CBAM default values 2026: the 10% mark-up and 35 changes

CBAM default values for 2026 are the embedded emissions per tonne set in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2621, as corrected in full by Regulation (EU) 2026/1740 on 31 July 2026. An importer uses them when the producer has sent no verified actual data, adds a 10% mark-up for goods imported in 2026 (1% for fertilisers), and buys certificates on the result.

The Commission publishes a value per CN code, per country of origin and, for some goods, per production route. The Commission put out the corrected annex and a new workbook with no list of edits. CBAM Data loaded both versions into one table and compared them row by row, so this page shows what actually changed.

The 31 July 2026 correction, row by row

Only 35 values changed on the same code, origin and route. The bigger change is that most rows moved to a different CN code while keeping their number.

The 35 changed values are small. The largest is CN 7226 20 00, rest of world, route F, from 5.588 to 5.5 tCO2e per tonne. Most of the others are rounding at the third decimal, such as Thai steel tubes at 4.11 moving to 4.109.

The added and removed rows are the larger story. Of the 332 distinct combinations of origin, sector and value that the correction removed, 325 came back as added rows under a different key. The numbers stayed. The codes they hang on moved. Many rows published at an 8-digit CN code with a route letter now sit at a four-, six- or 10-digit code, or with a blank route.

That matters more than the value changes. A system that looked up a default by exact 8-digit code finds nothing after the correction, even though the value didn't move. The fix is to take the most specific published row that covers the code: an 8-digit code inherits the value of its six- or 4-digit heading. The whole diff is on the change page for 31 July 2026, and every later one lands in the change feed.

Reading a CBAM default value table

Use the total, for your CN code, your country of origin and your route. Take CN 7208 39 00, hot-rolled steel coil. The value is published at the heading 7208, route C:

3 things to know when you read that table:

• Indirect emissions count for cement and fertilisers only. For iron and steel, aluminium and hydrogen, the annex marks the indirect column not applicable. The total equals the direct value.
• The total is the number to use. The annex rounds direct and indirect separately, so they don't always add up to the published total.
• Rest of world is the fallback. An origin with no country row takes the rest-of-world value. The Commission publishes 121 countries plus that fallback.

Cement shows the indirect column at work. Grey Portland cement, CN 2523 29 00, in the corrected annex:

The mark-up on default values by import year

The mark-up is 10% in 2026, 20% in 2027 and 30% from 2028, except for fertilisers, which stay at 1%. The regulation adds it so that relying on defaults costs more than reporting real data:

The corrected annex publishes the base values, so you apply the mark-up yourself. India's 4.28 for CN 7208 becomes 4.708 for goods imported in 2026, and 5.564 from 2028. The mark-up doesn't apply when the importer declares verified actual emissions.

What a default value costs, by country

For 1,000 tonnes of hot-rolled coil, CN 7208 39 00, imported in 2026, the bill runs from €15,432 from the United States to €253,919 from India. That's with the 10% mark-up, the 97.5% CBAM factor applied to the route C benchmark of 1.37 tCO2e per tonne, and the Q2 2026 price of €75.28. The benchmark comes off every origin equally, so the default is what moves the bill:

For aluminium the gap is wide too. Unwrought aluminium slabs, CN 7601 10 10, carry 3.0 tCO2e per tonne from China on route K and 1.87 from India. 500 tonnes in 2026 cost €72,043 from China and €25,219 from India. Several origins, such as South Korea, Japan and Vietnam, publish only route L for that heading, at 0.36. Route L has its own benchmark of 0.091, so 500 tonnes from South Korea or Japan cost €11,593.

Replacing default values with actual emissions

Verified actual emissions replace the default, and they're usually lower. A default value is built to be higher than most real installations, and the mark-up widens the gap each year to 2028. Actual emissions count when they come from the installation's own monitoring and are checked by an accredited verifier. The benchmark deduction is the same whichever number you declare, so every tonne cut from the declared value comes straight off the bill. An Indian coil mill with a verified 2.14 tCO2e per tonne, half the default, cuts its buyer's 2026 bill for 1,000 tonnes from €253,919 to about €60,600.

Check the default for your own CN code and origin in the CBAM calculator, or open the code's page from the CN code list.

FAQ

Where can I download the CBAM default values for 2026?

The Commission publishes them as an Excel workbook on its CBAM page, dated 6 August 2026 for the corrected version. The legal text is Regulation (EU) 2026/1740 on EUR-Lex.

Do the published default values include the mark-up?

No. The corrected annex lists base values, and you add 10% for goods imported in 2026 (1% for fertilisers). So a 4.28 default counts as 4.708 in 2026.

My country of origin isn't in the table. Which value applies?

The rest-of-world row. The annex covers 121 countries, and every other origin takes the rest-of-world value for that code and route.

Did the 31 July correction change my default value?

It probably moved the code your value sits on. Only 35 values changed on the same code, origin and route, but 1,900 rows were added and 576 removed, mostly because values moved to a different CN code level. Look your code up again after 31 July: an old lookup by exact code may now find nothing.

Sources: Regulation (EU) 2026/1740 and the Commission's default values workbook of 6 August 2026. Mark-up schedule from Regulation (EU) 2025/2621 as amended. Row counts from the CBAM Data diff of both versions, run on 16 September 2026. CBAM benchmarks from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/2620, Annex. Costs recomputed on 19 October 2026 with the CBAM Data engine.