EFRAG has released revised drafts of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), launching a 60-day public consultation to simplify the sustainability reporting framework required under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
The move follows a formal request from the European Commission earlier this year, calling on EFRAG to reduce the complexity of standards adopted in 2023 without compromising their strategic alignment with the European Green Deal.
The updated Exposure Drafts represent a significant shift in the EU’s sustainability reporting landscape. Based on feedback from more than 800 respondents—including companies already under CSRD scope and those preparing to comply—EFRAG implemented both high-level and detailed reviews of all datapoints to streamline reporting obligations. This led to the removal of all voluntary disclosures, simplification of double materiality assessments, elimination of redundancy across standards, and clearer structuring and language throughout the framework.
As a result, mandatory datapoints (those to be reported if material) have been reduced by 57%, and the total number of disclosures—mandatory and voluntary—has dropped by 68%. The overall length of the ESRS has also been cut by more than 55%, aiming to make the system more accessible for firms new to sustainability reporting under the CSRD, particularly those reporting from the 2025 financial year onwards.
EFRAG has also introduced new relief mechanisms, including cost and effort exemptions, to support companies facing practical implementation challenges. The consultation, which opened on 31 July and closes on 29 September 2025, invites feedback from a broad range of stakeholders including businesses, investors, civil society, auditors and regulators.
To support wider engagement, EFRAG will organise outreach events in September and October ahead of delivering its final technical advice to the European Commission by 30 November 2025. In parallel, EFRAG is conducting a cost-benefit analysis and targeted field tests, both of which are open for stakeholder participation.
EFRAG sustainability reporting board chair Patrick de Cambourg said, “EFRAG is fully aligned with the strategic vision set out by the European Commission. These revisions aim to deliver what Europe needs at this moment: a more focused, more usable sustainability reporting system that remains ambitious but does not overburden companies. Capitalising on effective experience, this is about making ESRS a more workable reality—so that sustainability reporting supports, rather than hinders, resilience, investment, and long-term value creation.”
EFRAG sustainability reporting technical expert group chair Chiara Del Prete said, “The Exposure Drafts that we put in consultation today are the result of an intense period of input gathering and internal discussions. Thanks to the extensive dialogue we have had over the past few months with all the interested stakeholders, we could base the simplification of the ESRS on the lessons learnt in their application. We focused our effort in the short timeframe available on the most pressing issues. We now look forward to continuing this dialogue and receiving the comments of our stakeholders on what we propose.”
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