Importing carbon international credits to the EU: How to make it work?
As the European Union is in the process of setting a new climate goal for 2040, a key question is whether the EU should use carbon credits from outside Europe to help meet that goal. The European Commission’s July 2025 proposal intends to reopen the door to credits for the first time in over a decade, but it remains vague on exactly how importing to be done, that is: who should import, how much, and where should the imported credits be used? Now is the time to get the design right.
The EDF publication, ‘International Credits in the EU: Strategic Choices & Practical Implementation’, explores these questions. It argues that if done right, importing credits could be a practical way for Europe to keep target compliance costs manageable, protect its climate ambition, and increase its clout in international climate policy. Details matter, however: doing it right means we’d need strong rules on quality, clear conditions for if/when credits would be used, and a coordinated EU system to manage purchases and credit use.
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