CSRD
Driving transparency and accountability in sustainability
Empowering businesses to meet evolving ESG reporting requirements
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is a key regulation transforming the sustainability reporting landscape. It requires businesses to disclose their environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance, supporting transparency and accountability while fostering sustainable practices.
LRQA combines decades of expertise, data-driven insights and global presence to help organisations meet the demands of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
Our end-to-end approach supports every stage of your CSRD journey—from understanding new requirements to delivering actionable insights and verified reporting, to closing your performance gaps. Our approach doesn’t only address compliance but also enhances strategic resilience and reputational value, enabling businesses to unlock sustainable growth.
Partner with us to ensure transparency, build robust business models and management systems, all in line with increasing physical and regulatory sustainability risks.
What is CSRD?
The CSRD is a transformative EU regulation designed to standardise and enhance Corporate sustainability reporting, aiming to align sustainability information with the same status as financial data. It mandates disclosures on ESG impacts, risks, and opportunities, including a 1.5° climate strategy and aspects of human rights and environmental due diligence, to ensure transparency, accountability, and alignment with EU climate goals.
The CSRD is critical for providing stakeholders with reliable ESG data to guide decisions, driving sustainable practices within businesses and ensuring compliance and performance with EU legal frameworks for climate and social responsibility.
The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) works in tandem with the CSRD by linking actionable due diligence practices to transparent ESG reporting, ensuring companies take responsibility for their impacts while providing stakeholders with verified information. This dual approach strengthens compliance, builds trust and drives long-term value creation.
The business impact of CSRD: what you need to know
The CSRD fundamentally reshapes how companies approach sustainability reporting, with significant implications:
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- Increased reporting requirements: Companies must provide detailed, standardised ESG disclosures, including a Double Materiality Assessment to identify material topics (e.g., those related to environment, human rights, employee well-being, anti‐corruption, anti‐bribery, governance, etc.) and to define relevant disclosure requirements and data points.
- Enhanced stakeholder transparency: Clear reporting builds trust with investors, consumers and regulators.
- Operational changes: Organisations will need to align processes, data collection and reporting practices with European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS).
- Compliance and risk management: Meeting CSRD standards requires integrating sustainability issues into standard enterprise risk management, ensuring they are mitigated in alignment with the company’s strategy and risk appetite.
- Competitive advantage: Proactive compliance positions businesses as sustainable leaders, attracting investment and consumer loyalty.
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Who is impacted and when?
The CSRD was adopted in the European Union to enhance transparency in sustainability reporting. The directive applies to companies meeting specific criteria, with phased implementation based on size and turnover ensuring a gradual transition to compliance:
Penalties will differ based on individual member state transpositions. For example, France has been the first to transpose the directive into law, introducing fines of up to €75,000 and the potential of five years imprisonment for directive infringements. In Germany, violations of the CSRD, which are anchored in the German Commercial Code (HGB), can lead to fines of up to €10 million, up to three years imprisonment.
Key proposed changes under the Omnibus proposal
The Omnibus proposal introduces adjustments to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), aiming to streamline compliance while maintaining due diligence obligations. See below for a highlight of the proposed changes, including shifts in scope, compliance timelines and risk management expectations.
Change in scope
Only large companies (1,000+ employees and €50M turnover or €25M assets) or non-EU groups with €450M EU turnover.
Postponed reporting
Companies not yet reporting under CSRD now have two more years to meet the requirements.
ESRS revision
Refocused on quantitative data, aligned with global standards, and removed sector-specific requirements to simplify compliance.
Assurance changes
Limited assurance remains beyond 2028—no shift to reasonable assurance as previously planned.
Amid the ongoing developments concerning the EU Omnibus legislation and an evolving regulatory landscape, our experts provide clarity and guidance, supporting your business in meeting compliance obligations, building resilience and preparing for future changes.
View our Omnibus Proposals essential summary
How we can help
We provide a full suite of solutions to support you with every aspect of ESG due diligence.
Are you ready for CSRD?
LRQA’s Pre-verification Services help you assess readiness, identify gaps and build robust reporting processes to ensure compliance. This can help your organisation avoid penalties and prepare for compliance with CSRD requirements.
CSRD Pre-verification
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Qual è lo scopo della Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)?
La CSRD mira a migliorare la rendicontazione della sostenibilità, imponendo alle aziende di comunicare gli impatti, i rischi e le opportunità ambientali, sociali e di governance (ESG) in linea con gli standard globali e con lo stesso rigore dei dati finanziari.
Chi è tenuto a rispettare la CSRD?
La direttiva si applica alle grandi società dell'UE, alle PMI quotate in borsa e alle società non UE con operazioni sostanziali nell'UE, sulla base di un calendario di attuazione graduale.
Cos'è l'ESRS e perché è importante per la conformità al CSRD?
Gli ESRS (European Sustainability Reporting Standards) sono linee guida obbligatorie ai sensi della CSRD. Con oltre 1.000 dati e requisiti di divulgazione definiti, gli ESRS standardizzano le modalità di rendicontazione degli impatti ESG da parte delle aziende, garantendo coerenza, trasparenza e comparabilità tra i vari settori. La conformità agli ESRS è fondamentale per soddisfare i requisiti della CSRD e dimostrare la propria responsabilità nei confronti degli stakeholder.
Quali sono i principali requisiti di rendicontazione del CSRD?
Le imprese devono redigere i rapporti utilizzando gli standard europei di rendicontazione della sostenibilità (ESRS), concentrandosi su argomenti ESG rilevanti, sulla gestione dei rischi e sul loro allineamento con gli obiettivi di sostenibilità dell'UE.
Come può LRQA supportare la conformità alla CSRD?
LRQA offre servizi come analisi delle lacune, valutazioni di preparazione, assicurazione dei report e consulenza personalizzata per garantire una conformità fluida ed efficace.
In cosa differiscono la CSRD e la CSDDD e come sono collegate?
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CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive): si concentra sul reporting ESG obbligatorio, richiedendo alle aziende di divulgare impatti, rischi e opportunità legati alla sostenibilità, inclusa una strategia climatica per l’obiettivo di 1,5°. Include anche aspetti di due diligence sui diritti umani e sull’ambiente, per allineare il reporting agli obiettivi di sostenibilità più ampi.
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CSDDD (Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive): si concentra sull’identificazione, mitigazione e gestione degli impatti negativi sui diritti umani e sull’ambiente all'interno delle catene del valore.
Le due direttive si completano a vicenda collegando le pratiche di due diligence (CSDDD) con un reporting trasparente sulla sostenibilità (CSRD).