What Is a CPA Code? EU Statistical Classification of Products by Activity
What is CPA? The Statistical Classification of Products by Activity (CPA) is the European Union’s official product classification system for goods and services, structured according to the economic activity that produces them. CPA provides the product-side counterpart to NACE, enabling consistent product-by-activity measurement across EU statistics.
Why CPA exists
Economic statistics often require a product lens, not just an industry lens. While NACE classifies activities, CPA classifies the outputs of those activities. This ensures EU statistics can answer not only who produces, but also what is produced, using a consistent structure across all member states.
What the producer does
What that activity produces
The EU “data bridge”: one activity, many products
A single economic activity frequently produces multiple distinct products. CPA enables this one-to-many relationship to be measured consistently.
Milk · Cheese · Whey · Cream
CPA hierarchy (6 levels)
CPA mirrors NACE at every level, creating a stable analytical framework for product-by-activity statistics.
How to read a CPA code
CPA codes are commonly written with dot notation (e.g., 08.11.11) for readability. In some databases or data warehouses, the same code may appear in a flat numeric format (e.g., 081111). Both formats represent the same classification.
Data handling tip: When cleaning datasets or building SQL joins, always normalize CPA codes to a consistent format before matching.
How CPA fits into the EU classification ecosystem
Industry activity
Product by activity
Trade goods (EU customs)
CPA and PRODCOM
CPA defines the classification structure for products. PRODCOM is the EU’s industrial production survey that uses an 8-digit extension of CPA to collect actual production values and volumes from manufacturers.
Authority note: CPA provides the taxonomy. PRODCOM provides the reported production data.
Versions and current updates
The current operational standard is CPA Version 2.1. A new revision, CPA 2025, is being implemented in alignment with NACE Rev. 2.1 to reflect structural economic changes and maintain coherence across EU statistical systems.
FAQ
- Is CPA the same as CN or HS?
No. CPA is a statistical product-by-activity classification. CN and HS are customs trade nomenclatures. - Does every NACE activity have multiple CPA products?
Often yes. CPA explicitly supports primary and secondary outputs. - Is CPA legally binding?
Yes. CPA is legally binding for EU statistical reporting.