In its publication, EFRAG shows a markup corresponding to ESRS datapoints with some technical specificities. The tags were designed, from the beginning, to exactly reflect the granularity of ESRS standards. To facilitate tagging, it is therefore recommended (but not required) to structure reports in line with that of the ESRS. The design of the taxonomy is therefore in line with the relationships between general standards and not with thematic standards (avoiding the duplication of elements). Two categories of dimensions are clearly distinguished:
– explicit content (e.g.: country, gender, CSP category, etc.)
– and typical content (e.g.: geographic area, policy identifier, objective identifier, etc.)
On the recommendation side, it is advisable to use continuation rather than references to other pages, but also to tag from the finest level (concerning granularity). Finally, it is not necessary to tag the parent, but it remains preferable, in order to facilitate contents reading and indexing. On Pomdoc Pro, this feature is native: the parent is naturally “inherited”. For enumerations, they will contain all “sustainability matters” (subject and sub-subjects in ESRS 1, AR 16). Finally, there are more open hypercubes for this taxonomy, so extensions will have to be used. But these were considered quite complex during the consultation. EFRAG also warns on this point and invites to use them sparingly because they are very complex to set up and may damage reports comparability. Specific tags have been added to help limit their use.
When reading the taxonomy, we notice that the ESRS 2 standards have been divided into two parts:
– on one side the General Disclosure Requirements (GDR), linked to governance, strategy, Business Model, IROs (Impact, Risks and Opportunities), etc…
– and on the other, the Minimum Disclosure Requirements (MDR), which correspond to policies, actions, objectives and other measures.
What you should keep in mind is that the tags have been revised to avoid repetitions. On the interoperability side, a detailed concordance table has been defined with an approach valid for reading by humans and machines. What should be remembered about this structure is its ability to evolve. As we noticed on the tagging of financial statements with the entry into force of the ESEF in 2021, adjustments will be made following the first publications. The aim remains the same: bring clarity and transparency to reports, so that CSRD can be used as a tool for sustainable transformation, and not a simple compliance exercise.
Several issuers who responded to the consultation launched in 2024 had suggested a gradual implementation of mandatory tagging, particularly for narrative data. Although the date of mandatory implementation has not been revealed, Patrick de Cambourg, Chairman of EFRAG SRB, encourages issuers to use the ESRS taxonomy from their first publication, on a voluntary basis. The publication of the ESRS taxonomy also provided an opportunity to recall the interest of XBRL and the digital format, both for issuers and users. These assets help in the preparation of the report, but also in the accessibility of the content and its comparability as well as in the fight against greenwashing. Finally, ESMA must publish its technical recommendations (RTS standards) that the European Commission will adopt within the framework of the ESEF: we will know more about the evolution following these publications.
Find all the related information you need on EFRAG’s website
