Carbon Credit Claims Guidance for Buyers
Carbon credit claims should accurately describe what was purchased, retired and supported. Retirement is necessary for a use claim, but it does not by itself prove that an organization or product is carbon neutral.Carbon credit claims guidance
What this page helps you do
Carbon credit claims guidance: make accurate carbon credit claims by measuring and reducing emissions, selecting suitable credits, retiring units and.
A Responsible Claims Sequence
Measure
Define the emissions boundary, period, gases and calculation approach.
Reduce
Prioritize direct and value-chain emission reductions and disclose the reduction plan.
Purchase
Select credits using project, methodology, vintage, quality and use-case evidence.
Retire
Retire the relevant quantity for a named beneficiary and documented purpose.
Communicate
Describe the project support and retirement without implying that credits erase physical emissions from the inventory.
Claims to Qualify Carefully
Carbon neutral
Do not use a broad neutrality claim without a defined boundary, method, reduction plan and applicable legal or voluntary guidance.
Compliance
Do not claim that voluntary credits satisfy a regulatory obligation unless the exact units are eligible under that scheme.
High integrity
Support quality claims with methodology- and unit-level evidence rather than the registry name alone.
Article 6 and corresponding adjustment
Only state authorization or corresponding adjustment where current authoritative evidence applies to the specific units.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does retirement make a company carbon neutral?
Not by itself. A neutrality claim requires defined boundaries, measurement, reduction action, an applicable method and accurate disclosure of the credits used.
Can voluntary credits be used for compliance?
Only when the specific units meet the rules of the relevant regulatory scheme. General voluntary-market eligibility is not sufficient.
What is a safer contribution statement?
Describe the project or mitigation outcome financed, the quantity retired, the beneficiary, period and registry evidence without claiming that operational emissions disappeared.
Continue Your Research
Related pages
Use these related guides to verify the evidence before taking action.