CBAM default values corrected: what Implementing Regulation 2026/1740 changed
The Commission corrected the CBAM default values in July 2026, retroactive to 1 January. Here is exactly what changed in the data, and what you need to redo.
- Applies retroactively from 1 January 2026.
- Mostly new, finer product lines (white vs grey clinker at TARIC level) and removed lines.
- Almost no values changed on existing lines.
- Clinker and cement imports need 10-digit TARIC codes.
What the correction is
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1740, published in the Official Journal on 31 July 2026, corrects the annexes of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2621, which set the CBAM default values. It applies retroactively from 1 January 2026, so every 2026 figure must use the corrected annexes. The Commission also issued a corrected Excel file in August 2026; the legally binding values are those in the regulation.
What changed in the data
We compared the default values our engine shipped before the correction (the Commission's “DVs as adopted” file of February 2026) with the corrected dataset, line by line. The corrections are mostly about which product lines exist, not about the numbers on lines that already existed:
- New, finer lines. Cement clinker and hydraulic cement are now split at TARIC level: white clinker (2523 10 00 10) and other clinker including grey (2523 10 00 90); white hydraulic cement (2523 90 00 10) and other hydraulic cements (2523 90 00 90). Calcined clay has its own line (2507 00 80 80). Several steel and aluminium headings now carry a value at 4-digit heading level (for example 7208, 7308, 7601, 7606).
- Removed lines. The old 8-digit clinker and cement lines (2523 10 00, 2523 90 00), the old calcined clay line (2507 00 80) and lines for CN 7615 (aluminium household articles, which are not CBAM goods) are gone.
- Two more origins and the Annex IV values. Liberia and New Caledonia were added, and the Annex IV “unknown origin” values for precursors are now part of the set.
- Values on existing lines. On the 9,550 product-and-country lines present before and after, only one value moved by more than 1% (flat-rolled high-speed steel, CN 7226 20 00, “other countries”: 5.588 to 5.5 tCO₂e/t); the rest of the differences are rounding to three decimals.
Why the clinker split matters
Where one clinker value used to apply, grey and white clinker can now carry different defaults and different production routes (and so different benchmarks for free allocation). Grey clinker is what most EU importers buy. Examples from the corrected annex, in tCO₂e per tonne before the mark-up:
| Origin | White clinker | Route | Grey and other clinker | Route |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | 1.3 | (B) | 1.39 | (A) |
| Egypt | 1.33 | (B) | 1.27 | (A) |
| Algeria | 1.34 | (B) | 1.28 | (A) |
| India | 1.41 | (B) | 1.44 | (A) |
| All other countries | 1.37 | (B) | 1.41 | (A) |
An import file that stops at 8 digits cannot choose between the two lines. If you import clinker or hydraulic cement, make sure your customs data carries the 10-digit TARIC code.
What to do now
- Re-run every 2026 calculation done before August 2026 on the corrected annexes.
- Check that clinker and cement lines carry 10-digit TARIC codes.
- Remove any CN 7615 lines from your CBAM scope.
- Keep requesting verified data from suppliers: the default values, corrected or not, carry a 10% mark-up in 2026, rising to 30% from 2028.
Every value is listed in our CBAM default values by CN code, for example CN 2523 (cement and clinker).
Frequently asked questions
When does Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1740 apply?
It applies retroactively from 1 January 2026, so all 2026 CBAM figures must use the corrected default values.
Did the correction lower the CBAM default values?
On lines that existed before and after, almost no values moved: only one changed by more than 1%. The main changes are new, finer lines (for example white and grey clinker at TARIC level), removed lines and two added origins. For clinker, the grey and white lines can now carry different values.
Which CN codes were removed from the CBAM default values?
The old 8-digit lines for clinker (2523 10 00), hydraulic cement (2523 90 00) and calcined clay (2507 00 80), replaced by 10-digit TARIC lines, and lines for CN 7615, which is not a CBAM good.