At the end of February 2025, the European Union proposed a simplification of major EU sustainability regulations – labelled the “omnibus” package.
Proposed changes under the package include:
Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)
- Removal of approximately 80% of companies from the scope of CSRD
- Postpone reporting requirements of CSRD by two years for those that have not yet reported but remain in scope (until 2028)
EU Taxonomy
- Limit reporting to only companies with at least 1,000 employees, in line with CSRD and CSDDD, removing 80% of companies within scope
Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD)
- Simplify CSRDDD reporting requirements. For example, focusing due diligence requirements on direct business partners, and reducing the frequency of required assessments from annual to 5 years, with ad hoc assessments where necessary
- Reduce trickle-down effect for SMEs by limiting focus to direct business partners instead of wider supply chain
- Increase the harmonisation of due diligence requirements across the EU member states
- Postpone the application of CSRDDD by one year to 26 July 2028
Carbon Boarder Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)
- Exempt smaller importers from CBAM obligations by introducing a new annual threshold of 50 tonnes per importer
- Simplify the rules for companies that remain in CBAM scope
The legislative proposals will now be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council for their consideration and adoption.
The Commission has suggested that the omnibus package be treated as a priority, and it is estimated a draft text may be published at the end of 2025.
