ASIC has released the first set of educational materials to help smaller companies and report preparers in understanding and applying the foundational concepts behind the new sustainability reporting requirements.
The sustainability reporting requirements are new for Australia and impose new obligations on directors and reporting entities but can also affect small and medium-sized companies that support reporting entities.
ASIC partnered with the Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) to develop eight learning modules on the sustainability reporting framework, and the PDF versions of the first three modules were released today.
ASIC Commissioner Kate O’Rourke said, ‘We recognise many smaller companies may be concerned about what the sustainability reporting requirements mean for them. ASIC is committed to helping industry build the capability required to meet these important obligations.
‘Our new educational materials are designed to help stakeholders identify the climate-related risks and opportunities that may impact them. These foundational steps are key to meeting the sustainability reporting requirements.’
While the educational modules were designed for smaller reporting entities and small and medium-sized companies that are suppliers to reporting entities, ASIC expects the resources will be helpful to any report preparer new to the sustainability reporting requirements as well as other stakeholders in the climate reporting ecosystem.
Module 1 sets out how stakeholders should engage with the materials and introduces the basics of the new sustainability reporting requirements in the Corporations Act 2001.
Module 2 covers the basics of climate change and Module 3 covers climate-related physical risks.
ASIC will publish Modules 4 and 5 by the end of the month. Modules 6, 7 and 8 will be released in the first quarter of 2026. The topics to be covered in the later modules include climate-related opportunities and an introduction to emissions accounting.
To encourage higher industry engagement with the sustainability reporting requirements, ASIC will also provide more flexible delivery of content by offering all eight modules in an interactive format in the first quarter of 2026.
ASIC will also hold a series of workshops supporting the release of the educational modules. Details on the workshops will be made available in early 2026.
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Background
Entities that are required to prepare an annual financial report under Chapter 2M of the Corporations Act and meet one of the sustainability reporting thresholds under s292A for a financial year are required to prepare a sustainability report containing climate-related financial information under the relevant requirements in the Corporations Act and AASB S2 Climate-related Disclosures.
The first group of reporting entities is required to prepare sustainability reports for financial years commencing on or after 1 January 2025.
The second and third groups of reporting entities are required to prepare annual sustainability reports for financial years commencing on or after 1 July 2026 and 1 July 2027 respectively.
ASIC will be pragmatic and proportionate in its supervision and enforcement approach as the sustainability reporting requirements are phased in and as industry adjusts to the new requirements. We are focused on how we can support the implementation of the new requirements through engagement, guidance and capacity building.
For more information about the sustainability reporting requirements, refer to Regulatory Guide 280 Sustainability reporting (RG 280) and our article on what small businesses need to know.
