16 / 20 Transition timetable by domain and country
When do European business statistics move to NACE Rev 2.1?
Published Updated
Statistical classification only
Statistical classification only. This guide does not determine any reader's code. Confirm a code with the national statistical institute or the business register that holds the record. This is general information, not advice on any reader's registration.
Short term business statistics will use NACE Rev. 2 until the end of 2027 (FIXED, as stated by Eurostat) and will apply NACE Rev. 2.1 from 2028 (FIXED, as stated by Eurostat). The Eurostat legislation page for short term business statistics states both points in one passage, and names Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1840 as the instrument that amends the earlier implementing regulations as regards references to NACE. That is a domain timetable, distinct from the general European range, and it is the date that controls short term business statistics.
What counts as European business statistics here?
European business statistics is the field governed by Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 on European business statistics, with technical specifications in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1197 and related instruments. Short term business statistics sit inside that field, and cover indicators such as industrial production, producer prices, turnover and retail sales, published on a NACE breakdown. The Eurostat transition page lists certain European business statistics as one of the domains whose transmission requirements were updated, with changes set out in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1840. The domain label matters because a date for short term business statistics does not transfer to national accounts, to labour statistics, or to any other domain. Each domain has its own instrument and its own date.
What does the 2024/1840 instrument do?
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1840 amends Commission Implementing Regulations (EU) 2020/1197, (EU) 2022/918 and (EU) 2022/1092, as regards references to the statistical classification of economic activities NACE Revision 2. Eurostat cites it on the transition page as the instrument that sets out the changes for certain European business statistics. In plain terms, it updates the references in the transmission requirements so that they point to NACE Rev. 2.1. It does not, by itself, rewrite the explanatory notes, and it does not decide the entry for a specific business. The explanatory notes and the correspondence tables remain the record of what a category covers and of how an activity moves between versions. A reader who cites the 2024/1840 instrument should cite it for the transmission change, and cite the notes and tables for meaning and movement.
How do the two dates fit the general range?
The general range for data transmission runs from 1 January 2025 to 1 January 2031 (FIXED range), as stated in the EUR-Lex summary. The short term business statistics dates sit inside that range: NACE Rev. 2 until the end of 2027 (FIXED, as stated by Eurostat), and NACE Rev. 2.1 from 2028 (FIXED, as stated by Eurostat). The fit is orderly. The general range sets the outer frame. The domain instrument sets the date inside it. The table below shows the two levels together, so that a reader does not mistake the frame for the domain date.
| Level | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| General data transmission range | From 1 January 2025 to 1 January 2031 | FIXED range |
| Short term business statistics, NACE Rev. 2 | Until the end of 2027 | FIXED, as stated by Eurostat |
| Short term business statistics, NACE Rev. 2.1 | From 2028 | FIXED, as stated by Eurostat |
A dataset for a reference period in 2027 is therefore still a NACE Rev. 2 dataset for this domain, even though European statistics in general began to use NACE Rev. 2.1 from 2025 onwards (FIXED, as stated by Eurostat). The reference period and the domain together decide the version, not the calendar year of publication alone.
What should a reader check before comparing two business statistics series?
Three checks come before any comparison. First, check the dataset metadata for the NACE version used and the reference period covered. Second, check whether the series has been backcast or double reported, so that a break caused by the classification change is visible and explained. Third, check the explanatory note for the category, where the category is a new, split or renamed class, because the correspondence table alone does not pick the new class for a specific unit. Eurostat describes backcasting and double reporting on its transition page, and its backcasting manual gives the methods for producing consistent historical series. A comparison that skips those checks risks treating a reclassification as a change in output, turnover or employment.
What does this timetable not decide?
This timetable does not decide the code held for a specific business in a national business register, and it does not decide tax, licensing, funding or collective agreement questions. The legislation only applies to the use of the classification for statistical purposes, as the EUR-Lex summary states. The business register entry is confirmed with the national statistical institute or the register that holds the record, on that holder’s own timetable. The domain date governs statistics. The register governs the entry.
Check the Eurostat legislation page for short term business statistics, check the dataset metadata for version and reference period, and confirm a business entry with the institute or register that holds it.