Under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, roughly 50,000 companies operating in the EU — including many mid-market firms that never fell under prior rules — will need to publish audited sustainability data starting with the 2026 fiscal year.
The requirement isn't a single report. It's a structured disclosure across environmental, social, and governance topics, built to the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). For most operations teams, the environmental section — and specifically Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions — is where the real data-collection work happens.
Who actually has to comply
Large EU companies report first, but the second wave — companies with 250+ employees or €50M+ turnover — reports on fiscal year 2026, with filings due in 2027. If you sell into the EU or have EU subsidiaries above these thresholds, this applies to you even if your headquarters sits outside Europe.
"The companies that treat CSRD as a data infrastructure problem — not a once-a-year report — are the ones passing audits on the first submission."
What data you'll actually need
Utility bills and fuel receipts cover Scope 1 and 2. Scope 3 is the harder category — it requires emissions data from your supply chain, business travel, and often your customers' use of your product. Most teams underestimate how long supplier data collection takes; start that outreach at least two quarters before your filing deadline.
Ecolyra customers preparing for CSRD typically connect their utility and fleet accounts first, then use our supplier request workflow to close the Scope 3 gap — cutting what used to be a multi-quarter spreadsheet exercise down to a few weeks of follow-up.