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EU opens consultation on the CSRD limited assurance standard
On 12 November 2026 the European Commission opened a consultation on the limited assurance standard that auditors will use to check CSRD sustainability statements, including the climate disclosures under ESRS E1. The draft is built on ISSA 5000, and responses close on 18 January 2027.
What did the European Commission publish?
The Commission published a targeted consultation on a delegated act setting out limited assurance standards for sustainability reporting. The standards will specify the procedures that auditors and assurance providers follow to reach their conclusion, including engagement planning, how they respond to risks and the type of conclusion they give.
The draft rests on technical advice from the Committee of European Auditing Oversight Bodies (CEAOB), delivered on 30 September 2026. That advice uses the International Standard on Sustainability Assurance 5000 (ISSA 5000), issued by the IAASB, as its base. It removes provisions that do not fit EU law or apply only to reasonable assurance, and adds procedures ISSA 5000 does not cover, such as checking the digital mark-up of the report and the EU Taxonomy disclosures.
The Omnibus I Directive requires the Commission to adopt the delegated act no later than 1 July 2027.
What will the assurance conclusion cover?
The conclusion has three parts, according to the consultation document: whether the sustainability statement is fairly presented in accordance with the ESRS, including the double materiality assessment process; whether the Taxonomy Article 8 disclosures follow that regulation; and whether the digital mark-up meets the reporting requirements. The Commission asks whether all provisions of the ESRS and the Taxonomy Regulation should count as the criteria the practitioner tests against.
The standard applies to both statutory auditors and independent assurance services providers. The consultation does not reopen the requirement for assurance, the choice of limited assurance or the content of the ESRS. ESG Today reports that Omnibus I removed the earlier option of moving to reasonable assurance.
Why does this matter for Scope 3 data?
ESRS E1, the climate standard, asks companies for gross Scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas emissions where climate change is a material topic. Those figures sit inside the sustainability statement that the assurance conclusion covers. The consultation document does not single out greenhouse gas figures or value chain data, so the general procedures in the standard will be the ones an assurance provider applies to supplier-derived numbers. Our guide to building an assurance-ready Scope 3 evidence pack sets out what a reviewer typically asks to see behind each line.
When would the standard apply?
The CEAOB proposed that the standard apply to assurance engagements on sustainability information for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2027, with earlier application permitted. The consultation asks respondents to choose between financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2027, financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2028, or a later year, and to estimate the time needed for methodology changes, training and systems.
How can companies respond?
The consultation is open to preparers, auditors and assurance providers, investors, standard-setters, oversight bodies and civil society. It runs through an online questionnaire of 11 questions, and only responses submitted there count. The deadline is 18 January 2027 at 23:59 CET. For background on what an assurance claim needs behind it, see what "audit-ready" actually requires.
