The Japan Financial Services Agency has published minutes of the Corporate Accounting Council's general meeting showing that the council approved the creation of a Sustainability Information Assurance Subcommittee to develop Japan's third party assurance standards for sustainability information. The discussion framed the new standards as needing to align with international benchmarks while allowing for Japan specific revisions where necessary, as part of the broader move from mandatory sustainability disclosure to mandatory assurance for large listed companies. The secretariat linked the decision to the Financial System Council working group's January report, which proposed that Prime Market-listed companies with a market capitalization of JPY 3 trillion or more should prepare securities reports using SSBJ standards from the fiscal year ending March 2027 and obtain assurance over sustainability information from the fiscal year ending March 2028. It also outlined a registration regime under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act for assurance providers, including requirements on qualified engagement leadership and quality control systems, plus confidentiality and rotation rules for engagement staff. The amendment containing these measures was submitted to the Diet on April 10, and the Financial Services Agency plans to inspect and supervise assurance providers directly at the outset. The new subcommittee is expected to consider how Japanese assurance standards should reflect ISSA5000, ISQM1 and IESSA, how far Japan should adapt those standards to domestic legal and market conditions, and how the framework should work for providers beyond audit firms. The council discussed making the standards available by March 2027 so they are in place before assurance becomes mandatory.
Japan Financial Services Agency2026-05-22
Japan Financial Services Agency Corporate Accounting Council approves sustainability assurance subcommittee and targets standards by March 2027
The Japan Financial Services Agency’s Corporate Accounting Council has approved a Sustainability Information Assurance Subcommittee to develop third-party assurance standards for sustainability information, aligned with international benchmarks but adapted to Japan. The move supports plans for large Prime Market-listed companies to use Sustainability Standards Board of Japan standards from the fiscal year ending March 2027 and obtain mandatory assurance from the fiscal year ending March 2028, under an amended Financial Instruments and Exchange Act that introduces a registration and supervisory regime for assurance providers.