REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL on the exercise of the power to adopt delegated acts conferred on the Commission pursuant to Directive 1999/62/EC
Date: 2026-06-23
Institutions: Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, European Commission
Subjects: European Commission, delegated legislation, greenhouse gas, motor vehicle, pollution control measures, powers of the institutions (EU), reduction of gas emissions, toll, transfer of competence, transport infrastructure

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 23.6.2026  COM(2026) 292 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL on the exercise of the power to adopt delegated acts conferred on the Commission pursuant to Directive 1999/62/EC  
 
 
1.  Introduction  

Directive 1999/62/EC on the charging of vehicles for the use of road infrastructures (1), as last 
amended  by  Directive  (EU)  2025/2459 (2)  (hereinafter,  “the  Directive”),  regulates  the 
imposition of road charges in the Union. The Directive implements the user pays and polluter 
pays principles in road transport.  

The Directive empowers the Commission to adopt delegated acts in certain cases for a period 
of five years from 24 March 2022. The Directive requires that the Commission draw up a report 
in this respect not later than nine months before the end of the five-year period.  

Pursuant to Article 9d of the Directive, the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts 
to amend the following Annexes, in order to ensure that they reflect scientific and technical 
progress: 

•  Annex 0, defining emission limits for Euro classes,  
• 

the formulas  in  points 4.1 and 4.2  of Annex  IIIa, on the minimum  requirements  for 
setting an external-cost charge for air and noise pollution, 
the amounts indicated in the Tables of Annexes IIIb and IIIc, which set reference values 
for the external-cost charges for air and noise pollution and for CO2 emissions. 

• 

Pursuant to Article 7cb(4) of the Directive, the Commission, under certain circumstances, must 
also adopt delegated acts to amend Annex IIIc to the Directive in respect of the reference values 
of the external-cost charge for CO2 emissions, taking into account the effective carbon price 
applied  to  road  transport  fuels  in  the  Union.  In  that  regard, Article  7cb(4)  of  the  Directive 
requires the Commission to assess, by 25 March 2027, the implementation and effectiveness 
of  external-cost  charging  for  CO2 emissions,  and  its  coherence  with  Directive  2003/87/EC 
establishing a system for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Union (3) and 
Council Directive 2003/96/EC (4), and, based on that assessment, to submit, where appropriate, 
a legislative proposal to amend this Article. In accordance with the same provision, if Article 
7cb of the Directive has not been amended by 1 January 2027, but Directive 2003/87/EC or 
Directive 2003/96/EC have been amended in a manner resulting in an effective internalisation 
of at  least  part of the external  costs of CO2 emissions from  road transport, the Commission 
must adopt delegated acts amending Annex IIIc to the Directive to adjust the reference values 
of the external-cost charge for CO2 emissions, taking into account the effective carbon price 

of 

for 

use 

187 

(OJ  L 

infrastructures 

(1)  Directive  1999/62/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  17  June  1999  on  the  charging  of 
vehicles 
42,  ELI: 
road 
the 
http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/1999/62/oj).   
(2) Directive (EU) 2025/2459 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 November 2025 amending 
Directive  1999/62/EC  as  regards  the  extension  of  the  period  in  which  zero-emission  heavy-duty  vehicles  can 
benefit from significantly reduced rates of infrastructure or user charges or from exemptions to pay them (OJ L, 
2025/2459, 4.12.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2025/2459/oj).  
(3) Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 2003 establishing a system 
for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Union and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC (OJ 
L 275, 25.10.2003, p. 32, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2003/87/oj).  
(4) Council Directive 2003/96/EC of 27 October 2003 restructuring the Community framework for the taxation 
of energy products and electricity (OJ L 283, 31.10.2003, p. 51, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2003/96/oj).  

20.7.1999, 

p. 

 
 
 
applied  to  road  transport  fuels  in  the  Union. Article  9d,  second  paragraph,  of  the  Directive 
specifies  that  such  amendments  must  be  limited  to  ensuring  that  the  level  of  external-cost 
charges for CO2 emissions does not go beyond what is necessary to internalise  the external 
costs  of  CO2 emissions  from  road  transport.  In  this  respect,  the  Commission  is  currently 
conducting a study  on carbon pricing  in  tolls  and user charges,  with  the aim to  assess their 
implementation  and  coherence  with  emissions  trading  and  energy  taxation.  The  study  is 
scheduled for completion at the end of 2026.  

The scientific and technical basis for the values in the Annexes referred to in Article 9d as well 
as Annexes V and VI is the Handbook of external costs of road transport. It is to be noted, in 
that  regard,  that  the  Commission  will  publish  in  the  second  half  of  2026  an  update  of  this 
Handbook. 

2.  Legal basis for the report  

This report is required under Article 9e(2) of the Directive, which limits the delegation of power 
to the Commission for a period of five years from 24 March 2022 with a possibility of tacit 
extension for an identical period. This report covers the period from 24 March 2022 to the date 
of adoption of this report.  

3.  Use of the delegation  

The  power  to  adopt  delegated  acts  conferred  on  the  Commission under Article  9e(2)  of  the 
Directive has not been exercised yet. The first reason is the fact that the delegated act referred 
to  in  Article  7cb(4)  of  the  Directive  is  only  to  be  considered  in  the  event  that  Directive 
2003/87/EC or Directive 2003/96/EC have been amended in a manner resulting in an effective 
internalisation of at least part of the external costs of CO2 emissions from road transport and 
that Article 7cb has not been amended by 1 January 2027.This assessment is currently ongoing. 
The second reason is the absence of significant scientific or technical progress that could have 
been considered (i.e. an update of the Handbook),  

The power to adopt delegated acts  remains relevant, first, to ensure the ability to adjust the 
reference values set  in Annex IIIc  to  the Directive, considering  the  assessment that is  to  be 
carried out by the Commission in accordance with Article 7cb(4) of the Directive in light of 
the  amendment  of  Directive  2003/87/EC  and  the  application  of  the  new  emission  trading 
system (ETS2)5; and, second, to retain the possibility to update certain Annexes to reflect the 
latest scientific and technical progress. As noted above, the Commission will publish in the 
second half of 2026 an update of the Handbook of external costs of road transport. 

5 Directive (EU) 2023/959 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023 amending Directive 
2003/87/EC establishing a system for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Union and Decision 
(EU) 2015/1814 concerning the establishment and operation of a market stability reserve for the Union greenhouse 
gas emission trading system (OJ L 130, 16.5.2023, p. 134, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2023/959/oj). 

 
 
 
4.  Conclusion  

As  mentioned  in  Section  3,  the  delegation  of  power  to  the  Commission  is  still  relevant  for 
Directive 1999/62/EC to be effectively implemented. 

The Commission invites the European Parliament and the Council to take note of this report.