clearlane
EN
Open the platform

All regulations EUDR

EUDR

Keep deforestation out of what you place on the EU market.

eudr@1.0.1

What it is

The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) makes it illegal to place certain commodities on the EU market — or export them from it — unless you can prove they were not grown on land that was deforested after 31 December 2020. The idea is simple: the EU no longer wants its consumption of these goods to drive forest loss anywhere in the world.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 1 + Art. 2(13) (cut-off date 31 Dec 2020) · captured 2026-07-10

It covers seven commodities and the products made from them: cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya and wood. If your goods fall under one of these headings, the regulation applies to them regardless of where in the world they were produced.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Annex I (relevant commodities and relevant products) · captured 2026-07-10

The core of compliance is a Due Diligence Statement (DDS): a declaration, filed before the goods are placed or exported, that pins each shipment to the exact plots of land where the commodity was produced (their geolocation) and states that due diligence found a negligible risk that those plots were deforested. You submit it through the EU's Information System (TRACES) and receive a reference number that follows the goods through customs.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(1)-(2) + Art. 9(1)(d) (geolocation) + Art. 33 (Information System) · captured 2026-07-10

Clearlane does the mechanical work of that proof: it checks your plot geolocation against the exact format the EU registry expects, compares each plot against satellite forest-cover baselines to produce reproducible evidence, and assembles a TRACES-ready statement. The compliance decision stays deterministic and cited — the platform never guesses whether you are compliant.

Source EUDR GeoJSON File Description v1.5 (European Commission / TRACES); Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 2(28) (geolocation format) · captured 2026-07-10

Who must comply

Operators — anyone who first places a relevant product on the EU market, or exports it from the EU. The operator carries the full due-diligence obligation and files the DDS before the goods move.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(1)-(2) · captured 2026-07-10

Traders that are not SMEs (large traders) further down the chain. They may rely on and reference the DDS reference numbers already submitted upstream, rather than re-declaring the plot geometry themselves.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(9) + Art. 33 · captured 2026-07-10

Micro and small enterprises are in scope too, but their obligations start later — the regulation phases them in after the larger operators (see the deadlines below).

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 38(3) · captured 2026-07-10

Does this apply to me?

Answer a few questions. The verdict is computed from this regulation's own cited scope data — no account, and nothing leaves your browser.

Turn on JavaScript to run the interactive check. The questions and options are listed below.

  1. What is your role in the supply chain?

    EUDR treats operators and traders differently; SME traders carry lighter duties.

    • Operator — I place products on the EU market or export them
    • Trader — I make products available, and I am not an SME
    • Trader — I make products available, and I am an SME
    • Not sure

  2. Do your products contain, or derive from, any of these commodities?

    Cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya, or wood.

    • Yes
    • No
    • Not sure

  3. Do you place these products on the EU market for the first time, or export them from the EU?

    Buying products that are already on the EU market, further downstream, is not the trigger.

    • Yes
    • No, I only buy them already on the market
    • Not sure

Key deadlines

  1. 31 December 2020

    Deforestation cut-off date

    Not a deadline for you, but the line the whole regulation turns on: a commodity is 'deforestation-free' only if it was produced on land that was not subject to deforestation after this date. Plots cleared after 31 Dec 2020 fail regardless of when you import.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 2(13) · captured 2026-07-10

  2. 29 June 2023

    Regulation in force

    The EUDR entered into force on this date. The obligations below apply from later dates, but the cut-off for what counts as deforested is fixed at 31 December 2020 — earlier than the regulation itself.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 38(1) · captured 2026-07-10

  3. 30 December 2026

    Large and medium operators & traders

    From this date, operators and traders other than micro and small enterprises must exercise due diligence and file a DDS before placing, making available, or exporting in-scope goods. This is the date most importers need to be ready for.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 38(2), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2025/2650 · captured 2026-07-10

  4. 30 June 2027

    Micro and small enterprises

    Micro and small enterprises (established by 31 Dec 2020) get an extra six months — their obligation starts here rather than at the general date.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 38(3), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2025/2650 · captured 2026-07-10

How compliance actually works

  1. Assemble

    The law requires the geolocation of all plots of land where the commodity was produced — so the first step is to attach each commodity and link the plot geometry it covers. Without those coordinates there is nothing to check against a forest baseline.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 9(1)(d) (geolocation in due diligence) · captured 2026-07-10

  2. Validate

    Geolocation is only useful if it is in the exact machine-readable form the EU registry can read: coordinates to at least six decimals, and plots larger than 4 hectares given as closed polygons rather than a single point. Validation checks every plot against that cited format before anything moves forward.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 2(28); EUDR GeoJSON File Description v1.5 · captured 2026-07-10

  3. Satellite verify

    Due diligence has to establish that the plots were not deforested after the cut-off date. Each plot is compared against satellite forest-cover baselines, and the result is captured as a reproducible evidence bundle — the deforestation-free claim rests on data, not assertion.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 2(13) (deforestation-free) + Art. 9(1)(d) · captured 2026-07-10

  4. Ready

    The DDS must exist and be submitted before the goods are placed on the market or exported. 'Ready' means the geometry, the satellite evidence and the commodity scope are all assembled — everything the statement needs is in place.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(1)-(2) · captured 2026-07-10

  5. File

    The Due Diligence Statement is registered in the EU's central Information System (TRACES). That is the act that makes the declaration official and puts it on the record for competent authorities and customs.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(2) + Art. 33 · captured 2026-07-10

  6. Reference

    The Information System issues a DDS reference number. That number is the legal join key: it accompanies the goods to customs and lets downstream traders reference your statement instead of re-declaring the plots.

    Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(9) + Art. 33 · captured 2026-07-10

Glossary

Due Diligence Statement (DDS)

The declaration you file before placing or exporting in-scope goods. It confirms that due diligence was carried out and that the commodity is deforestation-free and legally produced, and it carries the plot geolocation.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(1)-(2) · captured 2026-07-10

Operator

The party that first places a relevant product on the EU market or exports it. The operator holds the full due-diligence duty and is the one who files the DDS.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(1)-(2) · captured 2026-07-10

Trader (non-SME)

A party further down the chain that makes the product available. A large (non-SME) trader may rely on and reference the DDS reference numbers already submitted upstream rather than declaring the geometry again.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(9) + Art. 33 · captured 2026-07-10

Deforestation-free

Produced on land that was not subject to deforestation after 31 December 2020. This is the substantive test the whole regulation turns on.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 2(13) · captured 2026-07-10

Geolocation

The coordinates of the plots of land where the commodity was produced — to at least six decimal places, and as a polygon for plots over 4 hectares. This is what ties a shipment to specific ground.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 2(28) · captured 2026-07-10

The 4-hectare rule

A plot larger than 4 hectares must be described as a polygon (its full outline), not a single point. Smaller plots may be given as a point. It decides whether a point or a polygon is acceptable geometry.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 2(28) · captured 2026-07-10

Cattle establishment exception

An establishment that keeps cattle may be declared as a single point regardless of its area — the only commodity that escapes the polygon requirement above 4 hectares.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 9(1)(d) + Art. 2(28) · captured 2026-07-10

Relevant commodity / relevant product

The goods in scope: cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya, wood — and the products derived from them, identified by their HS/customs headings in Annex I.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Annex I · captured 2026-07-10

DDS reference number

The identifier the Information System issues once your statement is registered. It travels with the goods to customs and is what downstream operators quote to reference your due diligence.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(9) + Art. 33 · captured 2026-07-10

Information System (TRACES)

The EU's central electronic system where Due Diligence Statements are registered and their reference numbers stored and exchanged between operators, traders and authorities.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 33 · captured 2026-07-10

GeoJSON File Description

The European Commission's technical specification (v1.5) for the geolocation file the registry accepts — the coordinate system, geometry types and properties your plot data must match.

Source EUDR GeoJSON File Description v1.5, European Commission / TRACES · captured 2026-07-10

Micro / small enterprise

The smallest-size cohort of businesses. They are in scope but their EUDR obligations begin six months after the general application date.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 38(3) · captured 2026-07-10

What happens if you don't

The regulation is a prohibition, not a form you can skip: relevant products may not be placed on the EU market, made available, or exported unless due diligence has been exercised and a Due Diligence Statement has been submitted. In practice that means goods without a valid DDS cannot lawfully cross the EU border.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(1)-(2) · captured 2026-07-10

A large (non-SME) trader that makes products available without referencing the upstream DDS reference numbers is in the same position — the reference is what carries the compliance forward, so its absence breaks the chain.

Source Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, Art. 4(9) + Art. 33 · captured 2026-07-10