EU Publishes Revised Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS)
Reference source : Official Journal of European Union
On 21 September 2026, the European Union published Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1563 in the Official Journal, introducing revised European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). The standards set out the information that companies covered by the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) must disclose regarding their sustainability impacts, risks and opportunities.
This revision is part of the Omnibus I simplification package. According to the European Commission, the revision reduces the number of mandatory data points by more than 60% and the total number of data points by more than 70%. The revised standards also simplify the assessment of which sustainability matters must be reported and introduce additional reporting flexibility. The Commission expects these changes to reduce reporting costs by more than 30% per company.
Reporting timeline
The regulation enters into force on 10 November 2026. The revised standards will be mandatory for financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2027, with reports for the 2027 calendar year generally published in 2028.
For financial years beginning in 2026, companies may choose to:
- Continue using the existing ESRS, including the amendments adopted in 2025.
- Use the existing ESRS with the specified reliefs introduced by the revised standards.
- Apply the revised ESRS in full.
Relevance to chemical companies
For chemical companies subject to the CSRD, the environmental standards include disclosures on pollution and substances of concern and substances of very high concern, where these matters are material to the company. This creates a connection between sustainability reporting and the chemical information that companies already manage for regulatory compliance purposes.
A separate regulation, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1560, establishes a voluntary sustainability reporting standard for companies protected by the value chain cap. It provides a proportionate framework for responding to requests for sustainability information from customers and financial institutions.