The Coalition of Finance Ministers is launching a new webinar series under HP3 to explore the design, implementation and impact of carbon border adjustments (BCAs), i.e. charges on embodied carbon in imports. 

While carbon pricing policies are widely acknowledged as a powerful tool in realigning economic incentives and reducing emissions, they often raise questions around competitiveness and carbon leakage. BCAs can help to address these issues. However, while BCAs may be conceptually widely supported, in practical terms, they present a largely unchartered and emerging area of policy practice. Countries seeking to enact BCAs face complex trade-offs in design and implementation, while trading partners are increasingly looking to understand the impact of BCAs on their own economies and how best to adjust and adapt. 

This webinar series is particularly timely given the recent implementation of the first BCA by the European Union in January 2026, and given that the topic of BCAs can be expected to feature prominently during the UNFCCC's trade-related discussions in 2026.

About the Series

Objectives

• Disseminate and discuss available knowledge among members regarding:
  • the rationale, design and implementation of BCAs
  • the mechanics of existing and planned BCAs
  • tools and methods to evaluate the impact of a BCA on trading partners
• Share country experiences in designing and implementing BCAs and, for trading partners, in determining the most appropriate policy response.
• Inform ongoing HP3 work and collective knowledge within the Coalition on BCAs.

Please note that the series intended to provide a forum for practical and technical discussion, and will not facilitate or engage in negotiations.

Series Structure

• The webinar series will be hosted by the Coalition from March to May 2026. Each session will be 1 hour in duration and will be open to Coalition members and partners.
• Each webinar will feature a thematic presentation by an institutional or knowledge partner on the topic, country case studies, or both, followed by a structured discussion and Q&A.
• A brief summary note will be prepared at the end of the series, summarising lessons learned and case studies of different approaches.

Provisional seminar dates are as follows:

• Webinar 1: Introduction to BCAs – Tuesday, March 17, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. ET
• Webinar 2: Mechanics of Existing BCAs – Tuesday, April 7, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. ET
• Webinar 3: Modeling the Impacts of CBAM – Tuesday, April 28, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. ET
• Webinar 4: Policy Responses to the EU CBAM — Climate, Fiscal, and Competitiveness Implications – Tuesday, May 26, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. ET

If you would like to contribute to this series, please email Alpa Shah (supporting Institutional Partner) at ashah@imf.org.