About cbamguide.com

cbamguide.com is a free, independent compliance resource covering the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) established by Regulation (EU) 2023/956. The site provides guides, tools, and regulatory analysis for EU importers and non-EU exporters affected by the definitive CBAM phase that started January 1, 2026.

What This Site Covers

The site covers all aspects of CBAM compliance across the six regulated sectors: iron and steel, cement, aluminium, fertilizers, electricity, and hydrogen. Content is organized by audience (importers, exporters), by sector, and by regulatory topic (authorization, embedded emissions, certificates, verification, penalties).

Three free browser-based tools are available: a CBAM cost calculator that models certificate obligations from 2026 to 2034, a CN code lookup that checks product coverage and retrieves default emission values from IR 2025/2621, and a live EU ETS price tracker that shows the current certificate price updated hourly.

Editorial Approach

All content is based on primary regulatory sources: Regulation (EU) 2023/956, Regulation (EU) 2025/2083 (the Omnibus amendment), and the implementing regulations published by the European Commission. Where regulatory text is ambiguous or disputed, the site flags the open question rather than presenting an interpretation as settled law.

Regulatory numbers, deadlines, and thresholds on this site are drawn directly from the Official Journal of the European Union. The most commonly misquoted values — the September 30 declaration deadline, the 50-tonne de minimis threshold, the 50% quarterly holding requirement — reflect the Omnibus-amended versions in force from October 17, 2025.

Data Sources

Our Goal

cbamguide.com exists to make CBAM compliance accessible to the businesses it actually affects: EU importers calculating their 2026 certificate obligation and non-EU exporters trying to understand what their customers now require from them. The EU Commission publishes the rules; law firms charge to interpret them. This site sits between the two — free, plain-language, and grounded in the primary regulatory texts.

Content is written for two primary audiences. EU importers need authorization status, certificate purchase obligations, declaration deadlines, and penalty exposure. Non-EU exporters need to understand what production data their EU customers require, how CBAM affects their competitiveness, and what the Article 9 carbon price deduction means for countries with existing carbon pricing systems.

The site does not take a policy position on CBAM. It does not advocate for or against the mechanism. It explains how the rules work, what the numbers are, and what happens if an obligation is missed. Where regulatory text is ambiguous or a question is genuinely unresolved, we say so rather than presenting an interpretation as settled.

How We Are Financed

cbamguide.com is free to use and carries no subscription or paywall. The site is supported through a combination of commercial arrangements that may include: sponsored content placements clearly labeled as such, referral partnerships with CBAM-adjacent service providers (customs agents, verification bodies, compliance software), and introductions to service providers for businesses that request them.

Editorial content is produced independently of these arrangements. Sponsored placements are separated from editorial articles and identified at the top of the page. Referral relationships do not influence the regulatory information, tool outputs, or compliance guidance on this site. If a fact is wrong, the commercial relationship does not change it.

Contact

For corrections, regulatory questions, or commercial enquiries: contact@cbamguide.com