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No national taxation of free CO₂ emission allowances (ECJ Case C‑519/24)
April 2026 – In its ruling issued today, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) clarified that Member States may not impose national taxes on CO2 emission allowances allocated free of charge under the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The case originated in Hungary, where the authorities, invoking a state of emergency due to the war in Ukraine, introduced a tax on free CO2 emission allowances granted to major emitters. The ECJ stated in its ruling the following: The free allocation of CO2 emission allowances is fully harmonised at EU level on a sectoral basis. National fiscal measures are permissible only if they do not undermine the objectives of the EU ETS. Directive 2003/87/EC aims to maintain economic
EU CSRD and CSDDD – Significance of the postponement of the application date
On 14 April 2025, the Council of the EU gave its final green light on the so-called "Stop‑the‑clock Directive" postponing the application dates of the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (EU) 2022/2464 ("CSRD") and the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (EU) 2024/1760 (“CSDDD”). Who will benefit from this and what does this actually mean for the affected companies? The CSRD entered into force on 5 January 2023 and aims to ensure that investors have the information they need to understand and manage the risks to which investee companies are exposed from climate change and other sustainability issues. It also aims to ensure that investors and other stakeholders have the information they