Severity: Error. The Information System rejects the file, or silently stores something other than what you meant.
Fixed automatically?: No, this needs a decision only you can make.
In short: Check whether points were lost in export. If this really is a small plot, record it as a single point instead.

What the Information System does

It rejects them: "Coordinates representing straight lines" is on the Commission's list of common file errors (GeoJSON File Description, Common errors 6).

Why it happens

A polygon whose corners all lie along one line, or all on the same spot, has no inside. On a map it looks like a line or a dot; in the file it claims to be an area.

This happens when one coordinate is copied into every row of a spreadsheet, when a latitude column is used for both axes, or when points are rounded so heavily that they fall onto a line. The checker shows the points, which usually tells you which.

A broken example

{
  "type": "FeatureCollection",
  "features": [
    {
      "type": "Feature",
      "properties": {
        "ProducerCountry": "CI",
        "ProductionPlace": "Straight line",
        "Area": 1
      },
      "geometry": {
        "type": "Polygon",
        "coordinates": [
          [
            [-5.123456, 6.123456],
            [-5.122456, 6.123456],
            [-5.121456, 6.123456],
            [-5.123456, 6.123456]
          ]
        ]
      }
    }
  ]
}

What the checker reports for this file:

This polygon is a straight line: every point lies on the same line, so it encloses no area., line 14, column 11

Before. Numbered circles mark where the checker located the problem. Centred on 6.1235° N, 5.1225° W.

Fix it in EUDRplot

Open the file in the checker. The flat polygon is highlighted; its area is reported as zero.
Find what went wrong. Usually points were lost in export or copied from the wrong column, so the shape collapsed. Export it again from the source.
If it is a very small plot. A plot of four hectares or less can be declared as a single point with its Area instead of a polygon.

Fix it in QGIS

Find zero-area polygons. Select by expression: area($geometry) = 0 (or a very small threshold).
Replace or remove them. Run Centroids on the selection to make points for small plots, and add their Area; otherwise redraw the boundary.

Try it: check the example, or your own file

Drop a GeoJSON, KML, shapefile or CSV here, or .

Open the full checker

Checked in your browser. The file is not uploaded, stored or sent anywhere.

Sources

EUDR GeoJSON File Description (EUDR Information System help, updated 17 August 2026), Common errors 6, European Commission

Rule GEOM-006, rule set 2026.09.2. The same rule runs in the checker, the free tools and the command-line tool.

Last verified against these sources on 23 September 2026.