Submitting the Communication on Progress to the UNGC: Questions and Answers

The 2026 United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) submission window is officially open, requiring companies to file their Communication on Progress (CoP). To help demystify this year’s requirements, we sat down with Romina Coral Andrade, sustainability consultant at Nexio Projects.

For thousands of businesses worldwide, the spring and summer months mark a critical period of transparency. So, why does the 2026 window matters more than ever and how can companies navigate the updated questionnaire?

For those outside the sustainability sphere, these acronyms may be confusing: The UN Global Compact (UNGC) is the world’s largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative. It includes over 20,000 companies across over 150 countries that have committed to ten core principles regarding human rights, labor, environment, and anti-corruption.

The Communication on Progress (CoP) is the main accountability mechanism of the UNGC. It is a mandatory annual disclosure that shows stakeholders how a company is performing against those ten principles.

Hi Romina, the 2026 submission window is now active. Why is this more than just a mandatory filing for companies?
“The UNGC Communication of Progress is more than a tool that strengthens credibility and performance. It’s a way to showcase your external commitment to sustainability across stakeholders.”

The questionnaire has undergone some changes. How has the structure evolved over the last two years?
“The most significant structural change to the CoP happened between the 2024 and 2025 cycles, when the questionnaire was reduced from 77 to 66 questions. This was not a simplification for its own sake. It was the result of a deliberate review of data quality and usability.”

What are the specific technical additions that companies need to be aware of for the 2026 window?
“A new question on sustainable finance and Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions: This is the most significant addition. It reflects growing investor and regulatory demand for climate-related financial disclosures. For many companies, this question will require collaboration between the sustainability and finance functions, particularly where Scope 3 data collection is still in development.”

Many companies are already stretched thin by other frameworks like EcoVadis. Is there any way to make this process more efficient?
“Companies that already report through EcoVadis, or that are preparing for CSRD, have a significant head start on the Communication on Progress. The CoP questionnaire covers the same core terrain as EcoVadis’ four themes: environment, labour and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement. Mapping existing EcoVadis evidence to CoP questions reduces preparation time substantially and avoids collecting the same information twice.”

Can companies use EcoVadis evidence to complete their CoP submission?
“Yes, and this is one of the most underused efficiency opportunities in sustainability reporting. The CoP questions and the EcoVadis assessment themes cover the same core ground: Environment, labor and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement.

“Evidence already gathered for an EcoVadis cycle maps directly onto CoP questionnaire responses in most sections. Companies managing both within the same reporting cycle should not be collecting the same information twice.”

Does a company need to be well advanced in sustainability to join the UNGC?
“No. The UNGC is designed to meet companies wherever they are on their sustainability journey. Membership requires a CEO commitment to work toward the Ten Principles and to report on progress annually.”

“Several UNGC network events are open to non-participants, providing a low-barrier way to understand the initiative before committing. The CoP questionnaire itself can also serve as a useful starting diagnostic, surfacing where policies, systems, and data still need to be built.”

Finally, what are the risks for those who miss the July 31st deadline?
“Companies that fail to submit any CoP element by 31 July 2026 are marked as ‘Non-Communicating’ on their UNGC participant profile, visible to anyone who searches for your company on the UNGC website. Access to UNGC network resources is suspended.”

“The 2026 CoP is not optional for business participants. Missing the 31 July deadline leads to a public “Non-Communicating” status, and failure to rectify this by 31 December 2026 results in the company being publicly delisted on 1 January 2027.”

“Companies that remain non-communicating beyond 31 December 2026 are delisted on 1 January 2027. The name of every delisted company is publicly disclosed on the UNGC website. Rejoining requires a CEO-signed letter of recommitment and an advance submission of the CoP questionnaire. For companies that have built their UNGC participation into their sustainability narrative, customer communications, or investor disclosures, delisting is a reputational issue.”