The European Commission expects the first CBAM verifiers to receive accreditation around September 2026. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2551 has applied since 1 January 2026, but that is only the legal basis: national accreditation bodies opened progressively through 2026, and assessments take months. As of 11 October 2026, no accredited verifier list had been published on the Commission verification page.
The European Commission’s published expectation is direct: “The first CBAM verifiers are expected to receive CBAM accreditation around September 2026.” The legal basis arrived earlier. Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2551, which sets the competence, independence and procedural conditions a verifier must meet, applies from 1 January 2026. An application date in law is not an accreditation in practice, and the gap between those two dates defines the 2026 timeline.
Why September, not January
Accreditation is granted by National Accreditation Bodies operating under Regulation (EC) No 765/2008, and those bodies became ready progressively through 2026. The Commission’s state-of-play table of 7 October 2026 shows 24 bodies agreeing to provide CBAM accreditation and 18 ready to accept applications, including Germany’s DAkkS, Italy’s Accredia, the Netherlands’ RvA, Spain’s ENAC and Sweden’s Swedac. As of 7 October 2026, France and Austria are ready to accept applications, Hungary is not yet ready, Romania is due in October 2026 and Slovenia in November 2026. An accreditation assessment then takes months: document review, competence assessment and witnessing. Applications accepted from spring and summer 2026 therefore produce first grants around September. The Commission published its guidance on CBAM verification and accreditation on 24 August 2026.
What happens after the first grants
Within two months of receiving accreditation, and not before 1 September 2026, a verifier applies for CBAM Registry access through the competent authority of the Member State where its accreditation body sits. The Commission then lists the verifier on its Taxation and Customs website. No accredited verifier list had been published as of 20 July 2026 or as of 11 October 2026; the published list will be the working reference.
| Date | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1 January 2026 | Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2551 applies (legal basis only) |
| 24 August 2026 | Commission guidance on CBAM verification and accreditation published |
| Around September 2026 | First CBAM verifier accreditations expected |
| From 1 September 2026 | Registry access applications through competent authorities |
That sequencing makes 2026 the preparation year for importers: the monitoring approach fixed, source records kept in order, the certificate cost position quantified, so that verification of the actual emissions declared in the first annual declaration, due 30 September 2027, proceeds without rework. GreenSutra’s consultants prepare the embedded-emissions calculations and records that an independent accredited verifier later examines; verification itself always sits with the verifier. CBAM advisory covers exposure assessment, embedded-emissions calculation and certificate cost planning. The CBAM guide places the verifier timeline within the full compliance calendar.
Sources: Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2551 · Regulation (EU) 2023/956 · European Commission CBAM