The European Union has postponed the mandatory traceability mechanism for enforcing Russian-diamond sanctions to January 1, 2026.
“Addressing governance issues associated with the traceability system will require ongoing cooperation with the Group of Seven (G7) and third countries,” the Council of the European Union said Monday in a decision it published in the bloc’s official journal. “In order to further the facilitation of the implementation of those measures and continued engagement with the G7 and third countries, continued monitoring of the level playing field among G7 partners with regard to diamond-related measures should be conducted.”
Under the original schedule, the requirement to provide “traceability-based evidence” for polished-diamond imports was set to go into effect March 1, 2025 — just days away. However, industry leaders had highlighted uncertainty about the rules and a lack of preparedness, and the council deemed it “appropriate” to postpone the date.
The purpose of the mechanism is to link non-Russian, G7-certified rough diamonds to the resultant polished, aiming to enhance transparency.
“The EU’s delay of implementation of the mandatory traceability mechanism for polished diamonds makes sense considering that the industry had indicated the technology aspects were not ready for March,” said Sara Yood, CEO and general counsel of the US-based Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC).
The announcement is part of the European Union’s 16th package of measures against Russia since the Ukraine war began three years ago. Other G7 members, including the US, had not released any updates at press time.
“The US had never publicly committed to the March 1, 2025, date for traceability implementation, so US regulations have not changed,” Yood added.
The US continues to ban imports of rough and polished diamonds weighing 0.50 carats and larger, as well as diamond jewelry manufactured in or transiting through Russia.
However, the EU outlined important changes to rules about mixed-origin diamonds: From March 1, 2025, it will be mandatory to provide a certificate clearly stating the country of mining origin when importing rough diamonds into the EU, according to the council decision.
This means it will be compulsory to present a Kimberley Process (KP) certificate mentioning the exact countries of origin for the rough in the shipment — and if available, a breakdown of origin countries by percentage, the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) explained in a note to members. The breakdown will be optional, the AWDC pointed out.
“We are pleased that the intensive and constructive discussions, led jointly by [the] AWDC and the Belgian government, have ultimately resulted in the G7 postponing the deadline requiring diamond companies to operate with a traceability mechanism,” said AWDC CEO Karen Rentmeesters. “At this stage, there is still considerable uncertainty about how the traceability system will function and how it will be governed, and the G7 must first clarify these aspects.”
Pushing back the deadline gives diamond companies “much-needed time to adequately prepare for its implementation in their daily operations,” Rentmeesters added.
Clarification, February 26, 2025: The AWDC has clarified that providing a breakdown of origin countries by percentage in Kimberley Process (KP) certificates will be optional. This has been added to the article.
Image: A Russian rough diamond from Alrosa. (Alrosa)
