Towards the EU-Wide Non-Financial Reporting Standards: What Do Stakeholders Say?

The Directive 2014/95/EU is unquestionably an important step towards the development of non-financial reporting in the EU. However, the minimum harmonization approach and the considerable flexibility as regards the reporting frameworks that might be used by companies have resulted in a situation where stakeholders’ information needs are not sufficiently met. Therefore, the European Commission (EC) announced the possibility of the introduction of a new set of European non-financial reporting standards (ENFRS). This paper aims to present the EU approach to the corporate non-financial disclosures in the Directive 2014/95/EU context, and the stakeholders’ views on the new ENFRS. 588 responses obtained during the EC consultation process organized in February – June 2020 were analyzed. Research findings indicate that the ENFR should be based on the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations, developed by the body with the financial reporting expertise and with the active participation of preparers and investors. Also, the SMEs should be required to provide non-financial disclosures. The study contributes to the sustainability literature by providing new insights into the stakeholder views on the regulation of the non-financial disclosure and indicating possible avenues for future research.