Threshold
The minimum registration threshold is £50,000 of relevant CBAM imports or expected imports over the applicable test period.
Buyer-intent answers
UK CBAM · import threshold · records
UK CBAM £50,000 Threshold: Build the Import and Record-Keeping Control Before 2027
A practical HMRC-backed readiness guide for UK importers monitoring the £50,000 CBAM registration threshold, forward and backward tests, import values, net mass, relief evidence and six-year records.
Primary query: UK CBAM £50,000 threshold 30 day 12 month test records 2027 · Updated 2026-09-07
Direct answer
How should a UK importer monitor the £50,000 CBAM registration threshold from 1 January 2027?
From 1 January 2027, an importer of in-scope CBAM goods must monitor both a forward-looking and backward-looking value test. The forward test asks whether at least £50,000 of CBAM goods is expected over the next 30 days; the backward test is checked on the first day of each month against relevant imports in the preceding 12 months, with the first year looking back only to 1 January 2027. Importers also need written or electronic records for CBAM goods and generally must keep those records for six years.
Practical sequence
What to do next
- 01
Map imported commodity codes to the current HMRC CBAM scope for aluminium, cement, fertiliser, hydrogen, iron and steel goods.
- 02
Exclude imports that HMRC says do not contribute to the registration threshold before calculating the value tests.
- 03
Run the forward-looking 30-day expected-import test whenever planned imports could push the in-scope value to £50,000 or more.
- 04
On the first day of each month, run the backward-looking test over the applicable prior period and record the date any threshold is met.
- 05
Keep import value, net-mass, relief and emissions evidence in a six-year record structure so registration and later CBAM returns can be supported even if the registration service is not yet open.
Decision facts
Two tests
HMRC uses a forward-looking 30-day test and a backward-looking test checked on the first day of each month.
Record retention
HMRC says required CBAM records generally need to be kept for six years.
Boundaries
- — Commodity-code scope, exclusions, emissions verification, default values, reliefs and future administrative guidance may change before or after commencement.
- — This page is an import-control preflight, not customs or tax advice and not a substitute for current HMRC CBAM guidance.
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