Germany eases Supply Chain Act with temporary exemptions for companies

The German cabinet approved amendments to the national Supply Chain Act, granting larger companies exemptions from documentation requirements that had been criticised as burdensome and bureaucratic. The law, in force since January 2023, requires German firms with over 1,000 employees to conduct due diligence on suppliers’ human rights and environmental standards. Until the EU-wide directive is transposed into national law, enforcement will focus only on serious violations such as severe human rights abuses. The changes are expected to reduce business costs by approximately €4.1 million annually.

Source: adapted from Reuters, September 2025.