[2] The regulation is an outcome of the EU's FLEGT (Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade) Action Plan, which aims to reduce illegal logging worldwide.
The Action Plan recognised the possibility of developing new legislation to address the demand side of illegal logging.
In February 2016, the European Commission published an updated version of the Guidance Document for the EU Timber Regulation.
The EUTR requires all EU member states to implement the Regulation by designating a ‘competent authority’ responsible for its application (Article 7), lay down “effective, proportionate and dissuasive” penalties applicable to infringements of the EUTR and take all measures necessary to guarantee that penalties are enforced (Article 19).
[9] In 2015, the European Commission undertook a review of the EUTR, in compliance with a legal obligation laid down in Article 20(3) of the Regulation.
[13] For the EU to achieve their goal, it passed additional deforestation regulation into law, effective as of December 2024.