External Aspects of the EU ETS in Aviation in Light of CORSIA

According to International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Assembly Resolution A40-19, the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation mechanism (CORSIA) is to be the only global market-based measure (MBM) applied to CO2 emissions from international aviation. This solution has been dictated by the intention to avoid a patchwork of duplicative State or regional MBMs and to ensure that international aviation CO2 emissions should be accounted for only once. The present contribution assesses the margin of autonomy left for Emissions Trading System of the EU (EU ETS) mechanism in the light of this clause, considering its legal status and divergent interpretations. Moreover, the recent 2020 roadmap for revision of the EU ETS Directive concerning aviation, published by the European Commission, is briefly discussed.