(1)

Correct and harmonised certification by voluntary schemes is essential to determine whether biofuels, bioliquids, biomass fuels, renewable gaseous and liquid fuels of non-biological origin and recycled carbon fuels comply with the requirements of Directive (EU) 2018/2001. To ensure legal certainty on the rules applicable to economic operators and voluntary schemes, Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/996 (2) sets out harmonised rules, applicable across the certification process.

(2)

During implementation of the requirements for Member States regarding accreditation of certification bodies, as set out in Article 11(1) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/996, it has been concluded that the proper preparation of accreditation programmes by Member States would require a much longer period, therefore the application of those requirements has been already deferred for one year by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/805 (3).

(3)

The subsequent preparatory work undertaken by the Member States to apply the provisions on accreditation of certification bodies has identified the need for further additional time to prepare and adopt accreditation programmes by the national accreditation bodies of the Member States as well as to clarify the standards, on which basis such programmes should be prepared. To facilitate the preparation of the accreditation programmes by the competent authorities of the Member States, a mandatory process of assessment of the suitability for accreditation of the certification standards of the voluntary and national schemes should also be introduced. That assessment should be part of the overall assessment of the schemes before their recognition by the Commission and should be carried out in consultation with the national accreditation bodies of the Member States under the coordination role of the European cooperation for Accreditation.

(4)

The definition of ‘certification body’ in Article 2(14) of the Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/996 should also be amended to align its content with the new provisions on accreditation.

(5)

To ensure business continuity and avoid any risk of disrupting the certification market, it is necessary to provide for a transition period, which will apply to certification bodies that are conducting certification activities on behalf of a voluntary or national scheme that has been recognised by the Commission by the end of the transition period. Such certification bodies should be allowed to continue their activities without having to be accredited under Article 11(1) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/996 until 31 December 2026.

(6)

In addition, it is also necessary to correct an evident error in Annex VII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/996. The values for nitrogen fertilisers have been swapped, by error, with the values for urea fertilisers. Therefore, those values should be corrected accordingly.

(7)

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/996 should therefore be amended and corrected accordingly.

(8)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee on the Sustainability of Biofuels, Bioliquids and Biomass fuels,

(1)

in Article 2, point (14) is replaced by the following:

(2)

Article 11 is amended as follows:

(3)

in Article 28, the third subparagraph is replaced by the following:

‘Article 11(1) shall apply as of 1 January 2027.’