ABSTRACT – Directive (EU) 2022/2464 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 2022 amending Regulation (EU) No 537/2014, Directive 2004/109/EC, Directive 2006/43/EC and Directive 2013/34/EU, as regards corporate sustainability reporting (hereinafter also referred to as the “Directive”) entered into force on 5 January 2023, with a deadline for implementation set at 2024, albeit with different stages depending on the size of the companies involved. The Directive is a new part of the legislative framework adopted by the EU on non-financial disclosure, which was previously regulated by Directive 2014/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 amending Directive 2013/34/EU as regards disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by certain large undertakings and groups. The Directive entailed the extension of the scope of the companies to be subject to the reporting obligations, the specification of the content of such obligations through the establishment of common principles on sustainability reporting, as well as the provision of a statutory audit with respect to the compliance of the information disclosed. These issues, in consideration of the complex and articulated regulatory developments of the EU regarding non-financial reporting, require an in-depth analysis. Therefore, this paper aims to examine the most significant innovations introduced by the Directive, with specific reference to those concerning the sustainability reporting, and to provide a first assessment.
