EU CBAM is the European Union’s carbon border policy, designed to ensure that carbon-intensive imports face a fair, equivalent carbon price to goods produced inside the EU under the EU Emissions Trading System (EU-ETS).
EU CBAM aims to prevent carbon leakage, protect the competitiveness of EU industries and encourage adoption of lower carbon production globally.
EU CBAM started with a transitional reporting period. In 2026, EU CBAM became fully operational, importers must now ensure:
- Embedded emissions have been calculated by third countries manufacturers based on default values or current values
- Current embedded emissions have been verified by accredited verifiers
- EU CBAM certificates are surrendered to pay for each carbon emissions
Intertek provides third-party verification services to help organizations comply with the EU CBAM regulatory requirements. As a global leader in sustainability assurance, Intertek supports the industry’s transition to a low-carbon future through expert emissions verification, supply chain transparency, and risk mitigation.
What is EU CBAM?
CBAM is one of the European Green Deal’s instruments, supporting the EU’s climate policy. EU CBAM is established by Regulation 2023/956 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023.
EU CBAM has three core objectives:
- Prevent carbon leakage: stopping production from shifting to countries with weaker climate rules.
- Protect EU industry: levelling the carbon-cost playing field.
- Accelerate global decarbonisation: rewarding lower-emission producers worldwide.
EU CBAM applies to 6 sectors considered as carbon-intensive due to the significant GHG emissions associated with their production processes, the risk of carbon leakage and the practical feasibility: Cement, Fertilisers, Aluminium, Iron & Steel, Hydrogen and Electricity.
By including these sectors in the EU CBAM, the EU aims to encourage cleaner production methods both within and outside the EU, while also maintaining the competiveness of EU businesses on the global market.
How Intertek Supports EU CBAM Compliance
Intertek’s EU CBAM verification services are part of a broader portfolio of sustainability solutions for all types of organizations, including importers within the EU and third-
country manufacturers, helping clients meet regulatory requirements while building resilient and responsible operations.
Find more about your verification journey.
Our services include:
- Review of Monitoring Plans
- Independent verification of annual embedded emissions
- Trainings and Gap analysis for new or expanding organizations
Intertek brings globally verification capabilities and deep expertise in all sectors to support your EU CBAM compliance. Our services form part of a broader Total Quality Assurance approach, helping all stakeholders align with international standards, build transparency across their value chains, and meet stakeholder expectations for environmental accountability.
Accreditation
As an EU-ETS accredited Verification Body, Intertek is currently working on expanding its accreditation to include EU CBAM verification services. The scope of the accreditation will be published once it is granted.
Learn more about our accreditation bodies and the scope of our EU-ETS accreditation here.