An investor asked
A capital markets signatory requested it.
Fee applies; the score is public.CDP · voluntary, but requested
CDP reporting in the UK
No UK law requires a company to report through CDP.
Companies respond because an investor or a customer has asked them to through CDP, and who asked decides the fee, the questionnaire and who sees the score.
The 2026 questionnaire closes on 28 October 2026, and CDP has moved the 2027 scoring deadline to the week of 26 July 2027.
Status
Is CDP reporting mandatory in the UK?
No. CDP calls itself “not mandatory”, and no UK instrument requires it.
CDP’s own page says reporting environmental data through it “is not mandatory” (CDP).
It is a private disclosure system, and a CDP score has no regulatory status in the UK.
The pressure is commercial: an investor that holds your shares, or a customer that buys from you, asks through CDP’s portal.
A customer can make a response a term of its contract, which is a commercial obligation, not a CDP rule.
The UK duties that are law are set out on ESG reporting requirements in the UK.
Why a company is in CDP
A customer asked
A supply chain member requested it.
No fee if that is the only request; the score stays with the customer.Nobody asked
The company self-selects.
Fee applies; the score is public.Who asks
Who asks a UK company to respond to CDP?
Investors through capital markets requests, and large buyers through the supply chain programme.
Over 23,100 organisations disclosed through CDP in 2025, 22,100 of them companies (CDP factsheet).
A request reaches the company through the CDP Portal, and the company must accept it there before the final deadline or it expires (KA-01090).
CDP prefers a parent to answer once, in a consolidated response, for its subsidiaries.
Who requestsExplore
Who requests
Investors
Over 540 financial institutions with US$110 trillion or more in assets are requesting disclosure in 2026.
Who requests
Customers
Over 270 corporate buyers in the supply chain programme; almost 45,000 suppliers were requested in 2025.
Who requests
RE100
RE100-requested companies cannot use the SME questionnaire.
One supplier
What does a request look like for one supplier?
A UK manufacturer with 700 staff and about US$150m revenue, asked only by a customer, pays nothing and keeps its score private.
It is an illustration, not a real company.
Add one investor request and two things change: the admin fee applies, and the score becomes public.
Below 500 staff and US$50m revenue, CDP would recommend the shorter SME questionnaire instead of the full one.
- 1
Who asked?
One customer, through CDP’s supply chain programme, and no investor.
- 2
Is there a fee?
No: a request only from a supply chain member is exempt (CDP FAQs).
- 3
Which questionnaire?
With 700 staff and about US$150m revenue it may use the SME questionnaire, but CDP recommends the full one in that band (Supplier Selection Guide 2026).
- 4
Who sees the score?
The customer does; the public does not, unless the company earns an A (SME Scoring Introduction 2026).
- 5
And if it stays silent?
The customer sees “Did not disclose” (Scoring Introduction 2026).
What is at stake
What does CDP cost, and what does silence cost?
£5,985 or £2,450 in 2026 when the fee applies; “Did not disclose” in front of the requester when it does not reply.
| Situation | What follows | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Requested by an investor, or self-selected | The 2026 admin fee: £5,985 Enhanced or £2,450 Foundation for a UK organisation; the score is public | CDP FAQs, 2026 fee table |
| Requested only by a customer, bank, private markets member or RE100 | No admin fee; the score is private unless it is an A | CDP FAQs |
| Requested and no response | Status “Did not disclose”, visible to the requester (an F up to the 2024 cycle) | Scoring Introduction 2026 |
| Response after the scoring deadline | Status “not scored” | Scoring Introduction 2026 |
| Using the score in marketing | Needs CDP’s prior written consent | CDP Scores |
The questionnaire
What is in the CDP questionnaire?
Thirteen modules in the full questionnaire, ten in the SME version, with climate, forests and water scored separately.
Modules 1 to 6, 12 and 13 cover every environmental issue at once; modules 7 to 9 are climate change, forests and water security (CDP).
Plastics and biodiversity, modules 10 and 11, are asked but not scored in 2026.
| Questionnaire | Who may use it | Scored on | Top score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full corporate (modules 1–13) | Anyone; the only option above 1,000 employees or US$250m revenue, or when RE100 asked | Climate change, forests and water security, each separately; primary sector only | A |
| SME (modules 14–23) | No more than 1,000 employees and US$250m revenue; recommended below 500 and US$50m | Climate change only in 2026; forests (21) and water (22) are unscored | SME A, which CDP says “is not equivalent” to a full A |
A company with 20% or more of its revenue in a questionnaire sector is assigned that sector, but only the primary sector is scored (KA-01027).
Scoring
How is a CDP score worked out?
Four levels in turn, Disclosure to Leadership, each giving two letters from D- to A.
Essential criteria can cap a score: miss one at Awareness and the score stops at D.
CDP calls its 2026 thresholds provisional and may adjust them before scores are released.
Nothing outside the response counts, except the SBTi database of validated targets, and CDP does not verify what a company says (CDP).
Targets validated by the SBTi are explained on the SBTi guide.
- D- or D
Disclosure
How completely the questions were answered. - C- or C
Awareness
Whether the company understands its environmental issues. - B- or B
Management
Whether it acts on them; weighted by scoring category. - A- or A
Leadership
Best practice, with essential criteria as hard gates.
Your request
What does your CDP request mean?
Tick who asked and enter two figures: the fee, the questionnaire, the score’s visibility and the days left follow.
The check reads CDP’s 2026 rules and the 2027 dates as revised on 12 October 2026.
CDP’s SME test is its own, in US dollars and headcount; it is not the Companies Act definition of a small or medium company.
A company with 900 staff and £150m turnover can be eligible for CDP’s SME questionnaire and still be large for its accounts.
CDP · what does this request mean for you?
Tick who asked. The request in the CDP Portal names the requester.
Rules: CDP FAQs and 2026 fee table; Terms of Disclosure; SME Questionnaire Overview 2026; Scoring Introduction 2026; Disclosure 2027 key dates (updated 12 October 2026).
CDP sets and can change every date and fee. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.
Deadlines
When are the CDP deadlines in 2026 and 2027?
28 October 2026 closes this cycle; the 2027 scoring deadline is the week of 26 July 2027.
CDP gives the 2027 dates as weeks, not days, and its terms let it change any date.
Pages still showing a 23 June 2027 scoring deadline are carrying the version CDP replaced on 12 October 2026.
- Week of 15 June 202601
2026 response window opened
Disclosers could open the questionnaire in the CDP Portal. - 16 September 202602
- 28 October 202603
- Week of 30 November 202604
- Week of 22 February 202705
2027 request lists open
Requesters start building lists; the request-list deadline is the week of 19 April. - Week of 26 April 202706
2027 response window opens
CDP says no major questionnaire changes are expected for 2027. - Week of 26 July 202707
2027 scoring deadline
Revised on 12 October 2026 from 23 June 2027. - Week of 6 September 202708
ISSB and UK SRS
Does a CDP response count as ISSB or UK SRS reporting?
No. CDP says it is aligned with IFRS S2, and says in the same document that it does not strictly fulfil it.
The alignment is CDP’s description of its own questionnaire, not a finding by the FCA, the FRC or the ISSB.
A listed company still reports under UK SRS on the FCA’s comply-or-explain basis; the rules are on UK SRS reporting requirements.
Work done for CDP’s climate module is reusable for IFRS S2 and UK SRS S2; the report itself is not.
CDP and the standardsExplore
CDP and the standards
IFRS S2
Announced 8 November 2022 that CDP would incorporate it; aligned since the 2024 questionnaire, with 38 IFRS S2 tags.
CDP and the standards
UK SRS S2
A “UK SRS S2- Climate” tag added on 10 June 2026; tagged questions may go beyond the UK standard.
CDP and the standards
The limit
The questionnaire “should not be interpreted as strictly fulfilling IFRS S2 requirements”.
Order of work
What should a company do first after a CDP request?
Read who asked, accept the request, then set up the questionnaire before the window gets short.
Most of the work is the emissions inventory, which the same company also needs for SECR reporting requirements if it is large enough.
The figures behind the climate module come from the GHG Protocol and the government’s conversion factors.
- 1
Read the request in the CDP Portal
It names the requester, which decides the fee and the score’s visibility.
- 2
Decide who answers
A parent can answer once for its subsidiaries, and CDP prefers it.
- 3
Name the Submission Lead
The role cannot be assigned; only the Lead submits and accepts the terms.
- 4
Set the questionnaire
Revenue by sector (20% or more assigns a sector) and the SME test in US dollars.
- 5
Aim at the scoring deadline
Week of 26 July 2027 for the next cycle; the final deadline is for edits.
CDP is a request from people whose money or orders matter, so the question is who asked, not whether the law says so.
- No UK law
CDP is a request, not a duty
Investors and customers ask; nobody is fined for declining. - £5,985 or £2,450
The 2026 fee follows investor requests and self-selection
Supply-chain-only requests are exempt. - 1,000 staff · US$250m
Above either line, the SME questionnaire is closed
Below 500 and US$50m, CDP recommends it. - Week of 26 July 2027
The 2027 scoring deadline is about seven weeks earlier than 2026’s
Revised by CDP on 12 October 2026. - “Did not disclose”
Silence is visible to whoever asked
The F was retired after 2024.
Is CDP itself changing?
Yes: it announced on 11 June 2026 that it is splitting in two, and the split was not complete on 15 October 2026.
Until the split completes, describe CDP as a charity with a date attached.
Scores and ratings are separately coming under UK regulation: ESG ratings providers need FCA authorisation from 29 June 2028, explained on ESG reporting requirements.
CDP in 2026Explore
CDP in 2026
Announced
A commercial CDP backed by private equity, and a charitable CDP Foundation.
Frequently asked
What else do people ask about CDP reporting?
Is CDP reporting mandatory in the UK?
No. CDP says disclosing through it is not mandatory, and no UK law requires a company to respond.
Companies respond because an investor or a customer has asked through CDP, or because they choose to as a self-selected company.
What happens if we ignore a CDP request?
The requester sees the status “Did not disclose”.
Since the 2025 cycle CDP no longer gives non-responders an F. A response made after the scoring deadline is marked “not scored”.
How much does CDP cost in 2026?
For a UK-headquartered organisation the 2026 admin fee is £5,985 for the Enhanced tier or £2,450 for the Foundation tier; the Essential tier is not offered in the UK.
The fee applies when a capital markets signatory asked you, or when you self-select.
Requests only from supply chain members, banks, private markets members or RE100 are exempt.
Can a small company use a shorter CDP questionnaire?
Yes, if it has no more than 1,000 employees and no more than US$250 million revenue, and RE100 did not request it.
CDP recommends the SME questionnaire below 500 employees and US$50 million, and the full questionnaire between those bands.
The fee is the same either way.
When is the CDP deadline in 2026?
The scoring deadline was 16 September 2026.
The questionnaire closes on 28 October 2026 at 23:59 International Date Line West, and a response submitted after 16 September is not scored.
Public scores and A Lists follow in the week of 30 November 2026.
When are the CDP dates for 2027?
CDP revised them on 12 October 2026.
Request lists open the week of 22 February 2027, the response window opens the week of 26 April, the scoring deadline is the week of 26 July and the final response deadline is the week of 6 September.
The 23 June 2027 scoring date seen elsewhere is the superseded version.
How is a CDP score calculated?
A response is marked at four levels in turn, Disclosure, Awareness, Management and Leadership, giving a letter from D- to A. Essential criteria can cap the score, only the primary questionnaire sector is scored, and nothing outside the response counts except the SBTi target database.
CDP calls its 2026 thresholds provisional.
Does a CDP response count as ISSB or UK SRS reporting?
No. CDP says its questionnaire has been aligned with IFRS S2 since 2024 and it tags questions to UK SRS S2, but it also says the questionnaire should not be read as strictly fulfilling IFRS S2.
A UK SRS report is a separate document under the FCA’s listing rules.
Is a CDP score verified?
No. CDP says neither it nor its scoring partners verify the information in an individual response.
Using a score in marketing needs CDP’s written consent.
Sources
Where does each figure come from?
Every figure, date and status on this page traces to the instrument’s owner.
Secondary commentary is never the source for a number.
Checked against 19 sources fromCDPCDP Help CentreIFRS Foundation
- CDPWhy disclose environmental data?
CDP’s own statement that disclosing through it is not mandatory, and who requests it.
- CDPFAQs: disclosing companies and the admin fee
The 2026 fee table (UK £5,985 Enhanced, £2,450 Foundation) and the requesters that do not trigger the fee.
- CDPTerms of Disclosure
The 16 September 2026 scoring deadline, the 28 October 2026 questionnaire closure and when a score is public (§13).
- CDPFull Corporate Scoring Introduction 2026 (V1.2)
The D- to A bands, essential criteria, primary-sector scoring and the “Did not disclose” status.
- CDPFull Corporate Questionnaire Overview 2026 (V2.0)
The 13 modules, the IFRS S2 and UK SRS S2 tags, and CDP’s note that a response does not strictly fulfil IFRS S2.
- CDPSME Questionnaire Overview 2026
Eligibility: no more than 1,000 employees and US$250 million revenue; RE100-requested companies excluded.
- CDPSME Scoring Introduction 2026 (V1.3)
Climate change only; SME D to SME A; private scores unless requested by capital markets signatories or an SME A.
- CDPSupplier Selection Guide 2026 (V1.1)
The recommendation bands: under 500 employees and US$50 million for the SME questionnaire.
- CDPDisclosure 2027: key dates (updated 12 October 2026)
Request lists open week of 22 February 2027; scoring deadline week of 26 July 2027.
- CDPDisclosure 2026: key dates
Response window from the week of 15 June 2026; public scores the week of 30 November 2026.
- CDP Help CentreKA-01027: onboarding and questionnaire set-up
The Submission Lead, the 20% revenue rule for questionnaire sectors and primary-sector scoring.
- CDP Help CentreKA-01090: parent and subsidiary responses
CDP prefers a parent’s consolidated response; unaccepted requests expire at the final deadline.
- CDP Help CentreKA-01160: scores
A requested company that does not respond is marked “Did not disclose”.
- CDPScores and A Lists
CDP does not verify responses, and scores need CDP’s consent for anything beyond internal use.
- CDPSupply Chain membership
45,000+ suppliers requested to disclose through the programme in 2025.
- CDPFramework alignment
IFRS S2 as the foundational baseline since 2024; the intention to align with the GHG Protocol LSRS in 2027.
- IFRS FoundationCDP to incorporate the ISSB climate-related disclosure standard (8 November 2022)
The joint announcement at COP27.
- CDPKeeping Pace: Disclosure Data Factsheet 2025
23,100+ organisations, 22,100+ of them companies, disclosed in 2025.
- CDPCDP announces transformative investment (11 June 2026)
The split into a commercial CDP and a charitable CDP Foundation, not yet complete.
Continue reading
Where to go next
Guide
ESG frameworks in the UK
CDP, GRI, SASB and the ISSB standards side by side.
Guide
GRI reporting requirements
What a GRI claim commits you to, and when anyone asks for it.
Guide
ESG questionnaires
Answering customer and tender sustainability questions.
Guide
Science Based Targets initiative
The validated targets CDP’s scoring reads from outside the response.