placing/making available/exporting relevant products on/from the EU
market.
Please note that due diligence is not a “tick-the-box exercise”. Hence, it may depend on the
specific context and supply chain, provided that the different steps of due diligence as
described in the regulation (i.e. information requirement, risk assessment and risk mitigation,
in line with Art. 9, 10 and 11 EUDR) are covered.
5.17. Do operators and traders (and/or their authorised representatives) who wish to
place, make available or export relevant products on/from the EU market, have to register
in the Information System? (NEW)

Operators and traders must register if they are subject to submitting a Due Diligence
Statement under this Regulation. Alternatively, they can request the services of an Authorised
Representative (who, in turn, must be registered in the system as such).

39
5.18. Will the Commission issue further details concerning the satellite imagery tools to
be used to check compliance of relevant products (for instance, on minimum resolution)?
(NEW)

While spatial imagery tools can greatly help operators and traders in conducting their due
diligence obligations (to ascertain that a product is deforestation-free) and Member States’
competent authorities in performing checks, the Regulation does not impose the use of
specific satellite imagery tools, or threshold on satellite imagery resolution, to document the
absence of deforestation.
5.19. How often should due diligence statements be submitted in the Information System,
and can they cover multiple shipments/batches? What about situations where relevant
products may be placed on the market successively over a period of time (NEW)?

A due diligence statement can cover multiple physical batches/shipments. In these situations,
the operator (or non-SME trader, see Art. 5(1) EUDR) has to confirm that due diligence was
carried out for all relevant products intended to be placed on, made available on the Union
market, or exported and that no or only a negligible risk was found that the relevant products
do not comply with Art. 3, point (a) or (b), of the Regulation (Annex II) and that the operator
assumes responsibility for the compliance of the relevant products with Art. 3 EUDR (Art. 4(3)
EUDR).
In addition, there are legal requirements and practical considerations that must be taken into
account:
1. The quantity of all relevant products placed on, made available on the Union market,
or exported must be covered by a due diligence statement (Art. 3(c) EUDR) and that
statement must be submitted prior to any batches/shipments of relevant products
being placed on the market, made available or exported (Art. 4(2) EUDR).
2. Once the quantity of products covered by the due diligence statement has been fully
placed on the market or exported, a new statement must be filed for additional
quantities by the same operator.
3. In accordance with Article 12(2) of the EUDR, operators shall review their due
diligence system once a year. Therefore, a due diligence statement should not cover
shipments/batches over a period longer than one year from the time of submission of
the statement. In addition, a longer time period could lead to difficulties in
demonstrating the correspondence between declared products and products actually
(intended to be) placed on the market or exported.
4. With a due diligence statement, the operator confirms that due diligence was carried
out for all relevant products intended to be placed on, made available on the Union
market, or exported and that there is no or negligible risks of non-compliance of the
relevant products. Therefore, in principle a due diligence statement should cover
commodities that have already been produced, i.e., grown, harvested, obtained from
or raised on relevant plots of land or, as regards cattle, on establishments. In other
words, in principle operators should be able to link a due diligence statement to
existing commodities.
5. The quantities of the products declared in the due diligence statement must
correspond to the quantities that have been subject to the due diligence exercise by
the operator and are intended to be placed or made available on the EU market or

40
 exported. Upon demand of the Competent Authority, operators should be able to
provide evidence of such correspondence in their due diligence system established in
accordance with Art. 12 EUDR. Unless simplified due diligence applies (Art. 13 EUDR),
the operator has to provide evidence that the risk of non-compliance (regarding the
deforestation-free and the legality requirement) has been assessed in accordance
with Art. 10(2) EUDR for all products, and that such risk is negligible for all declared
products. Appropriate records demonstrating the above-mentioned correspondence
must be kept for 5 years from the date of (last) placing or making available on the
market, to be made available to the Competent Authority upon request (Art. 9 EUDR).
Where the quantity declared in the DD statement has not been fully placed or made
available on the market or exported , the operator should keep appropriate records
explaining the difference between the declared and the actual quantity placed or
made available on the market or exported must be kept for 5 years, to be made
available to the Competent Authority upon request (Art. 9 EUDR).
6. An individual due diligence statement with its geolocation data must be within the
practical size limit established for upload into the Information System (25 MB).
7. Where a due diligence statement covers multiple batches/shipments, this additional
complexity may increase the risk of non-compliance for the operator. The operator
assumes full responsibility for compliance of all batches/shipments and information
in the due diligence statement, country of production and geolocation of all plots of
land included. The additional complexity may be of relevance to the risk-based
approach used by Competent Authorities to identify the checks to be carried out (Art.
16 EUDR). Where relevant, interim measures or action for non-compliance may apply
to all relevant products covered by a due diligence statement, including those
contained in separate batches/shipments.

5.20. What is the latest date for submitting a DDS (NEW)?

According to Art. 4(1) EUDR, operators shall exercise due diligence in accordance with Art. 8
EUDR prior to placing relevant products on the market or exporting them in order to prove
that the relevant products comply with Art. 3 EUDR. The same applies to non-SME traders
according to Art. 5(1) EUDR.

For relevant products entering the Union market (import) or leaving the Union market
(export) the reference number of the DDS shall be made available to customs authorities. For
this purpose, the person lodging the customs declaration (known as “customs declarant”)
shall include the DDS reference number on the customs declaration lodged for that relevant
product, in accordance with Art. 26 EUDR. Therefore, the DDS shall be submitted, and the
reference number of the DDS shall be obtained prior to the lodging of the customs
declaration[1].
Where a DDS covers multiple shipments/batches the same DDS reference number can be
referred to in several customs declarations as long as the legal requirements of the EUDR,
specifically as recalled in question 1, are respected.
For commodities produced within the EU, the exact date of placing on the market should be
understood when the product is physically available on the Union market (i.e., the commodity

41
has been produced and in the case of a derived product, the product has been manufactured),
and is supplied on the market (for distribution , consumption or use) and two or more legal
or natural persons enter into an agreement in which the operator promises the supply of the
relevant product. Such agreement could provide for the supply in return for payment or free
of charge. To demonstrate in a forest related example, the DDS shall be submitted by the
latest when both elements are fulfilled: i) the harvested logs are available, and ii) a
purchase/supply agreement of the harvested logs is finalized by agreeing on the supply to a
third entity, for example a sawmill.
This date is irrespective of the payment for the logs, the date of first shipment, or the date of
transfer of ownership.

[1]In the mid- to long-term, it will be possible for operators and non-SME traders to submit at
once their customs declarations and the DDS pursuant to the electronic interface referred to
in Art. 28(2) of the EUDR . This situation is not yet applicable and thus not reflected yet in this
document. Separate guidance and FAQs will be made available in due time in this respect.

°°0°°

6. Benchmarking and partnerships

6.1. What is country benchmarking?

The benchmarking system operated by the Commission will classify countries, or parts
thereof, in three categories (high, standard and low risk) according to the level of risk of
producing commodities that are not deforestation-free in such countries.

The criteria for the identification of the risk status of countries or parts thereof are defined in
Art. 29 of the Regulation. Art. 29(2) EUDR mandates the Commission to develop a system and
publish the list of countries, or parts thereof, n. It will be based on an objective and
transparent assessment analysis of quantitative and qualitative criteria, taking into account
the latest scientific evidence, internationally recognised sources, and information verified on
the ground.

6.2. What is the methodology?

The methodology is currently being developed by the Commission and will be presented in
future meetings of the Multi-Stakeholder Deforestation Platform and other relevant meetings

6.3. How can stakeholders contribute?

How can producer countries and other stakeholders feed into the benchmarking process,
and how will information supplied by producer countries and other stakeholders be
evaluated, verified, and utilised?

The Commission is required under Art. 29(5) of the Regulation to engage in a specific dialogue
with all countries that are, or risk to be classified as, high risk, with the objective to reduce

42
their level of risk. This dialogue will be an opportunity for partner countries to provide
additional relevant information and work in close contact with the EU ahead of the finalisation
of the classification.

6.4. Can countries share relevant data with the Commission?

Can countries share data that they consider relevant to the implementation of this
Regulation (such as data on deforestation and forest degradation rates) with the
Commission? If so, can they do so outside of the specific dialogue framework foreseen in
Art. 29(5) of the Regulation?

While this Regulation does not place any obligation on third countries to share relevant data
with the EU, countries that wish to share such data with the EU are welcome to do so at any
stage from the entry into force of the Regulation. They can do so regardless of whether the
country is engaged in a specific dialogue with the EU, for instance under Art. 29(5) of this
Regulation on benchmarking or in a different context.

6.5. Will legality risks be considered?

Will the benchmarking take into account legality risks as well as deforestation and forest
degradation? How will the legislation and forest policies of producer countries, particularly
regarding 'legal deforestation', be assessed/taken into account during the benchmarking
process?

The list of criteria for benchmarking is set out in Art. 29 of the Regulation. The assessment of
the Commission will be based on an objective and transparent assessment analysis, based on
the criteria defined in Art. 29(3) and 29(4) of the Regulation. The relevant quantitative criteria
are: (a) the rate of deforestation and forest degradation, (b) the rate of expansion of
agriculture land for relevant commodities, and (c) production trends of relevant commodities
and of relevant products.

As envisaged in the Regulation, the assessment may also take into account other criteria
including (a) information supplied by governments and third parties (NGOs, industry); (b)
agreements and other instruments between the country concerned and the Union and/or its
Member States that address deforestation and forest degradation; (c) the existence of
national laws to fight deforestation and forest degradation and their enforcement; (d) the
availability of transparent data in the country; (e) if applicable, the existence, compliance
with, or effective enforcement of laws protecting the rights of indigenous peoples; (and (g)
international sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council or the Council of the European
Union on imports or exports of the relevant commodities and relevant products; etc.

6.6. What support is provided for producer countries and smallholders?

How are producer countries and smallholders being supported to produce products in
compliance with the Regulation? How can we ensure that smallholders are not excluded
from supply chains?

The EU and its Member States are stepping up engagement with partner countries, consumer
and producer countries alike, to jointly address deforestation and forest degradation

43
including through a global Team Europe Initiative (TEI) on Deforestation-free Value Chains.
Partnerships and cooperation mechanisms under the TEI will support countries to address
deforestation and forest degradation where a specific need has been detected, and where
there is a demand to cooperate - for instance, to help smallholders and companies in ensuring
working with only deforestation-free supply chains. The Commission has already financed
projects to disseminate information, raise awareness, and address technical questions
through workshops for smallholders in the most affected third countries.

See more on opportunities for smallholders in the EUDR

6.7. What are the different elements of the Team Europe Initiative?

What is the interplay between the different elements of the TEI initiative: the hub, the
Sustainable Agriculture for Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) project, FPI projects and facilities
planned in this context, but also those relevant in the broader context, for example at
regional level? How will duplications be avoided?

This Team Europe Initiative (TEI) Hub (short: “Zero Deforestation Hub”) will provide
information and outreach to partner countries on deforestation-free value chains and will
conduct knowledge-management to coordinate relevant pre-existing projects from EU and
Member States, with upcoming activities dedicated to the goals of the TEI. This will ensure
that different Team Europe activities on deforestation-free value chains in producing
countries can be better aligned, gaps identified, and redundancies avoided.

The Sustainable Agriculture for Forest Ecosystems (SAFE)1 project is the most important
pillar on the cooperation side of the TEI. SAFE is currently being implemented in Brazil,
Ecuador, Indonesia and Zambia. Further country components will be added in Vietnam and
DRC in 2024. The SAFE project will be further scaled up to cover more countries through
upcoming financial contributions from Member States.

The Technical Facility on Deforestation-free Value Chains will be a flexible and on-demand
instrument to assist producing countries with expertise on technical requirements, such as
geolocation, land-use mapping and traceability, with a particular focus on smallholders. These
activities will be closely coordinated with EU Delegations and aligned with pre-existing
projects as well as SAFE, in order to create synergies and avoid duplications.

6.8. How does the Team Europe initiative relate to the CSDDD?

In view of the ongoing legislative process on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence
Directive (CSDDD), the TEI Hub will be working closely together with the upcoming EU
Helpdesk on CSDDD, in particular with regards to agricultural value chains and smallholders
which will be affected by both the Regulation and the and CSDDD.

1 EUDR%20FAQ%20AGRI%20comments%2027%20May%202024.docx

44
6.9. How can we mitigate the risk of operators avoiding certain supply chains or certain
producer countries/regions that are benchmarked as 'high risk'?

Operators sourcing from standard and high-risk countries or parts of countries are subject to
the same standard due diligence obligations. The only difference is that shipments from high-
risk countries will be subject to enhanced scrutiny from competent authorities (9% of
operators sourcing from high-risk areas). In that sense, drastic changes of supply chains are
not warranted or expected. Furthermore, high risk classification will entail a specific dialogue
with the Commission to address jointly the root causes of deforestation and forest
degradation, and with the objective to reduce their level of risk.

6.10. How will the EU ensure transparency?

The process leading to the benchmarking system will be transparent. Regular updates and
consultations on the benchmarking methodology will take place in the Multi-stakeholder
Platform on deforestation, where many third countries take part, alongside with the 27 EU
Member States. The Commission will provide updates on the approach followed and
the methodology used.

Furthermore, in accordance with its obligations under the Regulation, the Commission will
engage in a specific dialogue with all countries that are, or risk to be classified as high risk
(prior to making the classification), with the objective to reduce their level of risk.’ This will
ensure there will be no sudden announcement of risk status and will allow for more in-depth
discussions. This dialogue will provide an opportunity for producer countries to provide
additional relevant information.

°°0°°

7. Supporting implementation
7.1. What is the Information System and the 'EU Single Window'?

The Information System (IS) is the IT system which will contain the due diligence statements
submitted by operators and traders to comply with the requirements of the Regulation. The
Information System will be operational by the entry into the application of the Regulation and
will provide users with the functionalities listed in Art. 33(2) of the Regulation.

The EU Single Window Environment for Customs (EU SWE-C) is a framework that enables
interoperability between customs IT systems and non-customs systems, such as the
Information System established pursuant to Art. 33 of the Regulation. The central component
of EU SWE-C, known as EU CSW-CERTEX system, will interconnect the Information System
with national customs IT systems and will enable sharing and processing of data submitted to
customs and non-customs authorities by economic operators. The Single Window will thus
ensure information sharing in real-time and digital cooperation between customs authorities
and competent authorities in charge of enforcing non-customs formalities, including in the
field of environmental protection.

45
7.2. What data security safeguards will they have?

The Information System and, subsequently, its interconnection with the EU Single Window
Environment for Customs, will be aligned with the relevant and applicable provisions in terms
of data protection. In line with the Union’s Open Data Policy, the Commission has to provide
access to the wider public to the complete anonymised datasets of the Information System in
an open format that can be machine-readable and that ensures interoperability, re-use, and
accessibility.

7.3. How can operators and traders register?

What can operators and traders use as an ID number/company registration number for the
IS? How should domestic operators/traders, who do not have EORI numbers and may not
have VAT numbers, register for the IS?

Operators that import or export relevant commodities and relevant products need to provide
their Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI) number when registering in
TRACES NT. Domestic operators/traders, who do not have an EORI number may register
through one of the other identifiers supported by TRACES such as VAT number, National
Company Number or Taxpayer Identification Number.

7.4. Can the system store frequently used data?

Will it be possible to 'store' frequently used data (e.g., frequently used HS codes and
scientific names) in the IS, so that it can be easily auto-filled rather than needing to be
entered afresh for each new Due Diligence Statement?

The Information System does not include this functionality at the moment. Nevertheless, it
will be possible to duplicate due diligence statements that have already been submitted, thus
reducing the time needed to fill a new statement. It will be the responsibility of operators and
traders to make the necessary changes in the duplicated statement to ensure compliance. In
addition, an ‘import’ button is provided, which will allow economic operators to import the
information about the production place from a predefined GeoJSON file.

7.5. Can the system help farmers identify the geolocation?

No, the Information System acts as the repository of the due diligence statements submitted
by operators and traders pursuant to Art. 4(2) and Art. 5(1) EUDR. As such, it does not provide
software or tools to identify geolocations coordinates.

7.6. Can a due diligent statement be amended?

Cancellation or amendment of a submitted due diligence statement (DDS) will be possible

within 72 hours after the due diligence reference number has been provided by the
Information System. Cancellation or amendment will not be possible if the DDS reference
number has already been used in a customs declaration, referenced in another DDS, or if the
corresponding product has already been placed or made available on the EU market or
exported.

46
7.7. Who can view the geolocation data stored in the Information System? (NEW)

The relevant Member States Competent Authorities responsible for checking the information
submitted by operators and traders under this Regulation will have access to the geolocation
data submitted by the operators and traders.

7.8. Which data format is needed for the geolocation to be uploaded in the Information
System? What format will be accepted to attach the geo-location coordinates to the due
diligence statements in the Information System? (NEW)

Operators can provide geolocations in the Information System either by manual entry or by
uploading them in a file. The format of the supported files in the Information System is
GeoJson. The Information System supports currently WGS-84 coordinate format, with EPSG-
4326 projection.
7.9. When will the Information System be ready? (NEW)

The Information System as set out in Art. 33 of the Regulation will be launched by mid-
December 2024. Registration (for users of the system) will open in November 2024.
A pilot testing for operators and competent authorities took place from December 2023 until
the end of January 2024 with the objective to collect feedback from the testers. More than
100 stakeholders have volunteered to test the system.
The system will be fully functioning when the EUDR rules start to apply. It will be finetuned
over time as implementation advances.
°°0°°

8. Timelines
8.1. When does the Regulation enter into force and into application?

The Regulation was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 9 June 2023. It
entered into force on 29 June 2023. However, certain Articles listed in paragraph 2(38) of the
Regulation will enter into application on 30 December 2024 (18 months transition) for
medium and large enterprises and on 30 June 2025 (24 months transition) for micro- and
small enterprises.
8.2. What about the period between these dates?

Will the products placed on the Union market between the entry into force of the
Regulation and its date(s) of applicability have to comply with the requirements of the
Regulation?

The entry into application for large and medium enterprise operators and traders is foreseen
18 months after the entry into force of the Regulation (on 30 December 2024). This means
that operators and traders do not have to comply with the requirements for products placed
on the Union market before that date. For small- and micro undertakings this period is
extended (24 months after the entry into force of the Regulation - on 30 June 2025).

47
8.3. How to prove that the product was produced before the Regulation entered into
force? What are the rules for the production of cattle products? (NEW)

Who bears the burden of proof that the relevant commodity or relevant product which
an operator wants to place on the EU market or export was produced before entry into
force and the Regulation does not apply?

The Regulation is applicable as stipulated in Art. 1(1) unless the conditions of Art. 1(2) are
met, meaning unless the commodity contained in the product or which has been used to
make the product was produced before 29 June 2023, as stipulated in Art. 2(14). For cattle,
the relevant date of production is the date on which the cattle is born, meaning that the
Regulation does not apply to cattle and cattle products if the cattle was born before the entry
into force.

The operator bears the burden of proof for this exception and must be able to provide
relevant information as reasonable proof that the conditions of Art. 1(2) of the Regulation are
met. While in this case the operator is not obliged to submit a due diligence statement, the
operator should keep necessary documents proving non-applicability of the Regulation and
its obligations.

°°0°°

9. Other questions
9.1. What are the obligations for operators and non-SME traders when they place on the
EU market or export a relevant product which is made of a relevant product or a relevant
commodity that was placed on the EU market during the transitional period (i.e., the
period between the entry into force of the Regulation (29 June 2023) and its entry into
application (30 December 2024)?

This situation may be best explained with a few concrete scenarios:

1. A relevant commodity (e.g. natural rubber - CN code 4001) is placed on the EU market
during the transitional period, hence not necessarily geolocalised, and is then used to
produce a relevant derived product (e.g. new tyres - CN code 4011), which is then placed
on the market (or exported) after 30 December 2024.
If a commodity is placed on the market during the transitional period, i.e., before the entry
into application of the Regulation, when placing on the EU market a derived product after
30 December 2024, the obligations of the operator (and of non-SME traders) will be
limited to gathering adequately conclusive and verifiable evidence to prove that the
relevant commodity (rubber) used to produce such relevant product (tyres) was placed
on the market before the entry into application of the Regulation. This is without prejudice
to Art. 37(2) of the Regulation with regard to timber and timber products. If the
commodity is placed on the market or exported after the transitional period, i.e., after 30
December 2024, the operator (and the non-SME traders) will be subject to the standard
obligations of the Regulation. Equally, for parts of relevant products that have been

48
 produced with commodities placed on the market after 30/12/2024, the operator (and
the non-SME traders) will be subject to the standard obligations of the Regulation.
2. A relevant product (e.g. cocoa butter - CN code 1804) is placed on the EU market during
the transitional period, hence not necessarily geolocalised, but is then used to produce
another relevant derived product (e.g. chocolate - CN code 1806) which is placed on the
market (or exported) by a downstream operator after 30 December 2024.
In this case, the obligations of the operator (and of non-SME traders) placing on the EU
market or exporting a derived product (chocolate), will be limited to gathering adequately
conclusive and verifiable evidence to prove that the relevant derived product (cocoa
butter) was placed on the market before the entry into application of the Regulation. For
parts of the final relevant product that have been produced with other relevant products
placed on the EU market after 30 December 2024, the operator (and the non-SME traders)
will be subject to the standard obligations of the Regulation. This is without prejudice to
Art. 37(2), with regard to timber and timber products.
3. An operator places on the market a relevant commodity or a product in the transitional
period, which is then ‘made available’ on the market by one or more non-SME traders
after 30 December 2024.
In this scenario, the obligations of the non-SME trader will be limited to gathering
adequately conclusive and verifiable evidence to prove that such relevant commodity, or
relevant product, was placed on the market before the entry into application of the
Regulation. This is without prejudice to Art. 37(2) of the Regulation, with regard to timber
and timber products.
Specifically for micro and small enterprises, which are subject to the deferred entry into
application outlined in Art. 38(3) EUDR, the following scenarios would apply:

1. If an operator, qualifying as micro and small undertaking, places on the EU market after
the 30th of June 2025 a relevant product made with a relevant commodity or relevant
product placed on the EU market during the transitional period (from 29 June 2023 to 30
December 2024), the obligations of such operator would be limited to gathering
adequately conclusive and verifiable evidence to prove that the relevant commodity or
relevant product used to produce such relevant product was placed on the EU market
before 30 December 2024.
2. However, if the relevant product is made with a relevant commodity or a relevant product
that has been placed on the EU market after the transitional period (i.e. 30 December
2024 onwards) and is accompanied by a due diligence statement, the obligations of an
operator qualifying as small or micro undertaking, and placing a relevant product on the
EU market from 30 June 2025, would be the same as those of any other operator.
3. If a large (or medium) company (company B) places on the EU market a product made of
a relevant commodity which was placed on the EU market by a small or micro undertaking
(company A) before 30 June 2025, the obligations of company B would be limited to
gathering adequately conclusive and verifiable evidence to prove that the relevant

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 commodity or relevant product used to produce the relevant product, was placed on the
EU market before the deferred entry into application regarding company A (i.e. 30 June
2025).
9.2. What evidence is necessary to prove that the product was placed on the market
before the date of entry into application (i.e. what documents are accepted as evidence
of ‘placing on the market’)? (NEW)

In case of imported products, the customs declaration of the relevant commodities or relevant
products in question will be accepted as evidence of having placed on the market before the
date of application. For EU produced goods, other documentation should be accepted as
evidence, for example documentation relating to the production e.g. felling tickets, ear tag of
cattle, bill of lading, proforma invoice accompanying the delivery to the customer, CMRs
(Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by road), delivery notes,
and any other documents showing evidence that goods are transferred between 2 parties
which can be linked directly to the relevant product in question.
9.3. Can products placed on the EU market during the transition period be mixed with
products that comply with the Regulation and which are placed on the EU market after
the transition period if it can be proven that each batch within was either placed on the
EU market during the transition period, or is compliant with the Regulation? (NEW)

Provided that all conditions detailed in Art. 3(a) - (c) of the Regulation are fulfilled, products
to be placed on the EU market from entry into application, and products placed on the EU
market during the transition period (thus exempt), accompanied by evidence of having been
placed on the EU market during the transition period, can be mixed together before being
placed on the EU market.
9.4. How will the mixing of commodities stocked during the transitional period with
commodities to be placed on the market after 30 December 2024 work in practice, in
particular in the Information System? (NEW)

The Due Diligence Statement has to be uploaded in the Information System only for the
relevant products that are subject to the due diligence obligations under the Regulation. If
operators and traders mix commodities placed on the EU market during the transitional
period with newer (post-transitional period) stocks, only the information relevant to
commodities newly placed on the EU market should be part of the due diligence statement
as this stock is subject to the due diligence exercise.

For “transition stocks”, see Q. above.

9.5. When does the transitional period start and end in practice? (NEW)

The transitional period started on the date of entry into force of the EUDR (30.6.2023) and
ends on the day before its entry into application.

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9.6. How should Competent Authorities conduct checks on products which were placed
on the EU market during the transitional period to ensure compliance with the
Regulation? NEW

Competent Authorities can carry out checks on relevant products to establish whether the
products were placed on the EU market during the transitional period. In this case the
operator bears the burden of proof to provide evidence that the product is exempted from
the Regulation, in accordance with Question 79.
9.7. Will the Commission issue guidelines?

The Commission is working on a guidance document to elaborate on certain aspects of the

Regulation, e.g. on the definition of “agricultural use”, that will address issues related to
agroforestry and agricultural land, certification, legality and on other aspects that are of
interest to many stakeholders on the ground. These documents are planned to be published
before the entry into application of the Regulation.

The Commission is also gathering inputs and promoting dialogue amongst stakeholders via
the Multi-stakeholder Platform on Protecting and Restoring the World’s Forests with a view
to providing informal guidance on a number of issues. This document on Frequently Asked
Questions already answers the most frequent questions received by the Commission from
relevant stakeholders and will be updated over time. If needed, additional facilitation tools
will be mobilised.

No additional guidelines are necessary to comply with the rules. The Commission aims to
elaborate certain aspects to explain how the Regulation will work in practice, share good
practice examples, etc.

9.8. Will the Commission issue commodity-specific guidelines?

No. However, the Commission aims to put forward good practice examples, including in
guidance documents, which will to some extent cover commodity-specific aspects.
9.9. What are the reporting obligations for operators?

Operators which are not SMEs will have to publicly report on their due diligence system
annually. For those operators that are in the scope of Corporate Sustainability Reporting
Directive (CSRD) and comply with EU Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) in due time,
is it sufficient to publish their report according to the requirements in CSRD? Or will there
be additional reporting requirements?

The Regulation provides that when it comes to reporting obligations, operators falling also
within the scope of other EU legislative instruments that lay down requirements regarding
value chain due diligence may fulfil their reporting obligations under the Regulation by
including the required information when reporting in the context of other EU legislative
instruments (Art. 12(3) of the Regulation).

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9.10. What is the EU Observatory on deforestation and forest degradation?

The Observatory will build on already existing monitoring tools, including Copernicus
products and other publicly or privately available sources, to support the implementation of
this Regulation by providing scientific evidence, including land cover maps on the cut-off date,
regarding global deforestation and forest degradation and related trade. The use of
these maps will not automatically ensure that the conditions of the Regulation are complied
with, but will be a tool to help companies to ensure compliance with this Regulation, for
example to assess the deforestation risk. Companies will still be obliged to carry out due
diligence.

The EU Observatory on deforestation and forest degradation will cover all forests worldwide,
including European forests and will be developed in coherence with other ongoing EU policy
developments such as the Forest Monitoring Law and upgrading and enhancement of the
Forest Information System for Europe (FISE).

The primary purpose of reference maps produced by the EU Observatory will be to inform the
risk assessment by operators/ traders and EU MS Competent Authorities (CAs). As such,
reference maps will have the following features:

• They will be non-mandatory. There will be no obligation compelling operators /traders

(or CAs) to use the reference maps of EU Observatory to inform their risk assessment.

• They will be non-exclusive. Operators and traders (as well as CAs) may avail themselves
of other maps that can be more granular or detailed than those made available by the
Observatory. The regulation is not prescriptive on the modalities to inform the risk
assessment. The Observatory is one of the many tools which will be available and will be
a tool that the Commission will offer free of charge.

• They will be non-legally binding. Therefore, reference maps made available by the EU
Observatory may be used for risk assessment. However, the fact that the geolocation
provided falls within an area considered as forest does not automatically lead to a
conclusion of non-compliance. On the other hand, it cannot be assumed that if
geolocation falls outside an area considered as forest the shipment/commodity will not
be checked (there can be random checks, and there may be other risk factors) or that the
commodity will be automatically compliant (first, due to the absence of 100% accuracy,
and second, because a deforestation-free commodity could anyway be illegal according
to relevant legislation in the country of origin).

9.11. What constitutes high-risk, and how long can a suspension take place?

Art. 17 EUDR allows Competent Authorities to take immediate actions – including

suspension - in situations that present high risk of non-compliance. What constitutes high-
risk, and how long can the suspension take place?

Competent Authorities may identify situations where relevant products present a high risk of
being non-compliant with the requirements of the Regulation on the basis of different
circumstances, including on the spot checks, the outcome of their risk analysis in their risk-
based plans, or risks identified through the information system, or on the basis of information

52
coming from another competent authority, substantiated concerns etc. In such cases, the
Competent Authorities can introduce interim measures as defined in Art. 23 of the
Regulation, including the suspension of placing or making available the product on the EU
market. This suspension should end within three working days, or 72 hours in case of
perishable products. However, the Competent Authority can come to the conclusion, based
on checks carried out in this period of time, that the suspension should be extended by
additional periods of three days to establish if the product is compliant with the Regulation.

9.12. How does the Regulation link to the EU Renewable Energy Directive?

The objectives of the Regulation and the Renewable Energy Directive are complementary, as
they both address the overarching objective of fighting climate change and biodiversity loss.
Commodities and products that fall within the scope of both laws will be subject to
requirements for general market access under the Regulation and may be accounted as
renewable energy under the Renewable Energy Directive (RED). These requirements are
compatible and mutually reinforcing. In the specific case of certification systems for low
Indirect Land Use Change (ILUC) according to Commission Regulation (EU) 2019/807
supplementing Directive (EU) 2018/2001, these certification systems may also be used by
operators and traders within their due diligence systems to obtain information required by
the Regulation to meet some of the traceability and information requirements set out in Art.
9 of the Regulation . As with any other certification system, their use is without prejudice to
the legal responsibility and obligations under the Regulation for operators and traders to
exercise due diligence.

°°0°°

10. Penalties
10.1. What does it mean that the penalties laid down by the EU Member States are
without prejudice to the obligations of Member States under Directive 2008/99/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council? (NEW)

The EU Member States must lay down the national framework of penalties, which should
include at least the penalties listed in Art. 25(2) of the Regulation. The level and type of
penalties cannot be in contradiction with the Environmental Crime Directive. The provisions
of the Directive are subject to the succession of law.

10.2. What is the maximum level of fine? (NEW)

Member States have the discretion to define the penalties, including the level of fine. For legal
persons the maximum level of the penalty cannot be lower than 4 % of the operator’s or
trader’s total annual Union-wide turnover in the financial year preceding the fining decision,
calculated in accordance with the calculation of aggregate turnover for undertakings laid
down in Art. 5(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.

The level of fine should increase where necessary, particularly in case of repeated
infringements. The penalties should ensure that they effectively deprive those responsible of

53
the economic benefits derived from their infringements, in accordance with the effective,
proportionate, and dissuasive principle.

10.3. With regards to the Public Procurement Directive, is it for EU Member States to
decide, when implementing the Regulation, whether self-cleaning should be enabled?
(NEW)

Apart from the requirements of Art. 25(1) and (2) EUDR, Member States will have
discretionary power to decide upon whether they want to provide for self-cleaning or not.
However, they would need to ensure that such a provision does not impede the effectiveness
of the penalties by setting and applying clear rules on self-cleaning.
10.4. According to Art. 25(3) EUDR, “Member States shall notify the Commission of final
judgments” and penalties imposed on legal persons. The Commission will publish a list of
these judgments on its website. Does this refer to all administrative decisions or to court
rulings? (NEW)

This provision means that Member States should notify the Commission about final
judgements against legal persons, which means Court rulings.

10.5. I have cut down a few small trees on my property where I now raise some cows. I
intend to sell the timber and the meat of the cows on a local market in the EU. Will there
be penalties imposed on me for selling them as I cut the trees? (NEW)

Generally, the responsibility for enforcement of the provisions lies with the Member States.
In the EU, the principle of proportionality is one of the general principles of Union law which
applies to the interpretation and enforcement of Union legislation.

Cutting down trees can only constitute a breach of the deforestation-free requirement under
the Regulation if the trees are part of a forest as defined in the Regulation. This is the case if
the trees are part of land which is not under predominantly agricultural or urban land use
spanning more than 0,5 hectares with trees higher than 5 metres and a canopy cover of more
than 10 %, or trees able to reach those thresholds in situ. If one of these criteria is not met,
the area is not a forest and the cutting down the trees does not breach a provision of the
deforestation-free requirement of the Regulation.

10.6. What do I do if I have IT related issues on the information system? (NEW)

Please consult the website of the EUDR Information System: https://green-

business.ec.europa.eu/deforestation-regulation-implementation/deforestation-due-
diligence-registry_en

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