[14] After the political (provisional) agreement between the Council and the European Parliament was reached in December 2022, the CBAM entered into force on October 1, 2023 and is passing through several phases: From October 2023 to the end of 2025 transitional phase: importers of products in six carbon intensive sectors highly exposed to international trade, namely aluminium, cement, electricity, fertilisers, hydrogen and iron and steel will need to report their emissions.

Annex II specifies that the CBAM does not apply to the four non-EU member states that are included in the European Economic Area, namely Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.

Since July 2024 the EU demands "real data" on how energy intensive imported goods were produced, while estimated standard values are only allowed for some 20% of the emissions.

A spokesperson of the Mechanical Engineering Industry Association (VDMA) complained in September 2024, that the required data are often not available, either because the suppliers dont collect them in the first place, or are not willing to hand them over.

[18] The EU should ensure that the CBAM is compatible with its international obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO), according to two legal scholars at the University of Ottawa.

[24][25][26] Some authors even argue that the CBAM constitutes the beginning of a climate club, as proposed by Nobel Memorial Prize winner William Nordhaus.

[30] According to a report of the Asian Development Bank, the CBAM will reduce emissions only a little (which will be quickly offset by the rise in carbon intensive production), while harming import to the European Union.

[31] According to one Amsterdam legal scholar, the EU should provide adequate support to the least developed countries (LDCs) to help them comply with the CBAM.

By providing such support, the EU can ensure that businesses have the necessary resources and knowledge to transition to a low-carbon economy and avoid the risk of carbon leakage.