# When does EUDR need a polygon instead of a single geolocation point?

Canonical: https://senseible.earth/answers/eudr-geolocation-polygon-or-point

EUDR needs a polygon for any plot larger than four hectares used to grow coffee, cocoa, rubber, soy, oil palm or wood. A plot of four hectares or less can be given as one latitude and longitude point. Cattle are the exception: you give the location of each establishment where the animals were kept.

## The rule in the regulation

Article 2(28) of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 defines geolocation as the latitude and longitude of a plot using at least one point with at least six decimal digits. For plots of more than four hectares used for commodities other than cattle, it must be a polygon with enough points to describe the plot's perimeter. Article 9(1)(d) then requires the geolocation of every plot where the commodity in the shipment was produced.

## Quick decision rule

- Plot of 4.0 hectares or less (40,000 square metres or less): one point with six decimals is enough.
- Plot of more than 4.0 hectares: polygon of the boundary.
- Cattle: the location of every farm or establishment where the animals were kept, whatever its size.
- A shipment drawn from many plots: geolocation of all of them, mixing points and polygons as each plot's size requires.

## Getting the data into an acceptable form

1. Record coordinates in decimal degrees on the WGS 84 system that phones and GPS units use by default, with six decimals. Six decimals is about 0.1 metre of precision, so a two-decimal reading copied from a map is not enough.
2. Walk or trace the plot boundary for polygons and close the shape, with no lines that cross each other.
3. Use the GeoJSON format that the EU Information System accepts, as described in the Commission's EUDR guidance and FAQ.
4. Keep one record per plot with the producer's name and the plot's area, so the area itself shows why a point or a polygon was used.

## Edge cases Indian exporters meet

- A coffee estate made of several separate parcels: each parcel is its own plot, judged on its own area.
- A rubber smallholding just over four hectares: a point is not compliant; trace the boundary.
- Land records give area in acres: 4 hectares is about 9.88 acres, so anything over that needs a polygon.

## Worked example: a rubber aggregator's lot

- Grower A: 1.6 ha, so one point with six decimals
- Grower B: 3.9 ha, so one point
- Grower C: 12 acres x 0.4047 = 4.86 ha, more than 4 ha, so a polygon
- The lot's file holds two points and one polygon, and the statement covers all three plots

1 acre = 0.4047 hectares. Check areas from the land record, not an estimate from the grower.

## What Senseible does here

Senseible does not capture plot coordinates or build GeoJSON files for EUDR. Its supplier due diligence page flags which suppliers may be exposed so you know where geolocation is needed.

- [EUDR geolocation for smallholders](https://senseible.earth/answers/eudr-geolocation-requirements-smallholders)
- [Supplier due diligence](https://senseible.earth/supplier-due-diligence)

Sources: [Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 (EUDR), Article 2(28) and Article 9(1)(d) (EUR-Lex)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu), [Regulation (EU) 2025/2650 amending the EUDR application dates (EUR-Lex)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu)

Last reviewed 2026-10-16. The EUDR now applies from 30 December 2026 for large and medium operators and 30 June 2027 for micro and small ones, and a 2026 simplification review may change details; re-check.