“That is the curse of the evil deed,
that, multiplying, it must ever bring forth evil”
(Friedrich von Schiller)
At last! The next bureaucratic monster is here, which the EU – contrary to all its lip service, fine words, assurances and “omnibus packages” – and which has now been implemented by the Austrian Parliament in 79 pages of small print under the title “Sustainability Reporting Act – NaBeG” and published in the Federal Law Gazette (BGBl I/6 of 18 February 2026). The – rather cute – NaBeG entails the enactment of a Third-Country Companies Reporting Act, as well as amendments to the Commercial Code (UGB) and the key company law statutes (AktG, GmbHG, GenG, SE-G, etc.), along with numerous significant ancillary laws. Essentially, the NaBeG regulates the introduction or comprehensive expansion of sustainability reporting for larger companies. The NaBeG came into force on 18 February 2026, and the provisions apply to financial years commencing on or after 1 January 2024 (!).
The new sustainability reporting obligation applies to all companies that are large undertakings under Section 221(3) sentence 1 of the Austrian Commercial Code (UGB), qualify as public-interest entities (Section 189a(1) UGB) and employ more than 500 staff on average over the year (Section 243b(1) UGB). It is encouraging to see the attention to detail already evident in the general requirements for companies subject to reporting: these must include information on reporting on sustainability aspects in the management report in a clearly identifiable section provided for this purpose. To ensure nothing goes wrong, the legislator even provides the heading that this section should have in the management report, namely Sustainability Statement.
According to Section 243b(2) of the Austrian Commercial Code (UGB), the sustainability statement must contain the information necessary for understanding the impact of the company’s activities on sustainability aspects, as well as the impact of sustainability aspects on the course of business, business results and the company’s position. Furthermore, the procedure for determining the information included in the management report must be reported. It is hard to imagine just how wide-ranging this might be. Please refer to Section 243b(3) of the Austrian Commercial Code (UGB); the content of these reporting requirements goes beyond the scope of a brief article of this nature; it refers to limiting global warming to 1.5 °C, achieving climate neutrality by 2050, absolute targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 and 2050, and many other topics of significance to companies, which companies must now consider and report on. Of particular note is Section 243b(4) of the Austrian Commercial Code (UGB), which stipulates that reporting must cover not only the company itself but also its value chain, including its business relationships and supply chain. Fortunately, however, this applies only in accordance with the new Section 243ba UGB, which limits the reporting obligation regarding the value chain as follows: No information may be requested from companies in the value chain of a company subject to sustainability reporting obligations which employs fewer than 1,000 employees on an annual average that goes beyond the information regulated in Annex I to Commission Recommendation (EU) 2025/1710 on a standard for voluntary sustainability reporting by small and medium-sized enterprises, OJ L No. 2025/1710 of 5 August 2025.