The VSME template explained — a plain-English guide for small suppliers

If a European customer has asked you to report "to the VSME standard," don't be intimidated. VSME was designed specifically to make ESG reporting simple for small companies. Here's what it covers and how to respond.

What VSME is

VSME stands for the Voluntary standard for non-listed Small and Medium Enterprises. The EU created it (via EFRAG) precisely because the full corporate standard (CSRD/ESRS) is far too heavy for a small supplier. When a large EU company needs ESG data from you for their CSRD report, VSME is the lightweight template they're meant to ask for instead of the full thing.

The whole point of VSME is proportionality: it lets a small supplier respond to a big customer's data request without hiring consultants or buying enterprise software.

How it's structured

VSME is built around a Basic Module (the minimum) and a Comprehensive Module (extra disclosures larger customers may want). Most small suppliers start and end with the Basic Module. Broadly, it asks for:

• General: company details, sector, sites, and which practices/policies you have.
• Environment: energy use and greenhouse-gas emissions (Scope 1 and Scope 2), plus water, waste, and pollution where relevant.
• Social: headcount, types of contracts, gender split, health & safety, training.
• Governance: convictions/fines if any, and basic business-conduct practices.

How to respond, module by module

The environment section

This is the part most suppliers stall on. It wants your energy and emissions. Calculate Scope 1 (fuel) and Scope 2 (electricity) with correct factors and report the totals. If you operate in India, use the India CEA grid factor for Scope 2 — not an EU one.

The social and governance sections

These are mostly yes/no plus simple counts. Answer honestly. Where you don't yet have a policy, state that it's planned — VSME explicitly accommodates "we don't have this yet," which is far better than leaving it blank.

One practical tip

Fill the VSME Basic Module once and save it. Different EU customers will ask for the same data — a maintained answer set turns each new request into a 10-minute job, not a fresh ordeal.