What are the key Safeguard Mechanism dates each year?

The annual cycle

• 30 June: the financial year ends.
• 31 August: NGER registration is due if not already registered, and an operational control nomination is due if operational control has changed.
• 31 October: NGER reports are due, including Safeguard production data. Applications for new emissions intensity determinations, exemptions and trade-exposed baseline-adjusted (TEBA) determinations are due, as are requests to revoke a TEBA determination and explanations for multi-year monitoring periods that ended that year.
• 15 November: applications for new multi-year monitoring periods are due.
• 31 January: the recommended date to apply for Safeguard Mechanism credit units.
• 28 February: borrowing applications are due.
• 31 March: ACCU and SMC surrenders must be complete.
• 1 April: compliance deadline for managing excess emissions.
• 15 April: the CER publishes Safeguard data for the financial year.

Weekends and public holidays

Where a deadline falls on a weekend or ACT public holiday, the CER generally accepts lodgement on the next business day. Check the CER’s key dates page for the current year.

Cost containment window

The window to buy ACCUs under the cost containment measure runs from mid-February to early March. For 2026-27 it is 16 February to 4 March 2027.

What happens after 31 October

Once NGER reports are in, the CER issues each facility a Safeguard position statement in Online Services, setting out its baseline for the year. Facilities under baseline can then apply for SMCs, and facilities over baseline have until 31 March to complete their surrenders.

Plan backwards from 1 April

The CER recommends lodging surrenders at least 10 business days before the 1 April compliance deadline. Borrowing applications close on 28 February and the cost containment window closes in early March, so decisions on how to manage an excess need to be made well before the end of March.