The European Commission has said it is providing "further simplifications and reducing the administrative burden" to facilitate the implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).

The commission has published new guidance documents ahead of the regulation coming into force at the end of this year for member states, operators and traders.

The EU Deforestation Regulation aims to ensure that key goods in the EU market do not contribute to deforestation and forest degradation both in the EU and globally.

According to the commission, deforestation and forest degradation are significant drivers of climate change and biodiversity loss.

With the simplifications, the commission said that it is delivering on its commitment to the European Parliament and the Council, while guaranteeing regulatory certainty within the boundaries of the regulation.

The commission said that it is also responding to feedback from its international partners.

The updated guidance will provide companies, EU member states' authorities and partner countries with additional simplified measures and clarifications on how to demonstrate that their products are deforestation-free.

The commission has also published a Delegated Act for public consultation.

The act provides further clarifications and simplification on the scope of EUDR, addressing stakeholders' request for guidance on specific categories of products.

The commission is also currently finalising the country benchmarking system through an Implementing Act.

It will be adopted no later than June 30, 2025 following discussions with member states.

The commission said that all of these measures will lead to an estimated 30% reduction of administrative costs and burden for companies.

The simplification measures include the following:

Large companies can reuse existing due diligence statements when goods, previously on the EU market, are reimported;
An authorised representative can now submit a due diligence statement on behalf of members of company groups;
Companies will be allowed to submit due diligence statements annually instead of for every shipment or batch placed on the EU market;
Clarification of ‘ascertaining' that due diligence has been carried out, so that large companies downstream benefit from simplified obligations.

In 2024, the commission held over 300 dedicated meetings on the EUDR with stakeholders, including global partners.

Jessika Roswall, European Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy, said: "We are committed to implementing EU rules on deforestation in a spirit of close partnership, transparency, and open dialogue.

"We will continue to work very closely with all stakeholders, to ensure that our rules deliver on reducing global deforestation and forest degradation in the least burdensome way for companies."