Permitted Reporting Exemptions Under CSRD
Updated CSRD guidance reduces scope by 80% and postpones reporting deadlines to FY2028. Introduces voluntary SME standards and simplified assurance rules.
CSRD Permitted Reporting Exemptions
Last Updated: May 2025
The EU’s 2025 Omnibus Simplification Package introduced significant updates to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), reducing compliance burdens and redefining who must report.
Key changes include:
- 📉 80% fewer companies in scope (threshold raised to 1,000+ employees)
- 📅 Reporting deferred for many until FY2028
- 🛡️ Voluntary SME standard (VSME) to limit trickle-down disclosure demands
- 🔄 Taxonomy reporting now optional for companies with <€450M turnover
- 🗂️ Sector-specific standards removed
- 🔍 Only limited assurance required—no upgrade to reasonable
🧾 Updated Exemptions Breakdown
1. Scope Reduction
Only companies with more than 1,000 employees and either €50M+ turnover or €25M+ in assets are now required to report.
2. Reporting Deferral (Wave 2 & 3)
Newly in-scope companies and listed SMEs begin reporting in FY2028.
3. VSME Voluntary Standard
SMEs outside CSRD scope can adopt a simplified voluntary standard that shields them from excessive data requests from CSRD-reporting companies.
4. Subsidiary Exemption
A subsidiary is exempt if its parent publishes a CSRD-compliant, consolidated report and references the exemption.
5. Confidentiality
Sensitive info may be withheld with justification—except for material environmental/social impacts.
6. Voluntary Taxonomy Reporting
Optional for companies with <€450M turnover. Partial disclosures are allowed to reflect transition efforts.
7. No Sector-Specific Standards
All companies use general ESRS. Sector-specific standards will no longer be developed.
8. Simplified Assurance
Only limited assurance applies. The proposal to allow reasonable assurance was removed.
9. First-Time Reporters
May use a phased implementation approach in the first year.