Brussels (ANSA) – New slowdown on the Green Deal. More flexibility, less bureaucracy, and longer timelines: on the eve of the EU summit where green policies and competitiveness will be at the center of the leaders’ debate, the European Commission has presented a “targeted” revision of the regulation on imported deforestation, further easing reporting obligations for small and micro enterprises.
And further delaying the implementation of new rules on the imports of soy, coffee, and cocoa, raw materials linked to deforestation. At the same time, from the European Parliament in Strasbourg, another signal of slowdown has arrived: the alliance between the EPP, Conservatives, and the far-right has come together again, sinking another piece dedicated to forest areas with the rejection of the proposal – presented in 2023 and instead supported by Socialists and Liberals – to create a common monitoring framework.
The deforestation law had already been postponed by a year in the name of simplification and was supposed to come into force at the end of 2025 for large companies and in June 2026 for SMEs. Brussels had indicated in recent weeks that it wanted to propose a further one-year postponement of the regulation. But the new tightening only postpones the application of the rules to December 30, 2026, for small and micro enterprises and grants a six-month transition period without penalties for medium and large ones.
If the timelines remain under control, the real change concerns reporting obligations. The Commission indeed proposes a relief for small and micro operators, including farmers and downstream operators who only deal with transforming or reselling products on the European market. For them, it will no longer be necessary to submit compliance declarations, but a simplified registration on the IT platform provided by the regulation will suffice.
The obligation of complete due diligence will remain with upstream operators, that is, those who first place products on the EU market. And Brussels reminds that to be considered “small,” a company must have fewer than 50 employees and a turnover not exceeding 18 million euros (October 21).
