CSRD Penalties and Enforcement: National Enforcers by Member State, ESMA Guidelines and Fines in Force

Companies are bound by the national law that transposes the reporting rules. Directive (EU) 2026/470 (Omnibus I) binds the Member States, which must transpose its Articles 1 to 3 by 19 March 2027 (Article 5(1)). The reporting duties that these penalties protect are set out where the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is explained.

This page follows the legal chain from Article 51 to ESMA's guidelines, names the enforcer of listed issuers in the 27 Member States and Norway, gives the German and Austrian fines in force, and reports ESMA's 2025 results and 2026 priorities.

Who Sets CSRD Penalties?

Each Member State sets its own CSRD penalties: Article 51 of Directive 2013/34/EU obliges Member States to provide for penalties for infringements of the national provisions adopted under the Directive, to ensure they are enforced and to make them effective, proportionate and dissuasive, and it sets no EU fine. Article 51 of the consolidated Directive 2013/34/EU reads in full: "Member States shall provide for penalties applicable to infringements of the national provisions adopted in accordance with this Directive and shall take all the measures necessary to ensure that those penalties are enforced. The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive." The CSRD, Directive (EU) 2022/2464, inserted its reporting rules into Directive 2013/34/EU, so Article 51 covers them.

Penalties attach to national law, so a company is penalised under the act of its own Member State. The management report, including the sustainability statement, is published within a reasonable period not exceeding 12 months after the balance sheet date, together with the assurance opinion (Article 30(1) of Directive 2013/34/EU). Which national act applies in each state is followed in the CSRD transposition tracker for the 27 Member States and Norway.

Listed Issuers: The Transparency Directive Route

Issuers with securities on an EU regulated market face a second layer: the national competent authority designated under Article 24(4) of Directive 2004/109/EC examines their sustainability information, and Article 28d, inserted by Article 2(4) of the CSRD, required ESMA to issue guidelines on that supervision.

Under Article 4(2)(c) of Directive 2004/109/EC, as replaced by Article 2(2)(a) of the CSRD, the persons responsible confirm that the management report is prepared in accordance with the sustainability reporting standards of Article 29b. Under Article 4(4), as replaced by Article 2(2)(b), the assurance report is disclosed in full to the public together with the annual financial report. From financial year 2027, issuer scope follows the same new values (CSRD Article 5(2), third subparagraph, as amended by Article 3(1)(b) of Directive (EU) 2026/470).

ESMA Guidelines on Enforcement of Sustainability Information (GLESI)

ESMA's Guidelines on Enforcement of Sustainability Information (GLESI, ESMA32-992851010-1815) set 22 guidelines that national enforcers follow when they examine listed issuers' sustainability information published from 1 January 2025. ESMA issued the guidelines under Article 28d of Directive 2004/109/EC and Article 16 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010. The consultation paper (ESMA32-992851010-1016) dates from 15 December 2023, the final report (ESMA32-992851010-1600) from 5 July 2024, and the guidelines were published in all EU languages on 29 April 2025. They address the competent authorities designated under Article 24(4) of the Transparency Directive and cover issuers with securities on a regulated market, including third-country issuers that use the ESRS or equivalent standards (paragraphs 1 to 3).

Each enforcer notifies ESMA whether it complies within two months of publication in all EU official languages (paragraph 10; Article 16(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010). Selection follows a mixed model that combines a risk-based approach with sampling and rotation, and enforcers select issuers each year (Guidelines 5 and 6). Where the examined information sits in the annual report is set out under the sustainability statement in the management report.

What a National Enforcer Can Require

When an enforcer finds a material misstatement, GLESI Guideline 12 (paragraph 64) gives it three actions: require a reissuance of the sustainability statement, require a corrective note, or require a correction in the future sustainability statement, with restatement of comparatives where relevant.

These are supervisory measures on the statement itself; fines and coercive penalties come from national law, as the fines section below shows for Germany and Austria.

National Enforcers in the 27 Member States and Norway

ESMA's GLESI compliance table names one enforcer of listed issuers' sustainability information per Member State, two in Denmark, and records whether each complies with the guidelines; the version of 24 August 2026 is the one ESMA links as of 5 November 2026. Each answer is "Yes", "Intends to comply" or "No". Norway answered voluntarily, because ESMA notes in the same table that the CSRD is not yet incorporated in the EEA Agreement (ESMA's note of 24 August 2026). ESMA reviews the GLESI compliance table (ESMA32-992851010-1155) once a year.

Authority for listed issuers as named by ESMA; the body for other companies is set by national law (see each country page).

Fines and Coercive Penalties in Force: Germany and Austria

In Germany, a breach of the HGB reporting rules on the non-financial statement is an administrative offence with a fine of up to EUR 50,000 under § 334(3) HGB, rising for capital-market-oriented companies to the higher of EUR 2 million or twice the economic benefit, and for legal persons of such companies to the highest of EUR 10 million, 5 % of annual total turnover or twice the benefit (§ 334(3a)). Failure to disclose under § 325 HGB brings an Ordnungsgeld (coercive fine) of EUR 2,500 to EUR 25,000 under § 335(1) HGB, imposed in a procedure of the Bundesamt für Justiz. As read on 5 November 2026, § 334 HGB refers to the non-financial statement provisions (including §§ 289c, 289d, 289e(2) and 315c HGB), not to a sustainability report.

In Austria, § 284 UGB provides for Zwangsstrafen (coercive penalties) of up to EUR 7,000, or EUR 3,600 for small companies, and under § 24(5) FBG of up to EUR 20,000 for medium-sized and EUR 50,000 for large companies, as of 29 October 2026. In France, the former offences of Article L. 822-40 of the Code de commerce were repealed by loi n° 2025-391, article 8 II 20°, with effect from 3 May 2025. Other Member States' amounts are given on each country page once checked in national law.

German values read in the HGB on 5 November 2026; Austrian values as of 29 October 2026.

What ESMA Found in the 2025 Enforcement Round

In 2025, national enforcers examined 402 sustainability statements, 263 of them prepared under the ESRS, and took actions against 109 issuers, according to ESMA's report of 7 May 2026 (ESMA32-2064178921-9413). About 2,000 issuers were in enforcement scope at the end of 2025. In 2024, enforcers had carried out 573 examinations and taken actions against 125 issuers.

ESMA reports an examination rate of 18 % and an action rate of 30 % for 2025 in its report on 2025 corporate reporting enforcement.

The actions on statements prepared under the ESRS were of the four types listed below.

• Reissuance of the statement: 2 actions.
• Public corrective note: 3 actions.
• Correction in a future statement: 55 actions.
• Other measures: 34 actions.

Of these actions, 40 % concerned ESRS E1 and 36 % the general disclosures of ESRS 2, both standards of the first set, Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2772 as amended by Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/1416.

ESMA's 2026 Enforcement Priorities and the Version Choice

ESMA's European common enforcement priorities for 2026 annual reports, published on 13 October 2026 (ESMA32-2064178921-9738), ask issuers to continue progress in the materiality assessment and to provide connected information on impacts, risks and opportunities, policies, actions, targets and metrics, with a focus on ESRS E1 Climate change and S1 Own workforce for FY 2026. For FY 2026, an issuer may use the first set as amended by Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/1416, the revised (simplified) ESRS, or the first set with the reliefs of Article 2(1)(b) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/1563, and must disclose which one it uses. ESMA sets this focus because these topics are more mature.

The first priority, continuing the progress along the materiality learning curve (section 2.1), contains the four points listed below.

• Positive and negative impacts assessed with the same rigour.
• Impact thresholds disclosed.
• Own operations and the value chain both covered.
• Concise, company-specific descriptions of the assessment process.

ESMA also underlines the oversight role of audit committees over internal consistency, internal controls and report quality.

ECEP 2024 (ESMA32-193237008-8369) covered materiality, the scope and structure of the sustainability statement, and Article 8 Taxonomy disclosures; ECEP 2025 of 14 October 2025 kept the first two, with no specific Taxonomy recommendations.

What CSRD Enforcement Does Not Cover

CSRD enforcement does not create an EU fine, does not reach a company outside the reporting duty, and is not the same as the assurance engagement. The reporting steps that prevent a finding are planned under CSRD compliance after the Omnibus.

Does ESMA Fine Companies?

No: ESMA issues guidelines and priorities and coordinates national enforcers, while examinations, enforcement actions and penalties stay with the national authorities and national law.

ESMA's role in sustainability enforcement rests on Article 28d of Directive 2004/109/EC and Article 16 of Regulation (EU) No 1095/2010, both provisions on guidelines.

Can a Company below the New Thresholds Be Penalised?

From financial years starting on or after 1 January 2027, the reporting duty covers undertakings with more than EUR 450 million net turnover and an average of more than 1,000 employees during the financial year, both criteria together (Article 19a(1) of Directive 2013/34/EU as replaced by Article 2(4)(a) of Directive (EU) 2026/470), once transposed. How both values are counted is set out under the thresholds after the Omnibus.

Listed SMEs were removed from the CSRD regime by Directive (EU) 2026/470.

Does the Assurance Provider Enforce the Rules?

No: the assurance provider gives a limited-assurance opinion on the sustainability reporting (Article 34(1)(aa) of Directive 2013/34/EU as replaced by Article 2(12)(a) of Directive (EU) 2026/470), while enforcement is the authority's examination.

The opinion itself is explained under assurance of CSRD reporting.