DataSolmu blog
The 2026 ESRS XBRL Taxonomy: Design Notes For ESG Software Builders
Design ESG data models that keep framework identifiers mapped, statuses explicit and units attached to facts.
EFRAG has published a draft XBRL taxonomy for the revised ESRS, with a technical explanatory note describing how datapoints become machine-readable concepts. The taxonomy is still a draft and digital tagging of ESRS reports is not yet mandatory. For teams building ESG software, the draft is nonetheless a useful signal about how sustainability data is expected to be structured.
These are our design notes from reading it as software builders. They are not a summary of tagging rules.
Keep Framework Identifiers As Mappings
The draft introduces new datapoint identifiers and concepts for the revised standards, and EFRAG notes that the relationship between list entries and concepts is not always one-to-one. That is a strong argument against using framework identifiers as primary keys. Give each metric a stable internal identifier and store ESRS datapoint IDs and XBRL concept names in a mapping table that can carry more than one version.
Make Status Explicit
A blank value can mean many things: not material, not applicable, not yet collected or simply missing. The draft taxonomy treats "not material" as something to state explicitly rather than infer from an empty value. Software should do the same. A status field with clear options keeps reporting decisions visible and makes evidence gaps easier to chase.
Give Policies, Actions And Targets Durable IDs
Narrative items such as policies, actions and targets get renamed over time. If each one carries a technical identifier that survives a rename, the history of evidence, reviews and changes stays connected. Target models also benefit from separating baseline, milestone and target years and recording whether a value is absolute, relative or qualitative.
Attach Units To Facts
The taxonomy relies on standard data types and units attached to each fact. Storing units with values, rather than in loose labels, avoids conversion errors and makes it easier to reuse the same figure in other contexts, such as supplier emissions data.
Varmennappi is being designed around stable identifiers, explicit statuses and traceable evidence so that data can later be mapped to digital reporting formats. It does not provide legal advice, auditor assurance, regulator acceptance or a guarantee of filing compliance. Reporting organisations remain responsible for their tagging and disclosures.
Practical Takeaway
Model first and tag later: keep internal IDs stable, map framework identifiers by version, make every status explicit and attach units to facts. That leaves a draft taxonomy free to change without breaking your data.
Source
EFRAG: Revised ESRS Draft XBRL Taxonomy — Technical Explanatory Note (2026)