EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Regulation (CRCF)
The EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Regulation (CRCF) creates a voluntary framework for certifying carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage across the European Union. By introducing common requirements for quantification, additionality, monitoring and verification, CRCF aims to strengthen transparency and credibility in Europe’s carbon removal landscape. Understanding the framework is becoming increasingly important for businesses, landowners and project developers seeking to develop measurable and credible climate projects.
What Is the CRCF Regulation?
The Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Regulation (CRCF) is the European Union’s voluntary certification framework for carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products. It was created to establish common rules for assessing and certifying climate activities across the EU.
The framework addresses a central challenge in the carbon removal market: different projects and methodologies can measure, monitor and report climate benefits in different ways. CRCF introduces a shared European approach intended to improve the quality, transparency and comparability of certified activities.
Under the framework, activities are assessed according to criteria covering areas such as quantification, additionality, long-term storage, sustainability and monitoring. Certification methodologies then define how these principles apply to different types of carbon removal and carbon farming activities.
CRCF covers three broad areas: permanent carbon removals, carbon farming, and carbon storage in products. These categories differ in how carbon is captured, where it is stored and how long that storage is expected to last.
The regulation does not mean that every carbon removal or carbon farming project automatically becomes certified. Projects need to follow applicable certification methodologies and demonstrate that their climate benefits meet the requirements established under the framework.
For project developers, landowners and businesses, CRCF creates a common reference point for understanding what credible carbon removal and carbon farming certification should look like within the European Union.
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Why Was the CRCF Regulation Introduced?
Carbon removals will play an important role alongside deep emissions reductions as the European Union works toward climate neutrality. However, scaling carbon removal and carbon farming requires confidence that claimed climate benefits are real, measurable and appropriately monitored.
Before the CRCF framework, carbon removal projects could rely on different methodologies, accounting approaches and certification systems. This made it more difficult for businesses, investors and other stakeholders to compare projects and understand the quality of claimed carbon removals.
The CRCF Regulation was introduced to create a more consistent European approach. By establishing common quality criteria and requirements for monitoring, reporting and third-party verification, the framework aims to increase transparency and build trust in certified carbon removal and carbon farming activities. The European Commission also explicitly identifies addressing greenwashing as one of the purposes of the framework.
Another objective is to help mobilize investment. Clearer certification rules can provide project developers and buyers with a more consistent basis for evaluating climate outcomes, while supporting the development of permanent carbon removal technologies and sustainable land-management practices.
CRCF is therefore not only about creating certificates. It forms part of a broader effort to develop a credible European market for carbon removals while supporting innovation, carbon farming and the EU’s long-term climate objectives.
What Changed Under the CRCF in 2026?
2026 has been an important year for the implementation of the EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Regulation. While the CRCF Regulation established the overall certification framework, new methodologies and implementation measures introduced during 2026 have begun turning that framework into practical rules for specific carbon removal and carbon farming activities.
In February 2026, the European Commission adopted the first CRCF certification methodologies for permanent carbon removals. These methodologies cover three activities: Direct Air Capture with Carbon Storage (DACCS), Biogenic Emissions Capture with Carbon Storage (BioCCS), and Biochar Carbon Removal (BCR). The methodologies establish technical requirements for quantifying, monitoring and certifying permanent carbon removals under the EU framework.
A second major development followed in July 2026, when the Commission adopted three certification methodologies specifically for carbon farming. They cover agriculture and agroforestry on mineral soils, rewetting and restoration of peatlands and other organic soils, and afforestation.
These methodologies are particularly significant for land-based projects. Rather than treating carbon farming as one broad category, CRCF now provides activity-specific technical rules designed to create a more consistent approach to quantification, additionality, monitoring and certification across the EU.
Implementation of the certification infrastructure is also progressing. Certification schemes must comply with EU requirements covering governance, auditing, registries and the prevention of double counting. Several certification schemes submitted applications for EU recognition during June and July 2026, with the Commission listing their technical assessments as in progress.
Together, these developments mark an important transition for CRCF: from a regulatory framework toward an operational European certification system. For project developers, landowners and businesses, understanding the relevant methodology is therefore becoming increasingly important when evaluating future CRCF-aligned projects.
What Activities Can Be Certified Under CRCF?
The CRCF framework covers different types of climate activities that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, increase carbon storage or reduce certain soil emissions. These activities are divided into three main categories: permanent carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products.
Permanent Carbon Removals
Permanent carbon removals use technologies that capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it securely for centuries. The first CRCF methodologies adopted in 2026 cover Direct Air Capture with Carbon Storage (DACCS), Biogenic Emissions Capture with Carbon Storage (BioCCS) and Biochar Carbon Removal (BCR).
Carbon Farming
Carbon farming covers land-management activities that increase carbon sequestration or reduce emissions from soils. The methodologies adopted in July 2026 cover agriculture and agroforestry on mineral soils, rewetting and restoration of peatlands and other organic soils, and afforestation.
Carbon Storage in Products
CRCF also covers carbon captured and stored in long-lasting products. Under the regulation, carbon storage in products involves storing carbon for at least 35 years. Bio-based construction materials such as timber are an important potential application, with a dedicated certification methodology for carbon storage in buildings planned for 2026.
These categories are not interchangeable. Each activity has different characteristics, storage durations and risks, which is why CRCF uses dedicated certification methodologies rather than applying one universal calculation method to every project.
For project developers, the first step is therefore identifying which CRCF activity category a project belongs to and whether an applicable EU certification methodology has been established.
How Does CRCF Certification Work?
CRCF certification is designed to provide independent evidence that a carbon removal or carbon farming activity complies with the EU framework. Certification is carried out through certification schemes recognised by the European Commission and independent certification bodies.
The process begins when a project operator applies to participate in a recognised certification scheme. The operator must prepare an activity plan and monitoring plan describing the project, the expected climate benefits and how these outcomes will be measured over time.
The project must apply the relevant CRCF certification methodology for its activity. These methodologies establish the technical rules for calculating carbon removals or soil emission reductions and demonstrating compliance with the wider requirements of the regulation.
An independent certification body then conducts a certification audit. The audit verifies the information provided by the project and assesses whether the activity complies with the applicable CRCF requirements. If successful, a certificate of compliance is issued.
Certification does not end with the initial audit. Projects are subject to recertification audits to verify that activities continue to comply with the framework and that the claimed carbon removals or soil emission reductions have actually been generated. Under the regulation, these audits take place at least every five years, or more frequently where required by the relevant methodology.
Transparency is another central part of the system. Certification information and certified units must be recorded in certification registries. The EU-wide CRCF registry is scheduled to be established by 2028, with recognised certification schemes operating their own registries during the transition.
The result is a certification process intended to connect scientific methodologies, project monitoring, independent verification and transparent reporting within one common European framework.
CRCF Quality Criteria and Requirements
For an activity to be certified under the CRCF framework, it must meet a common set of quality criteria designed to ensure that certified climate benefits are measurable, additional, appropriately stored and environmentally responsible.
These requirements are commonly referred to as the QU.A.L.ITY criteria, covering four core areas: Quantification, Additionality, Long-term storage and Sustainability.
Quantification
Projects must demonstrate a measurable net carbon removal or soil emission reduction benefit compared with an appropriate baseline. The calculation must also account for greenhouse gas emissions associated with implementing the activity, rather than considering captured carbon in isolation.
Additionality
Certified activities must go beyond existing EU and national legal requirements. The regulation also requires the incentive created by certification to be necessary for making the activity financially viable, subject to the rules governing standardised and activity-specific baselines.
Long-Term Storage and Liability
The duration and security of carbon storage are fundamental to the framework. Operators must monitor stored carbon and address the risk that it could be released back into the atmosphere. The applicable certification methodologies establish monitoring periods and mechanisms for dealing with potential reversals.
Sustainability
Carbon removal activities cannot be assessed solely on the amount of carbon they capture. CRCF requires activities to comply with sustainability requirements and avoid significant harm to environmental objectives. The framework also encourages benefits for areas such as biodiversity and ecosystem restoration.
The exact requirements differ between activities. A permanent technological removal such as DACCS faces different storage risks and monitoring requirements than carbon stored in agricultural soils or vegetation. This is why CRCF combines common quality principles with activity-specific certification methodologies.
Together, these criteria are intended to ensure that a CRCF certificate represents more than a calculated quantity of carbon. It should reflect a climate outcome that has been quantified, independently verified and assessed against common EU quality requirements.
CRCF and Carbon Farming
Carbon farming is one of the central activity categories within the CRCF framework. It brings agricultural land, agroforestry, peatlands and afforestation into a common EU certification system designed to quantify and verify climate benefits from land management.
Unlike permanent carbon removals, carbon farming relies primarily on biological processes. Plants capture carbon dioxide through photosynthesis, while changes in vegetation, soils and land management can increase carbon sequestration or reduce greenhouse gas emissions from soils. Because these carbon stocks can change over time, their certification requires specific approaches to monitoring and reversal risk.
In July 2026, the European Commission adopted dedicated CRCF methodologies covering agriculture and agroforestry on mineral soils, rewetting and restoration of peatlands and other organic soils, and afforestation. This provides more detailed rules for how these activities can be quantified and certified within the framework.
For farmers and landowners, this development creates a clearer pathway between changes in land management and independently certified climate outcomes. However, implementing an eligible practice does not automatically result in certification. Activities must satisfy the applicable methodology and CRCF quality criteria.
Carbon farming projects also need to consider environmental outcomes beyond carbon. Land management can affect biodiversity, soil health, water systems and ecosystem resilience, making project design particularly important when interventions are implemented across larger landscapes.
The CRCF framework therefore creates a more structured connection between carbon farming practices and measurable climate outcomes. As the certification system develops, reliable baselines, monitoring and long-term land management will remain essential for establishing credible results.
How Initiative 14/15 Supports CRCF-Aligned Projects
Developing a credible carbon removal or carbon farming project requires more than identifying an eligible activity. Projects need to connect practical implementation with robust quantification, monitoring and environmental safeguards while understanding how emerging certification requirements apply to their specific context.
At Initiative 1415, we support organizations, landowners and project developers in exploring opportunities that align with the principles and methodologies emerging under the CRCF framework.
An important first step is understanding the project itself. Different activities — from carbon farming and afforestation to biochar and other carbon removal approaches — involve different baselines, monitoring requirements, storage durations and potential risks. Identifying the appropriate pathway early can help create a stronger foundation for project development.
We also focus on the connection between carbon, nature and measurable environmental outcomes. Climate benefits should be considered alongside biodiversity, ecosystem resilience, land use and other environmental factors, particularly for projects involving forests, agricultural land and wetlands.
As CRCF implementation progresses, projects will increasingly need reliable data and documentation to demonstrate how outcomes are quantified and monitored. Building these systems into a project from the beginning can make future measurement, reporting and verification more effective.
Initiative 1415 helps translate these requirements into practical project development — connecting landscape-level opportunities, scientific assessment and evolving European frameworks.
The objective is to help organizations move from understanding CRCF to identifying and developing credible projects capable of delivering measurable, long-term benefits for climate and nature.
Frequently Asked Questions About the CRCF Regulation
CRCF stands for the Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Regulation. It establishes the European Union’s voluntary certification framework for permanent carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products.
No. CRCF is a voluntary EU certification framework. Projects seeking certification must follow the applicable CRCF requirements and certification methodology and participate through a certification scheme recognised by the European Commission.
CRCF covers three main categories: permanent carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products. Different certification methodologies establish the technical requirements applicable to individual activities within these categories.
In February 2026, the European Commission adopted CRCF methodologies for Direct Air Capture with Carbon Storage (DACCS), Biogenic Emissions Capture with Carbon Storage (BioCCS) and Biochar Carbon Removal (BCR).
In July 2026, the Commission adopted methodologies covering agriculture and agroforestry on mineral soils, rewetting and restoration of peatlands and other organic soils, and afforestation. This was an important step toward making CRCF operational for land-based carbon farming activities.
CRCF requires certified activities to meet common requirements concerning quantification, additionality, long-term storage and sustainability. Activity-specific methodologies determine how these principles are applied to different types of projects.
Projects are audited by independent certification bodies operating within certification schemes. Certification schemes themselves must be recognised by the European Commission and meet requirements covering governance, auditing, registries and prevention of double counting.
The CRCF Regulation requires recertification audits at least every five years, although the applicable certification methodology can require them more frequently depending on the characteristics of the activity.
A common EU CRCF registry is planned to be established by 2028. During the transition, recognised certification schemes operate their own registries for certification information and certified units.
Yes. Carbon farming is one of the core categories covered by CRCF. However, adopting a sustainable land-management practice does not automatically create a certified climate outcome. Projects must comply with the relevant methodology and demonstrate the required quantified climate benefits.
Turn CRCF Requirements Into Credible Climate Projects
The CRCF framework is creating a more consistent European approach to carbon removal and carbon farming certification. For organizations and project developers, the challenge is turning evolving methodologies and certification requirements into practical action.
Initiative 14/15 helps businesses, landowners and project developers explore opportunities for CRCF-aligned carbon removal and carbon farming projects, connecting regulatory requirements with scientific assessment, environmental monitoring and practical implementation.
Whether you are evaluating a potential project, assessing its eligibility or preparing for future certification, we can help build a credible pathway from opportunity to measurable climate and nature outcomes.