As of 1 October 2026. Information only, not legal advice – see the disclaimer.
| Full title | Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations “Protect, Respect and Remedy” Framework (A/HRC/17/31) |
|---|---|
| Type | Non-binding principles endorsed by a UN body |
| Adopted by | UN Human Rights Council (resolution 17/4) |
| Adopted | 16 June 2011 |
| Legal status | Not legally binding; reference standard for national and EU legislation on corporate due diligence and for the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises |
| Official text | OHCHR |
| Subject area | Private actors, liability and insurance |
The Guiding Principles, developed by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General John Ruggie, rest on three pillars: the State duty to protect against human rights abuses by business, the corporate responsibility to respect human rights, and access to remedy. Companies are expected to carry out human rights due diligence: to identify, prevent, mitigate and account for adverse impacts. The principles address conflict-affected areas expressly. They are referred to in discussions on the role of technology companies – providers of connectivity, cloud, platform and surveillance services – in armed conflicts and in information operations.
The UN Working Group on business and human rights has described “heightened human rights due diligence” in conflict-affected contexts (report A/75/212, 2020), and published a guide with UNDP in 2022. In the European Union, the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (EU) 2024/1760 draws on the Guiding Principles; its scope and timetable were amended by the Omnibus I directive published in the Official Journal on 26 February 2026, which, among other things, postponed application to 2029 and removed the harmonised EU civil liability regime in favour of national law.