Europe Calls for Fair and Open Accounting Changes to Sustainability Reporting Rules

In April 2025, Accountancy Europe shared their thoughts on a new proposal from the European Commission called the Omnibus Proposal. This proposal plans to change how companies in the EU report on sustainability, using rules known as ESRS (European Sustainability Reporting Standards).

Why Did They Share Their Opinion?

Accountancy Europe helped create the first version of the ESRS, but they noticed a few problems:

• Too many complicated data requests.

• Some important terms were unclear.

• The rules were made in a rush, with little time for feedback.

• 
  

So now, as the European Commission wants to simplify these rules, Accountancy Europe is asking for a clear, fair, and public process to make these changes.

What Process Do They Want?

1. Stick to Key Steps

They want to make sure some important steps are always included, such as:

• Public consultation: Let people and companies give their opinions.

• Testing in real life: Try the new rules with real companies to see what works.

2. Be Fast But Realistic

EFRAG (the group responsible for updating the rules) has only 7 months to make suggestions. Accountancy Europe suggests creating a special team to gather feedback from companies already using the ESRS.

3. Match the Process to the Type of Change

• Small fixes (like clearing up confusing parts) can go through faster.

• Big changes (like adding new rules) should have more time for feedback and testing.

Some changes might even be better to do later, after companies have used the first version for a while.

What Are the Planned Changes?

The Omnibus Proposal wants to make the ESRS simpler, shorter, and easier to understand.

EFRAG must send its final recommendations by October 31, 2025.

Europe supports this and agrees with changes like:

• Reducing the number of mandatory questions companies must answer.

• Removing optional sections that confuse users.

• Moving extra examples and details to a separate document instead of keeping everything in the legal rules.

• Making all unclear points easier to understand and aligning with other EU and global rules.

What’s the Timeline?

Here’s the plan:

Time Period	What Will Happen
April – Mid May 2025	Set goals and collect ideas
Mid May – July 2025	Write the first draft of updated rules
August – September 2025	Get feedback from the public
October 2025	Send final version to the European Commission

Why This Matters

The ESRS rules are part of a bigger law called the CSRD. These rules tell companies what they must report about their environmental and social impacts.

The first version was released very quickly and felt too heavy for many companies.

Now, with the Omnibus Proposal, there's a chance to fix that.

Accountancy Europe is saying: “Let’s do it right this time. Let’s take input from the people using the rules, test what works, and make sure the process is open to everyone.”