On November 21, the Sejm passed an act amending the provisions on the greenhouse gas emissions management system, which implements the CBAM mechanism into Polish law. The act:
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designates the national authorities competent for CBAM – directors of tax administration chambers as bodies granting and withdrawing the status of an authorized declarant, as well as KOBiZE and GIOŚ as analytical and control institutions,
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creates a legal basis to maintain a national register of authorized CBAM applicants and to handle settlements,
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adapts national procedures to the CBAM regulation 2023/956, which will enter the target phase from 1 January 2026.
The Act is currently undergoing further legislative review (Senate – President). Its entry into force will enable applications for CBAM authorized declarant status. Without this status, from 2026 onward, imports of goods covered by CBAM will generally be limited to cases below 50 tons per year and only if the conditions for so-called occasional importers are met.
EU changes: Omnibus Regulation 2025/2083
In parallel, the EU adopted the Omnibus Regulation, which modifies some of the CBAM rules. The most important ones for importers:
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Od 1 January 2026 Authorised Declarant status remains a condition for standard import of CBAM goods.
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Introduced transition period for applications – the importer or indirect representative who submits the application at the latest until March 31, 2026, may continue importing in 2026, even above the 50 tonnes threshold, until the application is considered.
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Pierwsza CBAM annual declaration for 2026 will be submitted to 30 September 2027
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The purchase of CBAM certificates for 2026 emissions will also be postponed to 2027.
In practice, this means that the window for safely preparing and submitting an application is very short, and each month of delay in the national act reduces the operating margin of companies.
Provisional CBAM Benchmarks – What We Know About Default Issues
The European Commission has published draft implementing acts containing the first sets of so-called provisional CBAM benchmarks – default emission values for individual products and technologies. The drafts demonstrate that:
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benchmarks are defined at the product and production route level
(e.g. hot rolled steel with BF-BOF, DRI-EAF, Scrap-EAF), -
in many cases default values are high, which, with a certificate price of approximately EUR 80/t CO₂, means significant unit costs,
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for some countries assigned default production routes, which automatically determines the level of import emissions,
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The final benchmarks will only be confirmed after the EU ETS benchmarks for 2026–2030 are updated, most likely in March–April 2026.
In parallel, a draft methodology was published Free Allocation Adjustment, specifying the rules for deducting hypothetical free ETS allowances and recognized carbon prices in the country of origin. These parameters will directly impact the number of CBAM certificates to be surrendered.
Proposal: Using default values may be significantly less cost-effective than actual data provided and verified by a non-EU manufacturer.
Authorized CBAM verifiers – a new element of the system
In parallel, regulations regarding verifiers are being finalized. The published documents indicate that:
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in the target phase all emissions data reported in CBAM will have to be verified by an independent verifier,
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CBAM verifiers can only operate as accredited entities in accordance with Regulation 2018/2067, with the scope extended to include CBAM,
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accredited verifiers will be registered in the CBAM system and will be granted access at the earliest in the third quarter of 2026.,
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the project envisages mandatory visits to installations outside the EU and detailed rules for the assessment of emission monitoring systems.
This means that it is worth making sure now whether producers in third countries:
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have emission monitoring systems compliant with CBAM,
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are ready for audits and visits by verifiers,
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have experience in reporting in accordance with EU ETS or ISO.
What does this mean for importers?
Combining Polish regulations, the Omnibus, benchmark projects and verification rules, a clear picture emerges:
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CBAM Authorized Reporter Status will become a practical condition for maintaining imports from 2026. Even with the buffer until March 31, 2026, there is little time.
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Companies relying on default emissions values will be exposed to much higher costs certificates and difficult price negotiations.
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The lack of preparation of producers from outside the EU to cooperate with verifiers may become a real trade barrier.
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Delays in the national legislative process increase the risk "traffic jams" when assigning statuses, especially if companies start submitting applications only in the first quarter of 2026.
