The German furniture industry has welcomed today's decision by the European Parliament to delay and simplify the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), describing the move as a necessary step towards a more workable and less burdensome framework for the wood and furniture value chain.
© Beth Baisch | Dreamstime
Jan Kurth, Managing Director of the German Furniture Industry Associations, said: "With this, the Members of Parliament have complied with our request to ease the timeline and reduce the unreasonable bureaucratic burden throughout the entire wood and furniture value chain." He added: "It is a correct and necessary decision that we very much welcome, and one that finally turns the many calls for reducing bureaucracy into concrete action."
A majority of Members of the European Parliament supported the Council of Europe's compromise proposal to grant companies an additional year to comply with the new rules aimed at preventing products linked to deforestation from entering the EU market. Under the revised schedule, large market participants and traders will need to comply from 30 December 2026, while micro and small enterprises will be required to follow from 30 June 2027.
According to the Parliament's announcement, the extended period is designed to ensure a smoother transition and allow time to strengthen the IT system through which market participants, traders, and their representatives will submit electronic due-diligence statements.
By 30 April 2026, a proposal for a revised EUDR is expected. Crucially for Europe's furniture sector, the responsibility for submitting due-diligence declarations would lie with companies placing relevant raw materials or products on the EU market for the first time—rather than with downstream processors or retailers. Furthermore, downstream operators would no longer be required to pass on reference numbers associated with these declarations, representing a significant easing of administrative pressure on furniture manufacturers and distributors.
Looking ahead, the Council and Parliament must now secure a final compromise with the European Commission in forthcoming trilogue negotiations. Kurth urged swift progress, stating: "We appeal to all parties involved to now quickly make a decision for legally reliable and practical implementation of the EUDR."
The decision marks a meaningful development for the European interior and furniture sector, which has expressed mounting concern over the operational complexity, cost and supply-chain disruption posed by the original regulation.
More information:
die möbelindustrie - Verbände der deutschen Möbelindustrie
www.moebelindustrie.de
