CSRD Audit Timelines: Key Deadlines to Know

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) introduces mandatory sustainability reporting for thousands of companies operating in the EU, replacing the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD) since January 2023. Compliance is phased, with deadlines depending on company size, location, and turnover. Key highlights include:

• NFRD entities (large listed companies, banks, insurers): First reports due in 2025, covering 2024 data.

• Large companies meeting specific criteria: Reporting begins in 2028, covering 2027 data.

• Listed SMEs: Deadlines start in 2029, with optional deferral by two years.

• Non-EU companies with €150M+ EU turnover: Reporting begins in 2029, covering 2028 data.

The directive mandates external audits, requiring detailed data collection and robust internal controls. Early preparation is critical to avoid penalties, ensure compliance, and align with the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS).

For UK companies, additional complexities arise from balancing CSRD with domestic reporting obligations. Tools like neoeco can streamline data management, ensuring audit readiness and compliance.

Key takeaway: Start preparing now to meet CSRD deadlines, manage ESG data effectively, and avoid costly non-compliance risks.

Quick guide to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), requirements & timeline

CSRD Audit Deadlines by Company Type

The CSRD's phased rollout comes with specific timelines tailored to company size, listing status, and prior reporting obligations. Knowing your category is crucial to ensure compliance and avoid penalties.

Deadlines for Existing NFRD Entities

Companies already subject to the Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD) are at the forefront of CSRD deadlines. These include large listed companies, banks, and insurance firms, which must submit their first CSRD-compliant sustainability reports in 2025, covering data from the 2024 financial year. The earlier deadline reflects the European Commission's assumption that these organisations already have experience with sustainability reporting. UK-based entities need to act swiftly to align with the enhanced audit requirements.

Deadlines for Large Companies and SMEs

For large EU companies, compliance depends on meeting at least two of these criteria:

• Over 250 employees

• Net turnover exceeding €40 million (approximately £34 million)

• Total assets exceeding €20 million (approximately £17 million)

Initially scheduled to report in 2026 (for the 2025 financial year), these companies now have until 2028 to report on data from the 2027 financial year. This extension comes from the European Commission's Omnibus proposal, which delayed the timelines for companies in waves 2 and 3 by two years.

Listed SMEs, originally set to begin reporting in 2027, can defer compliance by up to two years, pushing their first reporting deadline to 2029. This flexibility acknowledges the challenges smaller companies face in establishing comprehensive sustainability reporting systems.

Non-EU companies generating at least €150 million (approximately £126 million) in EU turnover have the longest timeline, with reporting requirements starting in 2029 based on data from the 2028 financial year.

The Omnibus proposal also introduces transitional periods, effective by 31st December 2025, to assist companies in adapting to these changes.

For streamlined compliance, consider tools like neoeco (https://neo.eco) to integrate financial and sustainability data, ensuring your reporting is audit-ready.

CSRD Audit Preparation Checklist

Getting ready for CSRD audits requires early and organised planning. With over 50,000 companies involved and 1,144 data points to address, the process is no small feat. The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) estimates that annual auditing costs for limited assurance alone range from 0.013% to 0.026% of revenue. This makes careful preparation essential to avoid unnecessary delays and compliance risks.

Data Collection and Materiality Assessment

Start collecting data as soon as possible to identify gaps and fine-tune your sustainability approach. Gathering accurate and complete information from all business units takes time, and many organisations underestimate this effort.

An essential first step is conducting a double materiality assessment. For instance, a Belgian company reported that this process took several months and involved consulting a wide range of stakeholders.

Your data must meet strict standards. It needs to be submitted in .XBRL format and tagged using the ESRS XBRL taxonomy, which includes over 1,100 data points.

To avoid data accessibility problems later, set clear data ownership policies from the beginning. A good example is H+H International, a building materials company, which mapped each ESRS data point to its source early on.

Tools like neoeco can help streamline this process. These platforms integrate financial and sustainability data, embedding over 90 ESG impact factors into financial transactions for audit-ready reporting. Using such solutions ensures double-entry principles are applied, enhancing data accuracy.

Once your data is collected and verified, focus on building strong internal controls.

Setting Up Internal Controls and Audit Processes

Strong internal controls and data governance are critical for both accurate reporting and obtaining assurance. From the first CSRD report, companies must undergo limited assurance auditing by an approved third party. Without robust internal processes, this can be a challenge.

Alarmingly, 29% of companies report being unprepared for ESG data audits. To close this gap, set up a central data hub to manage data effectively, and conduct internal and interim audits to identify issues before external auditors step in.

Engaging with an assurance provider early can help you avoid missing data points or documentation. For listed companies starting in 2025, EFRAG estimates that limited assurance costs in the first year will range from £91,000 to £136,000 (€108,000–€162,000), while reasonable assurance costs could reach £207,000 to £331,000 (€246,000–€394,000).

Different EU countries have implemented various assurance frameworks. For example:

• Ireland has its own standards and auditor approval processes.

• Denmark requires auditors to pass specific tests and register with the Danish Business Authorities.

• Croatia imposes fines ranging from £2,230 to £89,200 (€2,650–€106,000) for unaccredited or inaccurate auditing services.

Ensure you assign sustainability oversight roles within your C-suite and board. Link CSRD metrics to executive performance objectives and document your governance structure in line with ESRS G1 requirements. Also, create workflows for tracking evidence and managing versions to maintain clear audit trails for every data point.

Drafting and Reviewing CSRD Reports

With reliable data and strong controls in place, the next step is drafting and reviewing your CSRD report. The report must adhere to the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) to ensure consistency across industries and audit readiness.

Build a team with expertise in ESG reporting to handle this complex task. Given the current talent shortages in this area, it’s wise to start assembling your team early.

Take inspiration from industry leaders. In 2024, Ørsted produced a visually engaging sustainability report that clearly outlined its double materiality assessments and future goals. Similarly, Scan Global Logistics excelled in stakeholder engagement, breaking down individual reporting obligations (IROs) into sub-topics and consulting stakeholders to address their specific concerns.

Adopt digital, XBRL-tagged reporting formats during the drafting phase. These machine-readable reports require technical expertise but ensure compliance with ESRS standards.

Set up structured review cycles with clearly defined roles and responsibilities. Each draft should undergo technical reviews to check for ESRS compliance, data accuracy, and relevance to stakeholders. The board should provide final approval, including formal sign-off on the double materiality assessment and governance disclosures required under ESRS G1.

Finally, platforms like neoeco can simplify Scope 3 emissions management by integrating directly with financial systems, reducing the manual workload during report compilation and review phases.

How to Schedule CSRD Audits

Planning CSRD audits effectively means aligning sustainability reporting with financial reporting timelines. Early preparation not only ensures auditor availability but also helps meet compliance deadlines. By building on early data collection strategies, you can create a well-structured audit schedule.

Combining Financial and Sustainability Audit Calendars

The best way to streamline the process is by syncing carbon accounting with financial reporting cycles. Since sustainability data must be included in annual management reports, aligning sustainability report deadlines with financial reporting timelines makes sense. To achieve this, set earlier deadlines for collecting carbon data and testing internal controls. Collaborating with your financial auditor early on can also help assess their capacity for verifying additional data, reducing the risk of delays.

This integrated calendar simplifies audit procedures and enhances efficiency. Auditors can use their knowledge of your operations to review sustainability data more effectively, making the overall audit process smoother.

Handling Delays and Regulatory Changes

With regulations constantly evolving, flexibility is essential when planning audit schedules. For instance, in July 2025, the European Commission introduced a "quick-fix" delegated act to adjust the first set of European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). This adjustment provides extra flexibility for wave one companies by ensuring that reporting requirements for financial years 2025 and 2026 remain consistent with those for 2024.

To stay on track, organisations should review their frameworks and processes regularly - ideally every quarter. This proactive approach helps them adapt to regulatory updates without disrupting audit timelines. Prioritising critical data and having contingency plans in place ensures accurate disclosures and keeps schedules intact.

Using Platforms Like neoeco for Audit Readiness

Technology platforms can play a crucial role in overcoming these challenges. For example, at Kreston Reeves, neoeco increased emissions data granularity by 10x, cut manual data collection time by 60%, and improved assurance readiness and data gap identification by 80%. The platform offers 90% faster data validation and 99% automatic transaction matching to global ESG and LCA databases.

Integrating CSRD software with existing systems reduces disruptions and ensures a smooth data flow, allowing auditors to examine financial and sustainability datasets simultaneously. A key benefit of these integrated platforms is their ability to maintain automatic audit trails, linking sustainability metrics directly to financial transactions without requiring extra manual work.

To ensure credible and audit-ready reporting, companies should establish strong data governance practices. Automation, data analytics, and AI can significantly improve the efficiency and accuracy of CSRD reporting. These tools not only simplify the process but also provide a robust technological base for confident audit scheduling, ensuring a cohesive approach to CSRD compliance and audit readiness.

Staying Ahead of CSRD Compliance

Navigating the CSRD audit timelines calls for a forward-thinking approach that transforms compliance from a regulatory hurdle into a strategic advantage. Companies that act early and establish strong systems will be in a much better position when the auditors come knocking. This early preparation sets the stage for effective audit scheduling and compliance checks.

Start by identifying any gaps and aligning your policies and controls with the ESRS framework. Clear governance structures are essential, ensuring every department knows its role in the compliance process.

Next, focus on creating systems that can scale. These should be capable of collecting, tracking, and updating ESG metrics throughout your value chain. Digital tools play a key role here, helping to centralise data collection while introducing validation protocols to address challenges like fragmented data or siloed ownership. As Mirjam van der Velde, Strategic Consultant at Haskoning.com, explains:

"The biggest challenge for CSRD compliance is not just collecting data but also managing it effectively across the entire value chain, ensuring it's accurate, auditable, and future-proof."

Platforms such as neoeco can assist by linking ESG metrics to financial transactions, providing clear audit trails and breaking down data silos.

Regularly reviewing your procedures is another crucial step. This allows for quick adjustments to regulatory updates, such as the European Commission's February 2025 Omnibus Proposal. If approved, this proposal could exempt nearly 80% of the companies initially affected by the CSRD requirements [One Click LCA, 2025]. Staying flexible ensures your audit schedules remain on track.

FAQs

How can UK companies align CSRD compliance with their domestic reporting requirements?

UK businesses can navigate the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) alongside domestic reporting requirements by aligning their sustainability and financial reporting efforts. The CSRD mandates detailed ESG disclosures that adhere to EU standards, which often overlap with UK frameworks such as SECR and TCFD.

To make compliance more manageable, companies should aim to unify their data collection and reporting processes. Tools like neoeco can play a key role by merging sustainability and financial data, ensuring it meets both CSRD and UK-specific standards. Using platforms that automate ESG reporting and offer real-time insights can save time, reduce duplication, and maintain accuracy, all while ensuring readiness for audits.

What challenges do SMEs face in setting up effective sustainability reporting systems, and how can they address them?

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) often face a range of hurdles when setting up sustainability reporting systems. These challenges typically include tight budgets, lack of specialised knowledge, dealing with complicated regulations, and handling supply chain data. It’s easy to see why compliance and reporting can feel like a daunting task.

To tackle these challenges, SMEs can turn to practical strategies. For instance, adopting simplified reporting frameworks, providing staff with targeted training, and using automation tools can make a big difference. Platforms like neoeco, which combine financial and sustainability data, are particularly helpful. They simplify reporting, cut down on manual work, and ensure businesses meet standards like CSRD and ISSB. By integrating such tools, SMEs can create streamlined, audit-ready systems without stretching their resources too thin.

How can companies prepare their data for CSRD audits, particularly regarding format and internal controls?

To get ready for CSRD audits, companies need to put robust internal controls in place. These controls help ensure data accuracy, keep track of sources, and manage version history effectively. Additionally, preparing data in the European Single Electronic Format (ESEF) is a crucial step, as it’s a core compliance requirement.

It’s also important for businesses to pinpoint and address any gaps or weak points in their ESG reporting processes. Using automated platforms like neoeco can make the entire process smoother. These tools assist with data collection, validation, and aligning with standards such as CSRD, ISSB, and GRI, enabling organisations to produce audit-ready ESG disclosures with greater ease.

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• CSRD Audit: Aligning Materiality with Financial Risk