On May 4, 2026, the European Commission released a report on simplification of the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
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In 2023, the European Union adopted regulations to prevent global deforestation and combat climate change. Originally set to go into effect in 2024, implementation has faced multiple delays and growing calls to reduce the scope of the regulation. On May 4, the European Commission released the results of a simplification review of the EU Deforestation Regulation. Despite push back from the United States, and possible conflicts with the agreement reached in August, the review did not result in delays or significant reductions.
Following the adoption of European Green Deal in 2020, the EU passed a series of new regulations aimed at addressing climate change by impacting the actions of businesses. The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, and the Taxonomy focused on the overall environmental actions of a company. The scope of these regulations were significantly reduced in 2025 as the EU underwent a “simplification” process to “reduce the burden on businesses.”
Other regulations passed under the Green Deal targeted specific industries, each with their own acronym creating a letter soup of regulations. The EUDR, adopted in 2023, “aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and biodiversity loss by boosting the consumption of ‘deforestation-free’ products and by reducing the EU’s impact on global deforestation and forest degradation.”
Targeting the forest, rubber, palm oil, soy, beef, and coffee and cacao industries, the EUDR requires companies to verify that the products have not come from land that was deforested or degraded after December 31, 2020. Compliance occurs through reporting and geolocation.
The European Commission was tasked with submitting a simplification report to the European Parliament to address updates to the EUDR. The report was due on April 30, but was not made public until May 4.
The original start date of reporting under the EUDR has faced two delays. The first was a general delay to allow for changes to the EUDR. The second delay was blamed on technical issues relating to the EU’s ability to process the reports. It was heavily speculated that the European Commission would suggest a third delay. However, the final recommendation kept the original requirements in place.
“The Regulation will apply from 30 December 2026 for large and medium companies, as well as for micro and small enterprises from the timber sector, and from 30 June 2027 for other micro and small enterprises.”
One major complaint during the simplification process of the CSRD, CSDDD, and taxonomy was the potential cost to businesses to comply. The focus was primarily on the impact to SMEs, as it was argued that the cost of compliance of the various environmental regulations would force small businesses to close and make the EU noncompetitive in an international market. Those same arguments were part of the EUDR discussion.
The new proposal claims a 75% reduction in compliance costs. However, that is inclusive of all changes made since June 2023. “These measures together will lead to a substantial reduction in administrative burden. They are expected to reduce annual compliance costs for companies subject to EUDR obligations by about 75%, compared to the original EUDR.”
“The main driver of deforestation is the expansion of agricultural land linked to the production of seven commodities covered by the regulation." Those categories are cattle, wood, cocoa, soy, palm oil, coffee, and rubber. A draft delegated act attached to the report keeps most of the covered products in scope, only making minor changes to subcategories.
The proposal adds “palm oil derivatives used in the oleochemicals industry” into the scope. It also adds soluble coffee, or what is commonly called instant coffee in the U.S. The proposal removes leather and retreaded tires. Other smaller categories are removed as well.
Since the initial passage in 2023, the U.S. has objected to the impact the EUDR. In May 2024, President Joe Biden’s administration requested a two year delay for implementation. The Trump Administration continues to pressure the European Commission to exclude U.S. companies from enforcement.
The US-EU Framework on an Agreement on Reciprocal, Fair, and Balanced Trade, signed in August 2025, states “Recognizing that production of the relevant commodities within the territory of the United States poses negligible risk to global deforestation, the European Union commits to work to address the concerns of US producers and exporters regarding the EU Deforestation Regulation, with a view to avoiding undue impact on US-EU trade.”
Despite that agreement, no changes to the status of the U.S. was included in the proposal.
The proposal included a draft Delegated Act and staff working proposal relating to the proposed changes to the products in scope. These proposals build off public feedback from April 2025.
The new draft is open for public feedback until June 1. Stakeholders, impacted companies, and other interest parties wishing to provide feedback can use the Have Your Say portal through a link provided on the Commission’s website.
One clear message of the simplification report is that the EU Deforestation Regulation is not going away. Some level of reporting will continue, and covering most of the original products. What is uncertain is if the U.S. will be able to sway the EU, or if the US- EU Framework will collapse as a result.
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