Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive
The directive that turns sustainability reporting into a legal obligation for ~50,000 EU companies. Replaces NFRD, mandates ESRS, and requires assurance — limited first, reasonable later.
The European Council confirmed that the move from limited to reasonable assurance on CSRD reports is pushed to FY30 reporting (filings in 2031), giving auditors and preparers more time to operationalise the higher bar.
The Commission's Omnibus 1 proposed narrowing CSRD to companies above 1,000 employees (up from 250) and EUR 50M turnover, removing ~80% of in-scope companies. Listed SMEs are dropped entirely.
CSRD reporting began for large public-interest entities (LPIEs) with more than 500 employees — the first cohort. Reports cover FY24 and were filed in early 2025. The cohort largely overlapped with companies already filing under NFRD.
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive entered into force, formally replacing NFRD and setting the legal foundation for the ESRS that EFRAG was finalising. Member states had 18 months to transpose into national law.
The European Parliament and Council formally adopted the CSRD after two years of negotiation. The directive expands sustainability reporting to ~50,000 companies (up from ~12,000 under NFRD) and introduces mandatory assurance.
The European Commission published the CSRD proposal as part of the EU Sustainable Finance Strategy. The proposal extended reporting to all large companies and all listed companies — including listed SMEs — and committed to mandatory EU-specific standards.