What applies to timber still covered by the old timber regulation?

Existing timber stock remains under EUTR, new imports under EUDR

Timber and timber products that were placed on the market before Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 became applicable to the role in question and that product fall in practice still under the rules of the former timber regulation (EUTR, Regulation (EU) No 995/2010). This regulation was repealed with the introduction of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, but not with retroactive effect: for timber already in circulation, the old regime continues to apply until that stock is sold or processed. For timber that for the first time reaches the EU market or is exported after that date, the new deforestation regulation applies with its own requirements for geolocating, risk assessment and the due diligence declaration.

For a company that has been trading in timber for some time, this means that both regimes can exist alongside each other within the same enterprise for a period. A consignment procured before the transition date and for which EUTR documentation has already been compiled does not need to be retroactively incorporated into an EUDR file. A new consignment, even from the same supplier and the same country of origin, falls under the new obligations as soon as those apply to the role in question and the product in question. Which date applies depends on the combination of role in the supply chain and product, and this combination therefore also determines per consignment of timber which regime is actually applicable.

The repeal provision in Regulation (EU) 2023/1115

This distinction follows from the provision on the repeal of the former timber regulation in Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, which provides that Regulation (EU) No 995/2010 is repealed but continues to apply to timber and timber products that were already placed on the market or made available before the date of application. The full text of this transitional provision, including its precise scope, can be consulted via EUR-Lex; the guidance of the European Commission on its page on deforestation-free products furthermore provides background on the relationship between the former and the new regulation.