In brief
On 4 May 2026, the European Commission published its long‑awaited report on the simplification of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), accompanied by an updated guidance document, updated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and a draft Delegated Act amending the EUDR’s product scope. The measures are expected to reduce annual compliance costs for companies subject to EUDR obligations by about 75% compared to the original EUDR. At the same time, the report signals regulatory certainty by highlighting that the EUDR will not be reopened and that the existing timelines for its implementation continue to apply.
This client alert highlights the key modifications of the proposed changes.
In depth
Modifying the product scope
The draft Delegated Act proposes to reduce the product scope of the EUDR set out in Annex I of the Regulation by:
- Removing several categories of cattle hides, skins, and leather products including raw bovine hides and skins, tanned or crust bovine hides and skins without hair and further prepared leather (Harmonized System (HS) codes ex 4101, 4104, 4107), as well as retreaded tyres, particularly relevant for the automotive and transport sector;
- Clarifying that waste, used, and second‑hand products fall outside the scope of the EUDR;
- Exempting product samples and products used for examination, analysis, or testing; and
- Excluding items and correspondence entirely from the EUDR’s scope.
At the same time, the draft Delegated Act also proposes to extend the product scope, most notably to soluble coffee, palm oil derivatives (for example, soap made with palm oil), and frozen cattle tongues.
These proposed changes to the product scope likely affect a variety of industries, including the automotive and transport industry, the fashion industry, the consumer good and retail sector as well as the chemical industry.
Clarifying extent of due diligence obligations of upstream operators
To specify the extent of the obligation of upstream operators to exercise due diligence with respect to the compliance of relevant products with the national law, the Commission plans to establish a repository of relevant legislation on a dedicated website by December 2026. Countries of production will be able to contribute lists of their applicable legislation. Similarly, the Commission intends to establish a web‑based repository of certification schemes applicable to EUDR‑relevant commodities. With these measures, the Commission addresses two of the major challenges companies were facing when implementing the EUDR.
While the updated guidance document elaborates on simplified due diligence obligations for commodities and products originating from low-risk countries, the simplification package does not introduce a “no‑risk” or “negligible‑risk” country classification that would fully exempt operators from their obligations.
Downstream supply chain obligations
The Commission further clarifies that first downstream operators or traders are not required to actively request reference numbers or declaration identifiers. Instead, they can rely on upstream operators to pass on reference numbers or declaration identifiers.
It also clarifies that re‑importing products qualifies as a downstream activity. This means that importers who can demonstrate that a product has previously been placed on the EU market will also benefit from the reduced due diligence obligations for downstream entities.
Downstream entities would, however, remain obligated to inform the competent authorities where they have information indicating non-compliance with the EUDR. The guidance documents provide practical direction on how downstream actors can verify the exercise of required due diligence by upstream actors where substantiated concerns arise. This includes checking the validity of reference numbers and declaration identifiers, consulting additional sources (e.g., benchmarking or publicly available reports), or requesting further information from their suppliers.
Information system
The Commission intends to relaunch the information system, to which due diligence statements must be submitted, in June 2026. Subsequent updates introducing additional functionalities are scheduled for later in the summer, ahead of the EUDR’s application. These updates will reflect the legislative changes made to the EUDR, allowing for the registration of micro and small primary operators, downstream operators, and traders, as well as for the submission of simplified declarations.
Next steps
Against this background, companies should:
- Continue to prepare for compliance with the EUDR by 30 December 2026 (large and medium-sized companies) or 30 June 2027 (small and micro-sized companies);
- Re-evaluate their scoping exercise to determine which products continue to be covered products by the EUDR;
- Monitor the ongoing legislative process with respect to the delegated act and consider providing feedback to the Commission until 1 June 2026; and
- Review and adapt their compliance system to the applicable due diligence obligations.