European Commission Launches Consultations on Draft Delegated Regulations for Revised ESRSs and Voluntary Sustainability Reporting Standard
May 7, 2026
On May 6, 2026, the European Commission (EC) published for public comment a draft
delegated act that proposes changes to Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772 to
simplify the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRSs). Concurrently, the
EC launched a consultation on a draft
voluntary reporting standard for smaller entities that are not within the scope of
the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). Comments on both draft
delegated acts are due by June 3, 2026.
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In February 2026, Directive (EU) 2026/470 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of the European Union (EU) was
published
in the Official Journal of the European Union,
finalizing the EC’s February 2025 omnibus
package of proposals that simplifies the
EU’s sustainability reporting requirements. Specifically,
the directive reduced the scope1 of the CSRD to entities that have a net turnover
exceeding EUR 450 million and an average of more than 1,000
employees during the financial year and included a
commitment to revise the ESRSs.
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In December 2025, in response to a
March 2025 request, EFRAG
submitted to the EC technical advice on the simplification of the ESRSs. (For
additional details on the technical advice, see Deloitte’s January 14, 2026,
Heads Up.) In the draft delegated
act for revised ESRSs, the EC made targeted modifications to EFRAG's technical
advice to provide further clarity and flexibility related to certain provisions. See
the Explanatory Memorandum posted on the consultation page related to the
delegated act for more information about the modifications.
The draft voluntary sustainability reporting standard is intended to support
voluntary sustainability reporting for entities not within the scope of the CSRD. In
addition, the voluntary standard establishes a “value-chain cap” that limits the
information in‑scope CSRD reporting entities may request from value-chain entities
that are not within the scope of the CSRD. That is, entities within the scope of the
CSRD cannot require value-chain entities that are not within the CSRD’s scope to
provide information beyond that described in the voluntary standard.
The delegated acts are expected to be adopted soon after the consultation closes.
After adoption, the delegated acts will be subject to a two- to four-month period of
scrutiny by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU before becoming
effective. The revised ESRSs would apply to financial years beginning on or after
January 1, 2027. Entities subject to sustainability reporting requirements for
financial year 2026 would have the option of applying the revised ESRSs to reporting
for financial year 2026. The voluntary standard would be effective beginning in
financial year 2027 for the value-chain reporting of entities within the scope of
the CSRD, irrespective of the option to apply the revised ESRSs for financial year
2026 on a voluntary basis. For entities not within the scope of the CSRD that wish
to report on a voluntary basis, the new standard will be effective upon the date the
directive is entered into force.
For more information, see the press release on the EC’s Web site.
Footnotes
1
Different thresholds apply to non-EU enterprise-level
reporting. Standards for non-EU enterprise-level
reporting will not be adopted by the EC before
October 1, 2027.