US trade office asks for public comments on the EU CBAM: deadline November 9, 2026, no CBAM rule changes

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) published a notice in the Federal Register on October 8, 2026 asking for public comments on the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and on the three EU texts that would extend it to downstream goods. Comments are due on November 9, 2026. The notice changes nothing in the CBAM rules: EU importers of US-origin goods owe the same certificates as before. One of its four questions asks whether "enforcement action" may be appropriate, without saying what that would be.

What is the notice, and what is it not?

The notice is a request for comments from a US government office, not an investigation and not a trade measure. It is Federal Register document 2026-20615 (91 FR 64450, docket USTR-2026-0661), and it carries the name of Amy Kreps, Acting Assistant United States Trade Representative for Environment and Natural Resources.

The notice cites no statute and no other legal authority. The words investigation, Section 301, tariff and retaliation do not appear in it, and it announces no hearing. Its stated purpose: "Such comments will help inform continued USTR and U.S. government engagement with the EU on CBAM."

What does USTR ask?

USTR asks four questions: three about effects on US business and one about a response.

1. How the CBAM in force affects costs, regulatory burden and EU market access for US producers (small and medium-sized ones included), workers, direct and indirect exports and overall trade with the EU.
2. How the three proposals to cover more products would affect the same groups.
3. Whether CBAM and the three proposals put US companies at a disadvantage or an advantage compared with EU companies or companies from other countries.
4. In the notice's own words: "Whether and what enforcement action may be appropriate to remedy any negative effects of CBAM."

The notice does not define "enforcement action" and names no law under which it could be taken. It adds that comments may include "suggestions for changes to CBAM" and may explain "how CBAM acts as a trade barrier". Its background section is not neutral: it says the EU "adds a punitive mark-up" to default values.

How and when can comments be filed?

Comments are due by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on November 9, 2026, and USTR asks for them on Regulations.gov under docket USTR-2026-0661. Submissions must be in English, and USTR prefers an attached Word or PDF file. Business confidential information needs a certification, a file name beginning with "BCI" and a second, public version. Everything else is posted in the docket for anyone to read. The notice does not restrict who may file.

Which EU texts does it cover, and do its product counts match?

The notice covers the CBAM in force and all three negotiating texts on the downstream extension, and it counts their products differently from the figures usually quoted in Europe. It links the Commission proposal COM(2025) 989, the Council's general approach of June 12, 2026 (document 10423/26) and the amendments Parliament adopted on September 15, 2026. It does not say how it counted.

The difference looks like a matter of what is counted. The Commission's annex has a "combined metal products" table of 107 entries and seven new iron and steel entries, while its press release speaks of 180 products. The Council document repeats that table, adds a note with 202 eight-digit codes and deletes three medical-device entries. That is just over 300, in line with the notice (cbamguide.com counts from both documents).

This site's downstream expansion tracker has carried "about 200" for the Council. On this count, that figure matches the codes the Council added, not its whole list, as the comparison of the three product lists already says. This site has not counted Parliament's adopted text. None of the three texts is law.

What changes for EU importers and US exporters?

Nothing changes in CBAM: the notice is a US consultation and has no effect on EU law. An EU importer above the 50-tonne annual threshold still builds up a certificate obligation on its 2026 imports of US-origin goods. For US hot-rolled flat steel (CN 7208) on default values, that is €16.81 per tonne at the Q3 2026 certificate price of €82.32, as calculated in the CBAM guide for US exporters.

What follows is not known. Question 4 asks whether enforcement action may be appropriate, but the notice commits USTR to none and gives no timetable beyond the deadline. Two dates are worth watching.

• October 20, 2026 (reported). Law firm Mayer Brown wrote on October 7 that "the first political trilogue is scheduled for 20 October 2026". Euronews reported on October 8 that the Irish Presidency "wants to seal the deal at a key meeting on 20 October", without naming the meeting. No EU institution has confirmed the date.
• November 9, 2026. The comment deadline. Filed comments appear in the docket.

How much trade is at stake?

The EU imported €3.90 billion of CBAM-covered goods from the United States in 2025, or 3.5% of extra-EU imports by value, which made the United States the ninth-largest origin (Eurostat, EU27 imports from the United States of Annex I goods, 2025; Comext DS-045409, extracted October 12, 2026). By sector:

• Iron and steel goods of Chapters 72 and 73: 665 thousand tonnes and €2.71 billion, of which steel articles of Chapter 73 were €1.93 billion.
• Agglomerated iron ore (CN 2601 12 00): 1.40 million tonnes and €153.4 million.
• Aluminium: 47 thousand tonnes and €721.1 million.
• Fertilisers: 867 thousand tonnes and €308.6 million.
• Hydrogen: €3.7 million. Cement: €0.8 million. Electricity: none.

These are trade statistics, not CBAM declarations, and they cover only the goods in Annex I today, not the machinery, vehicle parts and appliances that the downstream texts would add (Eurostat Comext, 2025).

Has the EU reacted?

No EU institution had published a reaction that this site could find by October 13, 2026. Euronews wrote on October 8: "The Commission did not respond to a Euronews request for comment at the time of publication." The Commission's press corner showed no statement on the notice on October 13. Euronews describes Washington as "investigating" the CBAM; that word is Euronews's and is not in the notice.

On August 13, 2026, a Commission spokesperson rejected the US ambassador's charge that CBAM is a tariff. In the EU-US Joint Statement of August 21, 2025 the Commission had committed "to work to provide additional flexibilities in the CBAM implementation".

What should importers and exporters do now?

Neither group should change its CBAM compliance, and US producers with a view have until November 9 to file it.

EU importers of US-origin goods:

1. Keep collecting supplier emissions data and follow the CBAM compliance checklist.
2. Check US-origin purchases against all three downstream lists.

US exporters:

1. Decide whether to file. The notice invites named products, trade values, lost sales and the size of the producer.
2. Keep working on verified actual emissions, because CBAM default values and their mark-up apply whatever happens in the docket. If you need an EU-accredited verifier, describe the job at CBAM help and cbamguide.com introduces you by email to providers that fit.