German DEHSt Competent Authority for Foreign Aircraft Operators

The European system for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading (EU ETS), governed by Directive 2003/87/EC (Emissions Trading System Directive, ETSD), comprises certain obligations for aircraft operators. The term 'aircraft operator' is not limited to those with legal seat or head office or a branch in the European Economic Area (EEA) and therefore also includes non-EEA aircraft operators. However, the scope of the EU ETS is limited to aviation activities from flights between aerodromes in states located in the EEA, the United Kingdom (UK) and Switzerland, at least until 2026.

As far as the EU ETS applies, non-EEA aircraft operators are subject to numerous obligations, in particular to monitor, verify and report their emissions resulting from their aviation activity and, from 2025 onwards, non-CO2 aviation effects to the competent EEA authority and to surrender a number of EU Emission Allowances that is equal to its total verified emissions from aviation activities during the preceding calendar year.

Each competent authority is designated by the respective administering Member State, which is, in the case of non-EEA aircraft operators, the Member State with the greatest estimated attributed aviation emissions from flights performed by that aircraft operator in the base year. 'Base year’ means, in relation to an aircraft operator which started operating in the EEA from 2006, the first calendar year of operation, and in all other cases 2006.

The Federal Republic of Germany (Germany) is the administering Member State for those aircraft operators listed in the Annex to Commission Regulation (EC) No 748/2009. This list is based on the best information available to the European Commission and therefore not exhaustive. The inclusion of an aircraft operator in that list does not affect the inclusion of that aircraft operator in the EU ETS, which depends on the performance of an aviation activity listed in Annex I to the ETSD within the EEA.

Germany has assigned the German Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt, UBA) with the administrative tasks associated with the implementation of the EU ETS. The German Emissions Trading Authority (Deutsche Emissionshandelsstelle, DEHSt) is a department within UBA.

Kronsteyn advises on legal matters concerning the EU ETS.