Compliance and policy work

The European Green Deal is the EU's overarching strategy for the climate transition, with the aim of making Europe climate neutral by 2050. The strategy is the foundation for a range of directives and regulations that affect companies in all sectors, including CSRD, the EU Taxonomy, CSDDD, EUDR and EmpCo.

The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive requires large companies to identify and manage adverse impacts on human rights and the environment throughout their value chain. The directive applies to EU companies with more than 5,000 employees and a turnover of more than €1.5 billion. EU member states must have transposed the directive into national law by 26 July 2028, and companies must comply with the requirements from 26 July 2029.

The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) requires companies to ensure that products sold on the EU market have not contributed to deforestation after December 2020. The seven commodities covered are cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soy and wood, as well as some fifty products made from these commodities. Large and medium-sized companies must apply the requirements from 30 December 2026.

Read more in our article on EUDR →

The Empowering Consumers Directive (EmpCo) tightens the requirements for how environmental claims are communicated to consumers. Vague or generic claims such as "climate neutral", "green" or "environmentally friendly" are not permitted unless they can be linked to recognised and verifiable environmental performance. The directive applies throughout the EU from 27 September 2026 and covers all companies that communicate sustainability to consumers, regardless of size or stock exchange listing. The more extensive Green Claims Directive, which would have introduced requirements for pre-approval of environmental claims, is currently on hold with no set timetable.

Read more in our article on EmpCo →

The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) requires products to be designed for sustainability, repairability and recyclability. The regulation entered into force in July 2024 and is gradually replacing the previous Ecodesign Directive, with a transition period until 2030. It covers significantly more product categories than before and introduces a digital product passport that will give consumers and authorities access to information about products' sustainability characteristics.

The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is a carbon tariff on goods imported from countries outside the EU with a lower carbon price. The mechanism affects companies that import steel, aluminium, cement, fertilisers, electricity and hydrogen. The transitional period ended on 31 December 2025 and the definitive phase applies from 1 January 2026. This means that companies that import more than 50 tonnes of CBAM goods per year must have the status of authorised CBAM declarant and purchase certificates to cover their emissions.

Under the ESRS, companies must describe the policies they have in place for each material sustainability matter. The description must include the policy's main content and objectives, which IROs it relates to, its scope in terms of activities and value chain, who in the organisation is responsible for implementation, links to relevant third-party standards or initiatives, and how the policy is made available to affected stakeholders. We help you ensure that your policies meet these requirements and are presented in a clear and easily digestible way in the sustainability report.

The CSRD is a reporting directive that requires companies to report on their sustainability work. The CSDDD is a due diligence directive that requires companies to actively identify, prevent and address adverse impacts in the value chain. The two directives complement each other but impose different types of requirements on different functions of the business.