EU member states on Friday agreed to expand the bloc's CO2 tariff to include washing machines and other processed goods.
The list of affected products is to be reviewed annually, according to a consensus reached by EU finance ministers at a meeting in Luxembourg.
Products with a high iron, steel or aluminium content - primarily industrial goods - fall under the expansion. However, some household products are also to be included, the states decided.
Since January 1, importers have been required to pay a CO2 price for emissions generated during the production of certain goods.
The so-called CO2 border adjustment mechanism, or CBAM, is intended to prevent cheap but climate-damaging products from displacing climate-friendly - and thus more expensive - competitors on the European market.
For example, if steel is produced in China by emitting more CO2 than it would in the EU, this difference is offset in the price.
So far, only basic materials such as steel, aluminium, cement, fertilizer, hydrogen and electricity have been subject to the tariff.
According to the European Commission's proposal, this is set to change in the future to prevent companies from relocating abroad and to avoid encouraging harmful production overseas. Loopholes in the regulations are also to be closed.
Before the changes take effect, an agreement must be reached with the European Parliament.
