Sustainability now: EU reporting—What’s settled, what’s evolving

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Feb 24, 2026

Diana Stoltzfus, a PwC sustainability partner who shapes firm positions on regulatory matters, walks through recent EU moves on sustainability reporting. She highlights scope and timing changes for EU and non-EU entities. Short segments cover streamlined disclosures, double materiality flexibility, boundary and emissions clarifications, new reliefs, and practical preparer steps.

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INSIGHT

ESRS Reorganization Consolidates Mandatory Disclosures

FRAG reorganized ESRS structure: mandatory data points are consolidated into each standard's main body and voluntary 'may' datapoints were removed.
Application requirements were moved into main text and tied to specific data points to reduce confusion.

INSIGHT

General Disclosures Streamlined To Reduce Duplication

General disclosure requirements (formerly 'minimum') were streamlined and moved to cross‑cutting standards, reducing duplication with topical standards.
The focus is now on material information users actually need about policies, actions, targets, and metrics.

INSIGHT

Double Materiality Process Gains Flexibility

Double materiality assessment becomes more flexible: entities can leverage existing risk, due diligence, and strategy processes and apply top‑down or bottom‑up approaches.
Companies needn't assess every IRO across all time horizons if conclusions are clear.

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On February 24, the Council of the European Union officially adopted the ‘Omnibus’ directive. Key aspects of the ‘Omnibus’ directive include changes to the scope of entities subject to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) as well as guidance on simplified European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), sector guidance, assurance standards, and value chain reporting.

This approval and other recent milestones in the EU legislative process and standard setting efforts are shaping the next phase of sustainability reporting. In this episode, we provide an update on the Omnibus package and discuss the latest developments in the proposed revisions to the ESRS. We explore what is expected to be finalized soon, where there is still opportunity for change, and the key implications for companies preparing for upcoming reporting requirements.

In this episode, we discuss:

2:48 – Updated scope and timing requirements for EU and non-EU entities
11:14 – Streamlined general disclosure requirements and cross-cutting changes
14:31 – Changes to double materiality and flexibility in the assessment process
17:34 – Clarifications on mitigation, remediation, and assessing impacts
22:54 – Reporting boundary updates, including the impact of leased assets and GHG emissions
27:51 – New reliefs: reasonable and supportable information, acquisitions and disposals, and metric flexibility
36:07 – What’s next in the European Commission process and how companies can prepare now

Looking for more on sustainability reporting?

Read PwC’s Sustainability reporting guide
Check out other episodes in our sustainability reporting podcast series

About our guest

Diana Stoltzfus is a sustainability partner in the Professional Practice Group within the National Office. Diana helps to shape our firm’s perspective on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings, and policy development and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Diana was previously the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) of the Professional Practice Group in the OCA at the SEC. She focused on providing guidance related to auditing, independence, and internal controls.

About our host

Heather Horn is the PwC National Office Sustainability and Thought Leader, responsible for developing our communications strategy and conveying firm positions on accounting, financial reporting, and sustainability matters. In addition, she is part of PwC’s global sustainability leadership team, developing interpretive guidance and consulting with companies as they transition from voluntary to mandatory sustainability reporting. She is also the engaging host of PwC’s accounting and reporting weekly podcast and quarterly webcast series.

Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.com.

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