European Parliament votes for postponement and simplifications

On November 26, 2025 the European Parliament voted on the date of application of the EU Deforestation Regulation, and a majority backed postponing and revising the regulation. The outcome largely mirrors the position of the European Council, which had voted for a one-year delay a week earlier.

Specifically, the date of application was postponed as follows:

• Medium-sized and large companies: December 30, 2026
• Small and micro enterprises: June 30, 2027

In addition, the European Commission is to present a review of the regulation by April 30, 2026 at the latest. It will assess the impact on companies and may lead to further simplifications or adjustments.

The key changes adopted

1. Simplified statement for small and micro producers in low-risk countries

Small and micro producers in low-risk countries will be able to submit a simplified, one-off statement. It contains only estimated quantities and needs updating only when circumstances change materially. As an alternative to geolocating plots of production, the postal address of the operation can be used.

2. Traceability up to the first downstream market participant

The first operator placing goods on the market creates the due diligence statement and passes the reference number to its first buyer. After that, the duty to collect reference numbers ends: market participants further downstream, such as second or third-tier traders, no longer need to collect their own reference numbers. They are only required to retain supplier and customer data for five years. Nothing changes for imports from non-EU countries.

3. Printed products may no longer fall under the EUDR

Parliament proposed removing printed products from the regulation's scope. At the time of the vote, this change still required the Council's approval.

4. Postponed application dates

The new start dates: December 30, 2026 for medium-sized and large operators, June 30, 2027 for small and micro enterprises. Companies still covered by the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) are exempt from this; the EUTR will only be repealed in December 2026.

5. Review clause by April 2026

The Commission is to present an assessment of burdens and risks by April 30, 2026 at the latest, to identify possible simplifications or adjustments.

Does that make the postponement final?

Not at the time of the vote: the postponement only became legally binding after completion of the trilogue procedure, in which Parliament, Council and Commission negotiate a joint version of the legal text. Since Parliament and Council held nearly identical positions, agreement was considered very likely; formal confirmation followed in December 2025 with Regulation (EU) 2025/2650.