EU’s ‘stop-the-clock' move now in effect
An EU measure that will postpone the application dates for a directive on sustainability-reporting requirements has come into effect in Ireland.
The move was announced by the European Commission in February as part of a wider ‘omnibus’ package of changes aimed at simplifying EU rules and boosting competitiveness.
Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment Peter Burke has now signed a statutory instrument to give legal effect in Ireland to .
The regulations will ensure that the original (CSRD) is delayed for two years for larger companies, while the European Commission’s omnibus proposal is being negotiated and agreed.
Large companies
The commission proposals will remove around 80% of companies from the scope of CSRD, focusing the sustainability-reporting obligations on the largest companies.
For large companies, who are the main category currently within scope of CSRD, the omnibus proposal would restrict the application of the requirements to only those companies with 1,000 employees, compared with 250 under the current law.
The Irish regulations will also postpone by two years the reporting requirements for companies currently in the scope of the original CSRD, and which would have been required to report for the first time in 2026 or 2027.
Minister Burke said that the change would give Irish companies “the certainty that they need”, adding that he recognised that the administrative burden imposed by the original CSRD was “excessive”.