Will the Commission publish default carbon prices per country so an importer can claim the carbon price deduction without its own evidence under the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)?

The Commission's Questions and Answers (Q&A) 1.5 say it plans to make available default carbon prices per country where carbon pricing rules apply. Declarants could rely on them or claim the deduction of the carbon price effectively paid, backed by evidence. The Commission is assessing how to offer them in the registry for declarations due in September 2027.

What Q&A 1.5 says

• Based on a simplification in the last revision of the CBAM Regulation, the Commission also plans to make available default carbon prices per country where carbon pricing rules apply.
• The default carbon prices would function similarly to default values for embedded emissions. Declarants could rely on the Commission default or claim the deduction of the carbon price effectively paid, backed by evidence of the price paid.
• The Commission is assessing how to make these values available as soon as possible, and in view of allowing their use directly in the registry for the declarations due for September 2027.

What counts as effectively paid

Q&A 3.10: only the carbon price effectively paid in the country of origin counts. A rebate or other compensation is taken into account, for example free allowances under an emissions trading system. Q&A 3.10 adds that an implementing act planned for 2026 will set the evidence, the checking of that evidence by an independent person and the conversion into euro at the yearly average exchange rate.

Precursors

Guidance No. 2: if the producer of a precursor does not provide the required carbon price information, the operator can use default carbon price values for the precursor, when they are published by the Commission.

What is still open

• The Q&A, updated on 15 October 2026, speaks of plans and assessment. It does not name any country or give any value.
• Our reading: whether a default would exist for India depends on carbon pricing rules applying in India, which the Q&A does not address.
• Our reading: until a default is published, a declarant that wants the deduction would need evidence of the price paid, and the Commission is still to set what evidence counts (Q&A 3.10).

What Senseible does here

Senseible reads fuel invoices and electricity bills into monthly records. It does not work out an importer's CBAM position, it is not a CBAM verifier and it does not file declarations.

• What proof a carbon price deduction needs
• Does the Indian coal goods and services tax count as a carbon price?
• Can the CBAM obligation be zero?
• CBAM for Indian exporters

Sources: European Commission, CBAM Questions and Answers (updated 15 October 2026), questions 1.5 and 3.10, European Commission, Guidance No. 2, Quick guide for non-EU operators on CBAM implementation, step 6

Last reviewed 2026-11-06. These are plans as worded in the Q&A of 15 October 2026. Re-check the Commission's CBAM site for the implementing act and any published default carbon prices before relying on one.