Außenansicht des D3 Gebäudes

SuRe: Regulations

Attention! This website is still an ongoing project. Therefore, the content is currently under development.

Here you can find an overview of the current state of sustainability reporting regulations in the EU.

Please cite this register in conjunction with the following article:
Hummel, K., Jobst, D., 2022. The Current State of Corporate Sustainability Reporting Regulation in the European Union. https://ssrn.com/abstract=3978478.

Regulations

NFRD

NFRD

Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament on the disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by certain large undertakings and groups.

CSRD

CSRD

The Directive 2022/2464 enhances, modernizes and harmonizes regulations regarding to the disclosure of social and environmental information by companies. Additionally, the scope of companies required to report on sustainability has been expanded to include a wider range of large enterprises as well as listed SMEs.

SFDR

SFDR

Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 of the European Parliament on sustainability‐related disclosures in the financial services sector, with the aim of increasing transparency regarding the sustainability of financial products.

EU Taxonomy

EU Taxonomy

The EU taxonomy is a classification system, establishing a list of environmentally sustainable economic activities. It could play an important role helping the EU scale up sustainable investment and implement the European green deal.

Pillar 3

Pillar 3

Pillar 3 of the Basel framework, as published by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, seeks to promote market discipline through regulatory disclosure requirements. 

This table provides a comparison of the five EU regulatory initiatives along key parameters:

 NFRD (Directive 2014/95/EU)Taxonomy Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2020/852)SFDR (Regulation (EU) 2019/2088)Pillar 3 disclosures (Regulation (EU) 2019/876)CSRD (Directive (EU) 2022/2464)
ScopePIEs with more than 500 employeesScope of the NFRD, SFDR and CSRD; regulators with regard to policy measuresFinancial market participants and advisersLarge credit institutions and investment firmsLarge EU companies and listed SMEs1, certain branches and subsidiaries of third-country undertakings
- To improve sustainability disclosure
- To stimulate change toward a sustainable global economy
Objectives- To improve the relevance, consistency and comparability of sustainability disclosure

- To improve capital market efficiency

- To stimulate change toward a sustainable global economy
- To establish a classification of environmentally sustainable activities

- To enhance comparability of reporting on these activities

- To stimulate sustainable financing and investment activities
- To enhance transparency regarding the sustainability of financial products

- To avoid ‘greenwashing’

- To stimulate sustainable financing and investment activities

- To strengthen investor protection
- To ensure prudential disclosures on ESG risks

- To enhance the comparability of sustainability disclosure

- To promote market discipline in the financial sector
- To improve sustainability disclosure

- To stimulate change toward a sustainable global economy
MattersEnvironmental, social, employee, human rights, corruption, briberyEnvironmentalEnvironmental, climate, social, employee, human rights, corruption, briberyEnvironmental, social and governance (ESG)Environmental, social, employee, human rights, corruption, bribery
Disclosure requirementsRelated to matters:

- Description of the business model
- Description and outcome of policies related to matters including implemented due diligence processes
- Risks related to matters and risk management
- Relevant KPIs
Financial undertakings:

- KPIs by asset managers
- KPIs by credit institutions
- KPIs by investment firms
- KPIs by insurance and reinsurance firms

Nonfinancial undertakings:

- Proportion of turnover, capex and opex associated with environmentally sustainable activities
Entity-level disclosures:

- Information on policies regarding sustainability risk integration, consideration of PAIs, and integration of sustainability risks in remuneration policies

Product-level disclosures:

- Precontractual and website disclosures and information in periodic reports
Quantitative disclosures:

- Climate-change transition risks
- Climate-change physical risks
- Mitigation actions

Qualitative disclosures:

- Regarding ESG risks: governance arrangements, business model and strategy, risk management
Related to matters:

- Description of business model and strategy
- Description of related targets, their achievement progress and if they are based on scientific evidence
- Role and expertise of administrative, management and supervisory bodies
- Sustainability-related policies
- Sustainability-linked incentive schemes
- Description of due diligence processes and PAIs and mitigating actions
- Sustainability-related risks and risk management

Relevant indicators
Granularity of informationNo specific KPIs are mandated; further guidance provided in nonbinding guidelinesSpecific disclosure requirements in combination with the NFRD; technical screening criteria are defined in delegated actsSpecific disclosure requirements are defined in the technical standardsSpecific disclosure requirements including specific KPIs for ESG risks that are defined in the technical standardsEFRAG reporting standards
Stakeholder focusBroadBroadInvestorsInvestors and stakeholdersBroad
MaterialityDouble materialityNo materiality focusDouble materialityFocus on ESG risksDouble materiality
Legal character (authority)Transposition of directive into national legislationDirect applicability of regulation and delegated acts (technical screening criteria)Direct applicability of regulation and delegated acts (regulatory technical standards)Direct applicability of regulation and implementing acts (implementing technical standards)Transposition of directive into national legislation
Location of informationAnnual report or a separate reportAccording to the requirements of the NFRD and SFDRWebsite, precontractual disclosure and periodic reportingAnnual report or a separate Pillar 3 reportAnnual report (digital tagging)
TimelineEffective for financial year 2017 onwardRequirements for climaterelated objectives are applicable for financial year 2021 onward, requirements for other environmental objectives are applicable for financial year 2022 onwardFirst disclosure requirements applicable from March 2021, with a gradual phasing in of further requirementsApplicable from June 2022 and therefore first application for financial year 2022First application for financial year 2023 onward, with a gradual phasing in

1 For SMEs, simpler reporting requirements and an extended timeline apply