(1) A share capital company is to supplement its management report by a non-financial statement if it fulfils the following criteria:
1. the share capital company meets the pre-requisites of section 267 (3) sentence 1,
2. the share capital company is publicly traded within the meaning of section 264d and
3. the share capital company employed more than 500 employees (average for the year).
Section 267 (4) to (5) applies accordingly. Where the non-financial statement constitutes a separate chapter of the management report, the share capital company may refer to the non-financial information set out elsewhere in the management report.
(2) A share capital company within the meaning of subsection (1) is exempted from the obligation to supplement its management report by a non-financial statement, notwithstanding other exemption provisions, in those cases in which
1. the share capital company is included in the consolidated management report of a parent enterprise, and
2. the consolidated management report pursuant to number 1 is drawn up subject to the stipulations of the domestic laws of a Member State of the European Union or of some other state party to the Agreement creating the European Economic Area in conformity with Directive 2013/34/EU and includes a consolidated non-financial statement.
Sentence 1 applies accordingly to those cases in which the parent enterprise within the meaning of sentence 1 draws up, and makes publicly available, a separate consolidated non-financial report pursuant to section 315b (3) or subject to the stipulations of the domestic laws of a Member State of the European Union or of some other state party to the Agreement creating the European Economic Area in conformity with Directive 2013/34/EU. Where a share capital company is exempt, pursuant to sentence 1 or 2, from the obligation to draw up a non-financial statement, it is to indicate this fact in its management report, along with an explanation of which parent enterprise is making publicly available the consolidated management report or the separate consolidated non-financial report and where the report has been disclosed or published in German or in English.
(3) A share capital company within the meaning of subsection (1) is exempt from the obligation to supplement its management report by a non-financial statement also in those cases in which the share capital company draws up, for the same financial year, a separate non-financial report outside of its management report and in which the following pre-requisites are met:
1. At a minimum, the separate non-financial report meets the requirements concerning its content stipulated by section 289c, and
2. the share capital company makes publicly available the separate non-financial report by
a) disclosing it together with the management report pursuant to section 325 or by
b) publishing it on the share capital company’s website no later than four months after the balance sheet date and for at least ten years, if the management report refers to this publication and cites the website.
Subsection (1) sentence 3 and sections 289d and 289e are to be applied accordingly to the non-financial report.
(4) Where the non-financial declaration or the separate non-financial report has been checked in terms of its substance, the assessment of the result obtained by said check is to be made publicly available in the same manner as the non-financial declaration or the separate non-financial report.