The EU is slamming the breaks on climate change. To meet its climate targets, it’s putting pressure on businesses of all shapes and sizes to measure, manage, reduce, and offset their emissions. This pressure has materialised as regulation, known as the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).

The first EU CSRD reports are due this year, but what’s the actual timeline?

What is the EU CSRD? 

The EU CSRD is the most advanced sustainability reporting directive to date. Over 50,000 companies fall under its scope. Those affected must report on how they impact all areas of ESG (Environment, Social, and Governance), and how evolving ESG impacts them. 

Because of the EU’s net zero goals, all companies must report on scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. If scope 3 emissions are deemed immaterial, they must explain why. There’s nowhere to hide, and time is running out.

Timeline for EU CSRD

EU CSRD implementation begins this year—2025. Companies will be required to start reporting in stages. Below is a helpful timeline outlining which companies must begin reporting and from when.

• 2025: Reports based on 2024 data are due from EU organisations in the EU-regulated market with +500 employees
• 2026: Reports based on 2025 data are due from large EU-based undertakings. These are listed and non-listed companies meeting two or more of the following criteria:
• € 25M+ total assets
• € 50M+ net turnover
• 250+ employees
• 2027: Reports based on 2026 data are due from SMEs listed on EU-regulated markets
• 2029: Reports based on 2028 data are due from Non-EU parent companies, with annual EU revenues of € 150M+ in the past 2 years, and also own any of these:
• A large EU-based undertaking
• An EU-based branch with securities listed on an EU-regulated market exchange
• An EU office with € 40M+ net turnover

Supporting your customers through climate regulation

Unlike its regulatory predecessors, the EU CSRD will require companies of all shapes and sizes to report on their value chain emissions. This is expensive, time-consuming, and requires climate expertise. In the US private sector companies spend an average of USD 237,000 on emission reports annually. 

Many of these companies do not have the resources to aid compliance, so they’re turning to their partners for help. Partners are sitting on critical data sources, like shipment, spending, and supplier data — all of which can be used to calculate emissions.

Forward-thinking companies, like Payhawk, V.Alexander, and Simfoni, are partnering with Lune to enrich their platforms with emission reporting. By supporting their customers through climate compliance they’re winning new deals, differentiating from competitors, and increasing customer stickiness while doing right by the planet.

Case study: 200+ Payhawk clients adopt new emission reporting feature in 6 months 

Failure to comply with regulations is bad for any business. For many, the time to get it right is running out. To discover how you can support your customers through climate regulation, request a demo today.