EFRAG Releases Simplified Sustainability Reporting Standards in Major ESRS Overhaul

Key Takeaways

• Heavy Lift, Lightened: EFRAG’s revised ESRS eliminate all voluntary disclosures and cut total datapoints by 68%.
• DMA Reworked: Companies are now encouraged to focus on the most evident topics and apply proportionate levels of evidence when conducting double materiality assessments.
• Global Alignment: New interoperability measures bring ESRS closer to IFRS standards, including relief mechanisms and terminology harmonization.
• Consultation Window Open: Public comments on the 12 revised Exposure Drafts are welcome until September 29, 2025.
• Final Standards Due: The final simplified ESRS are expected to be submitted to the European Commission by November 2025.

Deep Dive

In July 2025, the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) released a dramatically slimmed-down version of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), part of a broader rethink of how the EU balances transparency with practicality. At the heart of the update is fewer datapoints, more usability, and a clearer nod to the real-world pressures companies are facing.

EFRAG says the new drafts cut total datapoints by 68%, even more than the 66% initially projected, and remove all voluntary disclosures. The move is part of the European Commission’s wider Omnibus I initiative to reduce regulatory burden, touching not just the CSRD but also heavyweight frameworks like the CSDDD, Taxonomy Regulation, and CBAM.

“This is about making ESRS a more workable reality,” said EFRAG Sustainability Reporting Board Chair Patrick de Cambourg. “Sustainability reporting should support, not hinder, resilience, investment, and long-term value creation.”

Goodbye Overload, Hello Focus

From the start, the original ESRS were a bold and necessary leap forward, but they weren’t exactly user-friendly. With hundreds of required datapoints and a complex double materiality assessment (DMA), even well-prepared companies were left scrambling.

EFRAG took that criticism seriously. The revised standards focus on what matters most and aim to make implementation less of a grind. Gone are the sprawling checklists and ambiguous expectations. In their place: sharper language, clearer thresholds, and a more proportionate approach to evidence gathering.

Double materiality, in particular, gets a reality check. The concept (reporting both how sustainability affects your company and how your company affects the world) remains intact. But EFRAG now urges companies to focus on the obvious, keep the evidence reasonable, and stop treating the DMA like an academic thesis.

Streamlining Without Selling Out

Of course, any simplification risks being seen as a step back. But EFRAG insists this isn’t about lowering the bar. Rather, it’s about recalibrating the tools so more companies can realistically meet the standard without compromising the EU’s green ambitions.

The new drafts also align more closely with the IFRS Foundation’s sustainability standards, adopting the same wording where possible and introducing shared relief mechanisms, like cost-based exemptions, to ease reporting strain. That’s not just good for EU companies; it also helps multinationals navigate the increasingly tangled web of global ESG standards.

EFRAG says the new ESRS are more than 55% shorter in length and better connected with broader corporate reporting. Think less bloat, more integration.

Your Turn to Weigh In

EFRAG has launched a 60-day consultation to gather public feedback on the drafts. Twelve new Exposure Drafts are now available, each one backed by a log of amendments and a marked-up glossary. The consultation is open until September 29, 2025.

The final version of the simplified ESRS is expected by end of November, following an extension granted by the European Commission.

For companies still bracing for their first round of CSRD reporting, this revision could be a welcome reprieve. For those already reporting, it’s a chance to recalibrate.

And for the EU? It’s a reminder that good regulation doesn’t have to be complicated regulation.

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