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Amending the LkSG: where the legislative procedure stands and what already applies

· As of 18.10.2026 · 4 min read

A stack of off-white paper, one sheet pulled halfway out; a petrol line runs unchanged across the stack
Image: AI-generated

Background

The German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (Lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetz, LkSG) has applied since 1 January 2023, and since 1 January 2024 to companies with at least 1,000 employees in Germany (BAFA, Überblick1). The Federal Government intends to replace it at a later stage with an “Act on International Corporate Responsibility” (“Gesetz über die internationale Unternehmensverantwortung”) that transposes the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). For the transitional period, the LkSG is to be amended.

The government bill

The Federal Cabinet adopted the draft of an act amending the LkSG on 3 September 2025 (BMAS2). The Bundesrat delivered its opinion on 17 October 2025. The bill is before the Bundestag as printed paper (Drucksache) 21/2474 of 29 October 2025. In essence, it provides for the following (BT-Drs. 21/24743):

  1. Abolition of the reporting obligation: § 10 is reduced to a mere documentation obligation; subsections 2 to 4 (report and publication) are deleted. The provisions on the submission and official review of the reports are repealed. These changes are to enter into force retroactively as of 1 January 2023.
  2. Due diligence obligations continue to apply: risk management, risk analysis, preventive and remedial measures, the complaints procedure and documentation remain in place.
  3. Narrower catalogue of administrative fines: Only four offences would remain regulatory offences: failure to take, or late taking of, preventive measures and remedial measures, in each case in relation to a human rights risk; a remediation concept that has not been drawn up or not implemented; and the absence of a complaints procedure. The maximum fine would be EUR 800,000. The turnover-based fine of up to 2 % for companies with an annual turnover of more than EUR 400 million would be retained for remedial measures and remediation concepts.

For comparison: § 24 LkSG in its current version contains thirteen offences, including a deficient risk analysis and breaches of the reporting obligation, with maximum fines of EUR 100,000, 500,000 and 800,000 (§ 24 LkSG4).

Status of the procedure

The Bundestag held the first reading of the bill on 16 January 2026 and referred it to the committees; the Committee on Labour and Social Affairs is in charge (Deutscher Bundestag5). At the time of writing, adoption could not be established. The BMAS overview page shows “Noch nicht veröffentlicht” (not yet published) for both “Abschluss des Gesetzes” (conclusion of the act) and “Inkrafttreten” (entry into force) (accessed 18.10.2026). The (unofficial) version of the LkSG on gesetze-im-internet.de still contains the reporting obligation and the previous catalogue of fines.

What already applies in practice

The Federal Government has anticipated the amendment by issuing an instruction to the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA). According to the BAFA announcement of 1 October 2025 (BAFA, 01.10.20256):

  • BAFA no longer reviews company reports.
  • Pending fine proceedings concerning offences that are to be deleted under the bill are being discontinued; no new proceedings are being opened.
  • For the remaining offences, fines are imposed only for serious violations connected with particularly grave human rights violations.

According to the BAFA page on the reporting obligation (as of 07.11.2025), reports can no longer be submitted via the BAFA portal (BAFA, Berichtspflicht7).

Note: an instruction to the authority does not change the law. Until the amendment is promulgated, the statutory text remains in force in its previous version. The administrative practice concerns BAFA only.

What companies typically examine

  1. Due diligence processes: Do the risk analysis, preventive and remedial measures and the complaints procedure continue unchanged?
  2. Documentation: Is compliance with the due diligence obligations documented internally, given that the documentation obligation continues to apply?
  3. Priorities: Are the obligations that would remain subject to fines under the bill implemented particularly robustly?
  4. Transition: How can existing processes be carried over to the CSDDD obligations applying from 2029?

Open points

Open points are the conclusion of the legislative procedure, possible changes by the committee, and the timing of a bill transposing the CSDDD.

This post provides a general overview of the legal position and does not replace legal advice on individual cases.

Sources

  1. BAFA, Überblick LkSG: https://www.bafa.de/DE/Lieferketten/Ueberblick/ueberblick_node.html (accessed 18.10.2026) ↩

  2. BMAS, Gesetz zur Änderung des LkSG – Umsetzungsstand: https://www.bmas.de/DE/Service/Gesetze-und-Gesetzesvorhaben/gesetz-zur-aenderung-des-lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetzes.html (accessed 18.10.2026) ↩

  3. Deutscher Bundestag, Drucksache 21/2474 vom 29.10.2025: https://dserver.bundestag.de/btd/21/024/2102474.pdf (accessed 18.10.2026) ↩

  4. LkSG (geltende Fassung), gesetze-im-internet.de: https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/lksg/BJNR295910021.html (accessed 18.10.2026) ↩

  5. Deutscher Bundestag, Textarchiv „Vorlagen zum Lieferkettengesetz debattiert“, 16.01.2026: https://www.bundestag.de/dokumente/textarchiv/2026/kw03-de-lieferketten-1136308 (accessed 18.10.2026) ↩

  6. BAFA, Kurzmeldung „Vereinfachungen für Unternehmen beim Lieferkettengesetz“, 01.10.2025: https://www.bafa.de/SharedDocs/Kurzmeldungen/DE/Lieferketten/20251001_Vereinfachung_LksG.html (accessed 18.10.2026) ↩

  7. BAFA, Berichtspflicht (Stand 07.11.2025): https://www.bafa.de/DE/Lieferketten/Berichtspflicht/berichtspflicht.html (accessed 18.10.2026) ↩

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