Nature Restoration Regulation Implementation

Support and resources

The Commission and the European Environment Agency (EEA) have made available tools, guidelines and other resources to support Member States.

The NRP Preparation Tool 

The Commission has established a uniform format for preparing Nature Restoration Plans. The EEA has published a tool to help Member States prepare their plans.The tool is a set of templates, data models, reference data, and instructions. The plans will be submitted online through Reportnet, the EEA’s platform for reporting environmental data. It will allow re-use of data already reported under other policies and pre-filling of available information.

The NRR Reference Portal 

The NRR reference portal provides a comprehensive set of guidelines, explanatory notes, background documents on typologies of measures and ecosystems, reference data, webinars and other materials to assist with the development and implementation of the National Restoration Plans. It is updated regularly with new content.

The NRR Helpdesk

The EEA has set up the NRR Helpdesk (nature [dot] restoration [dot] helpdeskeea [dot] europa [dot] eu (nature[dot]restoration[dot]helpdesk[at]eea[dot]europa[dot]eu)) to provide individual support to Member State authorities. The European Commission’s DG Environment (ENV-BIODIVERSITYec [dot] europa [dot] eu (ENV-BIODIVERSITY[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)) also receives and replies to Member States’ and stakeholders’ questions related to NRP preparation, which are published as Frequently Asked Questions.

Monitoring pollinators

The European Union’s method for monitoring pollinator diversity and pollinator populations will help Member States assess their progress towards the NRR targets to improve pollinator diversity and reverse the decline of pollinator populations at the latest by 2030, and thereafter achieve an increasing trend of pollinator populations, measured at least every six years from 2030, until satisfactory levels are achieved.

To support the monitoring, the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre will run a technical helpdesk as of 2026 to reinforce the training courses for surveyors already provided under EPIC, and to provide software tools to facilitate field surveys (applications, species information database)

Guidance on high diversity landscape features

The Commission Notice on guidance on High Diversity Landscape Features  will assist national authorities in the application of the agricultural indicator of “share of agricultural land with high-diversity landscape features” under Article 11(2) NRR. Specifically, it provides guidance on how to develop monitoring methodologies for the productive features referred to in Annex IV of the NRR, i.e. productive trees in sustainable agroforestry systems, trees in extensive old orchards on permanent grassland, and productive elements in hedges.

Nature Restoration planning in EU Member States

Allow sufficient time for stakeholder participation Stakeholder participation is key for the success of the NRR and requires time. The full period up until the final adoption of the plans in 2027 should be used for outreach and discussion with stakeholders. Member States ensure that the preparation of their plans is open, transparent, inclusive and effective. This includes land managers, farmers, foresters, fishers, local and regional authorities, civil society organisations, economic actors and citizens.

Tailor plans to national and regional contexts. In line with the principle of subsidiarity, the NRR establishes binding objectives while allowing Member States flexibility to design restoration measures adapted to national, regional and local circumstances, including specific ecological conditions, socio-economic contexts and the situation of outermost regions. The Commission will assess the plans taking into account local circumstances and challenges and will focus on the overall approach and coherence of the plans and their suitability to achieve the objectives of the NRR. EU-level resources, such as the Natura 2000 biogeographical process and environment statistics at regional level can support the consideration of these territorial specificities.

Build on existing experience and initiatives. NRPs should take into account existing strategies, programmes and measures that already contribute to restoration objectives, including under agriculture, forestry, water, marine, climate and spatial planning policies. This includes, in particular, relevant national plans such as national energy and climate plans and CAP Strategic Plans. Building on existing experience at local, regional and national level can scale up successful approaches support coherence across policy areas and help reduce duplication and unnecessary administrative burden. Practical examples of restoration measures and governance approaches are available from projects supported under the EU LIFE Programme, which are publicly accessible through the LIFE project database, as well as from EU research and innovation projects available via EU project databases, including CORDIS.

Restoration measures should support climate action. Climate change adaptation and mitigation, disaster risk reduction and land degradation neutrality, and reflect these considerations in the choice and prioritisation of restoration measures. Restoration measures can contribute to strengthening climate resilience and reducing vulnerability to climate impacts such as floods, droughts, heatwaves and wildfires. Nature-based solutions can deliver multiple benefits simultaneously, including biodiversity recovery, climate change adaptation and mitigation, disaster risk reduction and socio-economic co-benefits. Scientific and analytical work produced by the Commission, including on nature-based solutions and climate change adaptation, can support this integration.

Use of available information and progressive improvement of knowledge. NRPs are prepared on the basis of the best available scientific evidence at the time of planning, including in situations where knowledge gaps remain. In this context, existing EU nature reporting data, as well as spatial information from the Copernicus Land Monitoring Service, can provide valuable support for assessing ecosystem condition, identifying priorities and informing the design of restoration measures. The existence of data gaps does not prevent planning or implementation from moving forward as NRPs can describe identified uncertainties and set out how knowledge, monitoring and data quality are to be progressively strengthened over time. In this context, EU-level knowledge and evidence resources, such as those made available through the Commission’s Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity, can support the use of the best available science and analytical tools.

Financing Nature Restoration

Financing is key to successful nature restoration, with public budgets under great pressure. The economic case for nature restoration is increasingly well established. The NRR impact assessment shows that restoration delivers strong returns on investment over time.

While the NRR does not prescribe specific funding instruments, it requires Member States to include financial information in their NRPs. This information covers estimated financial needs related to the implementation of restoration measures, as well as indicative information on intended public and private financing and financial support to affected stakeholders. The uniform format for NRPs provides a structured description of financial needs, funding sources and support mechanism. NRPs are therefore a key coordination tool, helping to bring together information on funding needs and available instruments in a coherent and transparent way.

The current Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) already provides multiple funding sources relevant for nature restoration, including LIFE, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF), Cohesion Policy funds, Horizon Europe and InvestEU, under the EU-wide biodiversity financing objectives. In addition, many Member States, regions and municipalities have established programmes that already contribute to nature restoration. These existing instruments will form an important part of the NRPs. Remaining funding in the current financing period of the MFF may also be used to scale up such programmes.

The NRR recognises that successful implementation depends on adequate support for stakeholders involved in restoration, including farmers, foresters, fishers, landowners, businesses and local authorities. This can include payments for environmental services, result-based schemes, strategic use of compensation, as well as emerging market-based approaches. Several successful projects have already been established in Member States, such as local projects around nature markets or those making strategic use of compensation. 

The development of the EU framework for Carbon Removal and Carbon Farming can help channel additional finance towards restoration activities that deliver both climate and biodiversity benefits. At the same time, investor and corporate biodiversity reporting obligations are emerging as a practical driver for demand for credible, nature-positive investment pipelines.

The Roadmap towards Nature Credits sets an exploratory approach to assessing how a high-integrity EU approach to nature credits could take shape with a view to mobilising additional private finance for nature-positive outcomes, in complement to public funding and in support of EU biodiversity objectives, including those under the NRR. 

The Commission proposal for the Multiannual Financial Framework 2028–2034 foresees a stronger integration of climate and environmental objectives, including nature restoration.  The proposed National and Regional Partnership Plans, together with the EU Competitiveness Fund, are intended to help ensure that financing is made available for restoration objectives, and that financing needs identified in the NRPs are consistently reflected in the wider EU investment and reform priorities.