EU/Ghana Voluntary Partnership Agreement: forest law enforcement, governance and trade in timber products to the EU

The European Parliament decided by 373 votes to 289, with 26 abstentions, not to raise objections to the Commission delegated regulation of 12 June 2025 amending Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 as regards its date of application.

In support of the statement, Parliament recalled that Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 includes the Republic of Ghana and its Timber Industry Development Division in the list in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 2173/2005, and the list of products covered by the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) licensing scheme in Annex III to that Regulation. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 is to apply from 8 July 2025.

Preparations for issuing FLEGT licences are taking longer than expected and Ghana will start issuing FLEGT licences on 30 June 2025 at the earliest. Shipments from Ghana take between two and eight weeks to reach the Union, causing a risk that shipments leaving Ghana before 30 June 2025 but reaching the Union after 8 July 2025 will not be accompanied by a FLEGT licence and will thus not be able to enter the Union.

Given that there is a significant risk that timber shipments arriving in the Union as from 8 July 2025 may not be covered by a FLEGT licence and that this could generate trade disruption, Members considered that the date from which Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 applies should be adapted, in order to allow sufficient time for shipments leaving Ghana before 30 June 2025 to reach the Union without the obligation to be covered by a FLEGT licence.

Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 should therefore be amended accordingly.