Royal Decree 214/2025: Spain’s Mandatory Climate Reporting

Spain’s climate reporting framework has entered a new phase. With the introduction of Royal Decree 214/2025, carbon footprint calculation and disclosure are no longer voluntary for many organisations operating in Spain. The regulation establishes mandatory requirements for emissions measurement, reduction planning, and public transparency, bringing Spain’s national framework closer to European and international reporting expectations.

This guide explains what Royal Decree 214/2025 is, who it applies to, what must be reported, and how organisations can prepare in a practical, proportionate way.

What is Royal Decree 214/2025?

Royal Decree 214/2025 is Spain’s national regulation that mandates carbon footprint calculation, emissions reduction planning, and public climate disclosure for qualifying organisations. The decree strengthens Spain’s existing framework by expanding reporting obligations and formalising expectations around data quality, consistency, and transparency. It shifts climate reporting from a voluntary or reputational exercise into a defined regulatory requirement. In practice, Royal Decree 214/2025 reinforces the role of carbon accounting as an operational and governance process, not a one-off calculation.

Why does Royal Decree 214/2025 matter now?

Royal Decree 214/2025 matters because it formalises climate accountability in Spain at a time of accelerating European and market pressure

The regulation reflects three converging pressures:

1. Regulatory alignment: Wider European sustainability disclosure requirements demand structured, auditable emissions data and repeatable processes.
2. Market expectations: Customers, investors, and supply chain partners increasingly expect credible, decision-grade carbon data rather than high-level estimates or one-off reports.
3. Operational risk: Organisations without a clear and consistent view of their emissions face higher compliance risk, slower responses to stakeholder requests, and limited ability to prioritise effective reduction actions.

Who must comply with Royal Decree 214/2025?

The regulation applies primarily to large organisations and public-interest entities operating in Spain, with indirect implications for others.

In scope organisations include:

• Large companies that meet employee, turnover, or balance sheet thresholds defined under Spanish law.
• Public-interest entities, including listed companies and certain regulated sectors.
• Organisations already required to publish non-financial or sustainability information.

While SMEs are not universally mandated today, many are affected indirectly through customer, lender, or supply chain reporting requirements. For these organisations, early alignment reduces future compliance effort and strengthens commercial positioning.

What must organisations report under Royal Decree 214/2025

The decree requires organisations to calculate their carbon footprint, define emissions reduction measures, and make this information publicly available.

Carbon footprint calculation

Organisations must calculate greenhouse gas emissions using recognised methodologies and standards. This typically includes:

• Scope 1 emissions from direct operations.
• Scope 2 emissions from purchased electricity and energy.
• Scope 3 emissions where relevant and material, particularly where they represent a significant share of total impact.

Calculations should align with established frameworks such as the GHG Protocol and ISO 14064. For product-level assessments, ISO 14067 remains the relevant reference standard.

Emissions reduction plans

Royal Decree 214/2025 explicitly links measurement to action. Organisations are required to define and document emissions reduction measures over time, rather than stopping at footprint calculation. While formal validation is not mandated, this approach aligns closely with science-based target-setting principles promoted by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

Public disclosure

Companies must make their carbon footprint and reduction plans publicly accessible, typically via sustainability disclosures or their corporate websites. Transparency is a core requirement of the regulation, not an optional add-on.

How does Royal Decree 214/2025 align with European and global frameworks?

Royal Decree 214/2025 is designed to complement broader sustainability and climate reporting frameworks, not replace them.

It supports alignment with:

• CSRD, which introduces mandatory sustainability reporting across the EU and significantly expands the scope and depth of disclosures.
• ISSB climate standards, which have consolidated and replaced the former TCFD framework, setting global baselines for consistent, decision-useful climate disclosures.
• ISO 14068-1, which has replaced PAS 2060 as the reference standard for carbon neutrality claims.

For organisations already preparing for CSRD or ISSB-aligned reporting, the Decree functions as a practical stepping stone rather than a parallel reporting burden.

What are the risks of non-compliance?

Failure to comply with Royal Decree 214/2025 creates regulatory, reputational, and operational risk. Regulatory consequences may include corrective actions or penalties. Reputational risk arises when organisations cannot respond credibly to climate-related questions from customers or investors. Operationally, poor-quality or inconsistent emissions data limits strategic planning and slows decision-making.

In contrast, organisations that approach climate reporting as a structured, ongoing process gain resilience and long-term efficiency.

How to prepare for Spain’s mandatory climate reporting

Preparation begins with building a reliable and repeatable emissions data foundation that can support both compliance and ongoing decision-making. Organisations should:

1. Define organisational boundaries and data ownership. 
2. Establish structured data collection across energy use, operations, and supply chains. 
3. Apply recognised emissions factors and calculation methodologies to ensure accuracy and comparability.
4. Link data to action by identifying priority reduction levers and tracking progress over time.

For many organisations, the real challenge under Royal Decree 214/2025 is not just understanding these requirements, but operationalising them year after year. The regulation demands stable organisational boundaries, credible Scope 1 and 2 data, and where material, Scope 3 emissions, alongside documented reduction measures, and public disclosure that can withstand scrutiny. Meeting these expectations is difficult with fragmented data, manual processes, or one-off consulting exercises that are hard to maintain.

This is where a hybrid approach becomes essential. Zevero supports organisations by providing a structured carbon accounting system that aligns with recognised methodologies, alongside embedded sustainability expertise to guide decisions and reduction planning. Emissions calculations are automated, while expert oversight ensures consistency and regulatory alignment.

The result is not a static carbon footprint, but a repeatable reporting process. Organisations can update data annually, track progress against reduction plans, and respond confidently to stakeholder requests. Get in touch with our team to learn more about how we support compliance with Royal Decree 214/2025.

Key takeaways

• Royal Decree 214/2025 makes climate reporting mandatory, structured, and public for many organisations operating in Spain.
• It requires accurate carbon footprint calculation, defined emission reduction measures, and transparent disclosure.
• Early preparation reduces compliance risk and creates a strong foundation for wider European reporting requirements.
• Organisations that invest in reliable data and expert-backed processes are best positioned to respond with confidence.