EU 'stop-the-clock' directive delays CSRD reporting by two years and the CSDDD by one
Directive (EU) 2025/794 was published on 16 April 2025, fast-tracked from the Commission's Omnibus I proposals. It postpones CSRD reporting by two years for companies not yet reporting, the second and third waves, and delays the CSDDD by a year, to July 2027 for transposition and July 2028 for the first companies. Member states had to transpose it by 31 December 2025.
Directive (EU) 2025/794, the 'stop-the-clock' directive, was published in the Official Journal on 16 April 2025 and entered into force the next day. It was the first part of the Commission's Omnibus I package to be agreed, adopted quickly so companies did not prepare for rules that were about to change.
What changed
- CSRD: reporting is delayed by two years for large companies that had not yet started and for listed SMEs. 'Second wave' companies, due to report in 2026 on the 2025 financial year, now report in 2028 on 2027. Listed SMEs move from 2027 to 2029.
- CSDDD: the transposition deadline moves to 26 July 2027 and the first application date for the largest companies to 26 July 2028.
- First-wave companies already reporting were not covered by this directive.
- Member states had to transpose it by 31 December 2025. Where the CSRD was already in national law, the delay applies only once national law is changed.
Who is affected
EU companies in the CSRD's second and third waves, listed SMEs, and groups preparing for the CSDDD.
Later developments
The substantive Omnibus I directive, adopted in February 2026, then narrowed the CSRD and CSDDD scope and further changed the dates. Check national implementation of both directives.