EUDR Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

EUDR (EU Deforestation Regulation) is Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 which prohibits placing products linked to deforestation or forest degradation on the EU market. It covers seven commodities: timber, palm oil, soy, cocoa, coffee, rubber, and cattle, as well as their derived products.

The regulation entered into force on 29 June 2023. The compliance deadline for large operators is 30 December 2025, and for SMEs 30 June 2026. See the full timeline for all relevant dates.

Seven commodities and their derived products: timber (furniture, paper), palm oil, soy, cocoa (chocolate), coffee, rubber (tyres), and cattle (beef, leather). The complete list of derived products is available on the EUDR commodities page.

A product is deforestation-free if it was produced on land that has not been subject to deforestation after 31 December 2020 (the cut-off date) and has not caused forest degradation. See the glossary for the full definition.

Due diligence is a mandatory three-step process: (1) information collection, including GPS coordinates, (2) risk assessment, and (3) risk mitigation. If the risk cannot be reduced to a negligible level, the product cannot be placed on the market. Details at eudr.solutions.

An operator is any natural or legal person who, in the course of a commercial activity, places relevant products on the EU market for the first time or exports them from the EU. This includes importers, producers, and exporters. See scope.

The operator is the first to place the product on the market or export it. The trader is any other person in the supply chain who makes the product available on the internal market. Operators have stricter obligations, including full due diligence.

Fines of at least 4% of annual EU turnover, confiscation of products and revenue, exclusion from public procurement, and prohibition from placing products on the market. See legal analysis for details.

Operators must provide GPS coordinates of all plots of land where the commodities were produced. For plots larger than 4 hectares, geospatial polygons must be provided (not just points).

The EU Commission classifies countries or regions into three risk categories: low, standard, and high. The classification determines the level of due diligence required and the frequency of checks. Details on the country benchmarking page.

No. SMEs acting as traders benefit from an extended deadline (30 June 2026) and simplified obligations. They do not need to maintain their own due diligence system but must verify existing statements.

Yes. The regulation applies to both products imported into the EU and those exported from the EU. Exporters are considered operators and must meet the same due diligence requirements.

Published in February 2025, the Omnibus simplification proposal suggests amendments to EUDR to reduce the administrative burden. Among the proposals: exempting products from low-risk countries from geolocation requirements and recognising existing certification schemes. Follow eudr.today for updates.

Verify the existence of a valid due diligence statement in the EU information system, confirm traceability back to the production plot, and verify the land was not deforested after 31 December 2020. Full guide at eudr.solutions.

The full text of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 is available on EUR-Lex. For a structured analysis, see the legal analysis.