[Regulatory Update] EU Publishes Simplified ESRS Regulation in the Official Journal — Sustainability Reporting Standards Amended
The publication in the Official Journal is an important milestone: the simplification of EU sustainability reporting has moved beyond policy direction and adoption to become a finalised legal text. For companies, it affects not only the scope of the CSRD but also the practical question of what information must be reported and against which standards. Ahead of reporting from 2027 onwards in particular, companies will need to check the differences between the amended ESRS and their existing reporting processes. At the same time, because the regulation enters into force on 10 November and applies to financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2027, the publication date and the date from which it applies to companies should be treated separately.
Related Regulation Information
EU European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS)
The European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) are a legally binding delegated regulation (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772) under the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), setting out the specific disclosure items, measurement methods, and reporting formats that companies within scope must follow. Drafted by EFRAG (the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group), the standards comprise twelve total standards spanning Environment (E1–E5: climate, pollution, water, biodiversity, and resource use/circular economy), Social (S1–S4: own workforce, workers in the value chain, affected communities, and consumers), and Governance (G1: business conduct). Following the principle of "double materiality" (financial materiality and impact materiality), companies must disclose quantitative and qualitative information spanning their entire value chain.
See this regulation's full analysis (timeline & business impact)💡 The overview and schedule for the regulation related to this article can also be found on the Regulatory Gateway Database page.