From January 2025 all large Irish companies will have to start collating information to report under European Sustainable Reporting Standards (ESRS), and in early 2026 these companies will be required to seek a Sustainability Assurance Service Provider (SASP) to provide assurance over the reports. The sustainability information and compliance with ESRS are a legal requirement, and it is a category 2 offence if such information is not reported. Although the ESRS information will be included in the main financial statements, it can be assured by either the company’s existing statutory auditor (if that person has acquired a SASP licence) or a separate SASP. There is likely to be a shortage of SASPs, so a large company would be advised to make arrangements early and not to assume that its existing statutory auditor will have the resources to undertake the work. For the avoidance of doubt, a top 10 audit firm could be the statutory auditor for a large company, with a small or medium practice the SASP for that company, or vice versa.