EU Launches Infringement Process against Greece, 16 Other States for Failing to Implement CSRD

The European Commission announced that it has issued formal letters to 17 EU member states, including Greece, initiating infringement procedures with the states over their failure to communicate that they have fully transposed the new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) into their national laws.

In addition to Greece, the European Commission sent formal notices to Belgium, Czechia, Germany, Estonia, Spain, Cyprus, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, and Finland for failing to notify the transposition of national measures related to the Accounting Directive, the Transparency Directive, and the Audit Directive, as amended by the CSRD.

The CSRD which introduces new rules on sustainability reporting requires large companies and listed companies (excluding micro-undertakings) to disclose information on the social and environmental risks they face, as well as how their activities impact people and the environment.

This helps investors and other stakeholders to evaluate the sustainability performance of companies. The new sustainability reporting rules apply to financial years beginning on or after Jan. 1 2024.

In the absence of transposition of these new rules it will not be possible to achieve the necessary level of harmonization of sustainability reporting in the EU and investors will not be in a position to take into account the sustainability performance of companies when making investment decisions.

The 17 Member States concerned have not yet communicated full transposition into national law of the provisions of the CSRD Directive, with the transposition deadline having expired on July 6 of this year.

The Member States in question now have two months to respond and complete their transposition. In the absence of a satisfactory response, the Commission may decide to issue a reasoned opinion.