VSME reporting: what a voluntary sustainability report actually asks for

Most small and medium-sized European companies are not legally required to publish a sustainability report. Many are still being asked for one — by a customer's procurement team, a bank reviewing a loan, or an investor doing diligence. The Voluntary Sustainability Reporting Standard for non-listed SMEs, usually called VSME, exists to answer those requests with one consistent document instead of a different questionnaire every time.

Here is what the standard actually asks for, who it applies to, and where the real work sits.

What the VSME is

VSME was developed by EFRAG, the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group, as a proportionate reporting standard for undertakings that are not listed on an EU regulated market. EFRAG delivered the final draft to the European Commission in December 2024. On 30 July 2025 the Commission published a Recommendation on its voluntary use, together with practical guidance for applying the disclosure requirements.

The standard is voluntary: it does not create a legal reporting duty. Its stated purpose is to help smaller companies satisfy the information requests of larger partners and of banks and investors, and to improve how they manage the environmental and social issues they face.

Who it applies to

VSME is written for non-listed micro, small and medium-sized undertakings, using the size categories from Article 3 of Directive 2013/34/EU. A company falls into a category when it does not exceed two of the three thresholds:

• Micro: €450,000 balance sheet total, €900,000 net turnover, an average of 10 employees.
• Small: €5 million balance sheet total, €10 million net turnover, an average of 50 employees.
• Medium: €25 million balance sheet total, €50 million net turnover, an average of 250 employees.

These companies sit outside the mandatory Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive scope, which is precisely why a shared voluntary format is useful: their larger customers still need supply-chain data for their own reporting.

What the Basic Module covers

The Basic Module is the entry level, designed to be workable for a micro undertaking. It starts with how the report was prepared, then moves through a short list of basic metrics. In summary:

1. Basis for preparation — scope, value chain covered, and how the figures were compiled.
2. Practices, policies and future initiatives toward a more sustainable economy.
3. Environment: energy and greenhouse gas emissions; pollution of air, water and soil; biodiversity; water; resource use, circular economy and waste management.
4. Social: workforce general characteristics; health and safety; remuneration, collective bargaining and training.
5. Business conduct: convictions and fines for corruption or bribery.

That works out to 51 data points across 11 areas in the Basic Module. Beyond it, a Comprehensive Module adds the additional data points that banks, investors and large customers frequently request, so a company can start small and expand the same report later rather than rebuilding it.

Why companies report without being required to

• One report, many requests. A single structured VSME report can answer several different customer, bank or insurer questionnaires, instead of re-collecting the same numbers each time.
• Access to finance. Lenders and investors ask for sustainability information as part of credit and investment decisions.
• Competitive position. Procurement teams increasingly screen suppliers on sustainability information, and a ready report removes a friction point in the sales cycle.
• Internal clarity. Collecting energy, safety and workforce data once a year shows where a company can cut costs or reduce risk.

Where the effort actually goes

The disclosure list itself is short. The work is behind it: locating figures that are not in one system, agreeing on how to calculate energy and emissions from utility bills, and confirming what the company can support with evidence. Two practical habits make the difference between a report that takes days and one that takes months.

• Collect once, reuse often. Store the underlying data and the source document, so next year's report starts from a template rather than from scratch.
• Keep evidence with the answer. Attaching a policy, a certificate or an inspection record to each disclosure makes the report easier to defend when a customer or auditor asks.

How Jaznexus fits in

Jaznexus builds the reporting workflow around this structure. Companies create a sustainability report aligned with the EFRAG Voluntary BASIC Standard for VSMEs, guided through the topics one at a time, and suppliers can respond to structured assessments and attach supporting documents in the same workspace. If you want to see how it would look for your company, the platform is open for a first report, and you can also write to us directly.