Integrin compliance platform

Integrin UK CBAM

The UK Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, calculated on every import

Integrin calculates the UK CBAM liability on every covered import, after carbon price relief.

UK CBAM is a tax on the carbon embodied in imported aluminium, cement, fertiliser, hydrogen, and iron and steel, set by the Finance Act 2026. The importer calculates the emissions embodied in the goods, multiplies them by HMRC's rate for the sector, deducts any carbon price already paid abroad and pays the difference to HMRC. Unlike the EU scheme, there are no certificates to buy or surrender.

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UK CBAM dashboard: total liability, carbon price relief claimed and the effective rate per tonne of CO2e — The year's UK CBAM liability, the carbon price relief taken off it and the effective rate. Click to enlarge.

1 January 2027

The charge applies to covered goods imported from this date

£50,000

Customs value of covered goods in the past 12 months, or expected in the next 30 days, that requires registration

31 May 2028

Return and payment for 2027; quarterly returns from 2028

How it works

From the import declaration to the UK liability

Covered goods on the import declarations

Coverage is set by commodity code. Integrin checks each goods item on a UK import declaration against the coverage list and prices it from HMRC's default value. A goods item whose code has no published value is refused.

Functional units

Cement is measured per tonne of clinker it contains and fertiliser per kilogram of nitrogen, so the declared weight has to be converted before the default value applies. The clinker fraction and nitrogen content are held on the product. Each goods item keeps its full calculation.

The calculation breakdown for one UK CBAM goods item: quantity, default emissions, embodied emissions and the liability before relief — The calculation for one goods item, up to the liability before relief. Click to enlarge.

Sector rates and carbon price relief

HMRC sets a rate for each sector in pounds per tonne of CO2e every quarter, with free allocation already taken into account. Carbon price paid outside the UK under a qualifying scheme comes off the liability. Integrin prices each goods item at the rate in force on its date of import and applies the relief for each installation's effective carbon price.

Overseas carbon pricing schemes recorded for UK CBAM relief — Overseas carbon pricing schemes recorded for relief. Click to enlarge.

Registration and the return

The dashboard shows the year's liability in pounds, the relief applied and the value of covered goods imported against the £50,000 threshold. The return reports the liability on the covered goods imported in the period: for 2027 as a whole, then quarterly from 2028. Integrin totals it for any year, quarter or month.

A UK importer's CBAM dashboard: emissions, liability after relief and the registration threshold — Emissions, liability after relief, and imports against the registration threshold. Click to enlarge.

See the UK CBAM liability on your own imports.

Send us a sample of your UK import declarations or supplier invoices and we'll show you, in a meeting, the liability on the covered goods and the carbon price relief that comes off it.

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UK CBAM is part of the Integrin platform

Integrin also covers EU CBAM, Irish customs, ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001, PPWR, EUDR, cases and obligations, and process automation. It's built for companies running their own compliance, and for brokers and consultancies managing it for their clients. How the platform works →

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