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With the substantive amendments to simplify the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive now finalised, it is an opportune moment to consider the parallel developments on revising the European Sustainability Reporting Standards. In this article, we provide a high level update on the current position, including an overview of the opinions issued by the European Supervisory Authorities and the European Central Bank, and outline what businesses can expect in the coming months.
The European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) are a key feature of the EU’s sustainability reporting framework. In scope companies must use the ESRS when preparing and presenting their sustainability statements so as to comply with reporting obligations under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
The ESRS contain 12 separate standards:
ESRS simplification process
In March 2025, as part of its broader omnibus package on sustainability, the European Commission (the Commission) asked EFRAG to prepare technical advice on the revision and simplification of the ESRS. The aim was to reduce the compliance burden on in scope businesses and provide greater clarity around the reporting requirements. Following an extensive consultation process, EFRAG delivered the draft simplified ESRS as technical advice for the Commission’s consideration on 3 December 2025. The simplified framework continues to comprise of twelve standards, however their content has been streamlined to ease reporting obligations. Of the twelve standards, eleven contain disclosure requirements, while the remaining standard describes how businesses should approach the preparation of disclosures in accordance with the ESRS framework.
The draft simplified ESRS seek to balance usability with the need for high‑quality, comparable sustainability information. They introduce a range of simplifications, including:
ECB and ESAs issue their opinions on the draft ESRS
The Accounting Directive requires that the Commission request opinions from the European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) – the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the European Banking Authority (EBA), and the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) on the technical advice prepared by EFRAG with each of the ESAs obliged to provide an opinion. In addition, the Commission is required to consult the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Environment Agency, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), the Committee of European Auditing Oversight Bodies, and the Platform on Sustainable Finance and each body can decide to provide an opinion on EFRAG’s technical advice. To date, in addition to the ESAs, the ECB, FRA and the Platform on Sustainable Finance have provided input.
Focusing on the opinions issued by the ESAs and the ECB in February 2026, all four bodies welcome the overall simplification of the standards and acknowledge EFRAG’s efforts to reduce reporting burdens. However, they share a central concern: some proposed reporting reliefs, particularly those without time limits, could undermine the availability of key sustainability information needed by financial sector users and supervisors.
Across their opinions, the authorities emphasise the importance of maintaining decision‑useful, reliable and sufficiently quantitative sustainability data to support investor protection, risk assessment and financial stability. Each authority also highlights matters specific to its mandate. The table below provides an overview of some of the key issues identified.
The ECB notes that:
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To safeguard investor protection and reporting integrity, ESMA calls for:
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EIOPA emphasises the importance of maintaining data necessary for insurers and pension funds, recommending:
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The EBA expresses the strongest concerns about permanent or open-ended reporting reliefs, warning that they could:
It therefore advocates for time limits on key reliefs and stresses that large companies in scope under the CSRD should be capable of meeting the requirements. |
Overall, the opinions convey a consistent message: simplification is welcome and necessary, but it must not come at the expense of the quality, comparability, and availability of sustainability information that underpins effective risk management, market functioning, supervisory oversight, and the EU’s broader sustainability objectives.
Next steps
The Commission will prepare a delegated act to revise the ESRS, with adoption of the simplified standards expected by mid‑2026. Businesses that will fall in scope under the new CSRD thresholds, as outlined in our recent article, can begin preparing now using EFRAG’s ESRS Knowledge Hub, which offers practical guidance on understanding and implementing the ESRS. The Hub also includes an interactive version of the draft simplified ESRS.
For further information in relation to this topic, please contact Jill Shaw, ESG & Sustainability Lead, Erin Ward Solicitor, or any other member of the ESG and Sustainability Team.
1. EFRAG, ‘EFRAG provides its technical advice on draft simplified ESRS to the European Commission’ (EFRAG. 3 December 2025).
Date published: 31 March 2026
