SBTi · Target setting
Science based targets: how SBTi validation works in 2026
Science based targets are emissions reduction targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative as consistent with climate science.
Validation is a voluntary service, not a UK legal requirement, and the standard is changing: Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 was published on 11 June 2026 but cannot be used until 1 February 2027.
This guide explains which standard applies now, how the SME route works, and how targets surface in UK reporting.
What they are
A target, a pathway, and a third-party check
A science based target is a greenhouse gas reduction target set along a pathway the SBTi considers consistent with limiting warming in line with the Paris Agreement.
The SBTi publishes the criteria, and its validation service checks a company’s submitted targets against them.
Near-term targets cover the next several years; a net-zero target sets the long-term end point and how residual emissions are dealt with.
The SBTi was founded, in its own words, as a collaboration between CDP, the UN Global Compact, the We Mean Business Coalition, the World Resources Institute and WWF.
Targets are set against a greenhouse gas inventory built on the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard and, for value-chain emissions, the Scope 3 Standard.
The GHG Protocol is being revised, but no revised Corporate or Scope 3 Standard exists yet, so the current editions still govern.
The climate science behind the pathways comes from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and the UK’s own direction of travel is set out in the government’s Net Zero Strategy.
No UK law requires a company to set a target or have it validated.
SBTi validation is a service a company chooses; the pressure to do it is commercial — from investors, customers and supply chains.
Which standard
V1.3.1 now, V2.0 from 2027
The Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 is published and final, but a company cannot be validated against it until 1 February 2027.
Until then, and alongside V2.0 until 31 January 2028, targets are set under Corporate Net-Zero Standard V1.3.1 and the Near-Term Criteria V5.3.1.
The SBTi’s own advice is that companies with commitments or target renewals due in 2026 or 2027 should keep using V1.3.1.
Existing validated targets stand; the SBTi says companies with them do not need to set new ones.
V2.0 is a major revision, and the SBTi says a criterion-by-criterion mapping to V1.3.1 is not feasible.
Its stated aims are to align with the latest science, strengthen the approach to Scope 3, assess whether targets are achieved, and improve interoperability.
The SBTi’s own documents give two effective dates, 31 January and 1 February 2027; the Standard and the transition guide agree on 1 February.
Sector guidance, including FLAG for forest, land and agriculture, remains valid alongside V1.3.1; the FLAG Standard V2 call for evidence is open until 8 October 2026.
- 14 Apr 2026Near-Term Criteria V5.3.1 effective
A non-substantive update; no criteria changed.
- 8 May 2026V2.0 approved by the Technical Council
- 21 May 2026Adopted by the Board of Trustees
- 11 Jun 2026V2.0 published
Final, but not yet usable for validation.
- 1 Feb 2027V2.0 validations open
Either version may be used.
- 31 Jan 2028Last V1.3.1 submissions
- 1 Feb 2028V2.0 mandatory for all submissions
Sources: SBTi Main Changes Document · Transition Guide Table 1
The process
From commitment to published target
The broad shape of an SBTi submission, in order; check the current criteria and service documents for the detail before you start.
Build the inventory
A complete Scope 1 and 2 inventory, and a Scope 3 screen across all fifteen categories.
Choose the route
The corporate route, or the SME route if every gate and three size tests are met.
Model the targets
Near-term, and net-zero if you are setting one, against the criteria version in force.
Submit for validation
Through SBTi Services, with the evidence the criteria ask for.
Publish and communicate
Say publicly what you committed to, against which base year, and by when.
Report progress every year
Against the same inventory boundary, and recalculate if the business changes.
Most of the work sits in step 1: a target is only as reliable as the inventory it is measured against.
A company already reporting under Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting has its energy and Scope 1 and 2 data, but SECR asks for almost no Scope 3.
Our sister site’s SECR reporting guide covers that baseline in depth.
Science based targets for SMEs
The SME route: four gates, then three of four
The SBTi’s SME route is a separate validation route with a simpler submission — not a way to skip validation, and not open to every small company.
| Test | Requirement | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Emissions | Under 10,000 tCO2e across Scope 1 and location-based Scope 2 | Gate — must be met |
| Sector | Not in the financial institutions or oil and gas sectors | Gate — must be met |
| Sector criteria | Not required to use sector-specific criteria, such as a Sectoral Decarbonization Approach | Gate — must be met |
| Group | Not a subsidiary of a parent whose combined business falls in the corporate route | Gate — must be met |
| Employees | Fewer than 250 | Three of these four |
| Turnover | Less than €50 million | Three of these four |
| Total assets | Less than €25 million | Three of these four |
| FLAG | Not in a mandatory FLAG sector | Three of these four |
The shape is all four gates, then three of the four size and sector tests — not the two-of-three test of SECR, and not the ESOS test.
The thresholds are strict: fewer than 250 employees, and less than €50 million and €25 million.
Eligibility is confirmed at registration from the company’s financial statements.
Mandatory FLAG sectors include forestry, timber and paper, agricultural and animal-source food production, food and beverage processing, food retail and tobacco.
Carbon credits
Where credits fit, and where they do not
Criterion CNZS-C5.4 requires companies to account for and report a physical greenhouse gas inventory, and, where applicable, to account separately for actions and market instruments that are not reflected in it.
The SBTi’s V2 landing page describes high-integrity credits as “a complement and not a substitute to companies reducing their carbon footprint”.
UK SRS takes the same line from the disclosure side: UK SRS S2 requires gross emissions, and a company with a net target must also disclose its associated gross target.
A science based target is also not a carbon neutral claim: the standard most UK carbon neutral claims cited, PAS 2060, was withdrawn at the end of 2025, and ISO 14068-1:2023 was withdrawn on 11 September 2026.
V2.0 contains no single sentence banning credits from counting towards reduction targets.
It gets there structurally: targets are set on the physical inventory, and market instruments are accounted for separately.
Targets in UK reporting
How a target shows up in a UK report
| Where | What it asks about targets | Status |
|---|---|---|
| UK SRS S2 | Disclose the climate targets you have set, whether each is gross or net, and planned use of credits | Voluntary standard; comply-or-explain for listed companies from 2027 (PS26/19) |
| TCFD-aligned rules | Targets used to manage climate risks, and performance against them | Required today for listed and large companies |
| CDP | Targets and validation status in the climate questionnaire | Voluntary |
| SECR | Nothing — SECR requires no target | Required for SECR companies and LLPs |
No UK entity is under a legal duty to have a climate transition plan; the DESNZ transition plan consultation closed on 17 September 2025 with no government response published.
The FCA’s final rules in PS26/19 ask listed companies in scope to state whether they have a transition plan and where to find it, not to have one.
CDP publishes company scores that record validated targets, and our CDP reporting guide explains how targets feed the questionnaire.
Science based targets consultancy
Choosing help, and what to ask
A science based targets consultancy typically builds the inventory, screens Scope 3, models target options and prepares the submission.
The SBTi validates targets itself, so no consultant can “certify” a science based target.
Ask which criteria version the work will use, and how the proposal handles the V1.3.1 to V2.0 transition if your submission falls in 2027.
Ask how Scope 3 will be estimated, which data sources and emission factors will be used, and who owns the model afterwards.
Ask whether the consultant also sells offsets or reduction projects, and how that is kept separate from the target advice.
The guide to carbon compliance services covers choosing a provider more generally.
SRS Report works with a network of independent specialists; to talk your position through first, book a free 15-minute call.
The sister reference site sustainabilityreportingstandards.co.uk covers the wider standards picture.
Further reading
Initiatives you will meet along the way
These organisations appear around target-setting; they are context, not sources for any requirement on this page.
The World Resources Institute is one of the SBTi’s founding partners, and the We Mean Business Coalition is another.
The UN’s Race to Zero campaign gathers net zero pledges from businesses, cities and others.
Net Zero Tracker is an independent database of net zero commitments.
Climate Action 100+ is an investor engagement initiative focused on large emitters.
The WBCSD’s science based targets work and the Carbon Trust’s footprinting service are examples of the material and services around the SBTi.
The TCFD recommendations introduced targets as one of the four disclosure pillars, and CDP collects target data from its respondents.
Frequently asked
Questions people ask
What are science based targets?
Science based targets are corporate greenhouse gas reduction targets that the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has validated as consistent with climate science. Near-term targets cover the next several years; a net-zero target sets the long-term end point. Validation is a service the SBTi provides; no UK law requires it.
Which SBTi standard applies in 2026?
Corporate Net-Zero Standard V1.3.1 and the Corporate Near-Term Criteria V5.3.1. The SBTi published Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 on 11 June 2026, but validations against it open only on 1 February 2027. Companies may submit under V1.3.1 until 31 January 2028, and V2.0 becomes mandatory for all submissions from 1 February 2028.
Do existing SBTi targets need to be reset for V2.0?
No. The SBTi says companies with existing validated targets do not need to set new ones. Companies with commitments or target renewals due in 2026 or 2027 should continue to develop and submit targets using V1.3.1.
Can an SME use the SBTi SME route?
Only if it passes all four gates and three of four size tests. The gates: under 10,000 tCO2e across Scope 1 and location-based Scope 2; not in the financial institutions or oil and gas sectors; not required to use sector-specific criteria; and not a subsidiary of a parent in the corporate route. The size tests: fewer than 250 employees, turnover under €50 million, total assets under €25 million, and not in a mandatory FLAG sector.
Can carbon credits count towards a science based target?
Targets are set on the physical greenhouse gas inventory. Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 requires companies to account for and report market instruments separately from that inventory, and the SBTi describes high-integrity credits as a complement to, not a substitute for, reducing emissions.
Are science based targets mandatory in the UK?
No. No UK law requires a company to set an emissions target or to have it validated. UK SRS S2 requires a company that reports under it to disclose the targets it has set, including whether each is gross or net, but it does not require any target to exist.
Is SBTi the same as carbon neutral certification?
No. A science based target is a commitment to reduce emissions along a validated pathway. Carbon neutral claims are a different thing, and the standard most UK claims used, PAS 2060, was withdrawn at the end of 2025.
Who founded the SBTi?
The SBTi says it was founded as a collaboration between CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, the We Mean Business Coalition, the World Resources Institute and the World Wide Fund for Nature.
Sources
Primary sources
Every figure, date and status on this page traces to the instrument’s owner. Secondary commentary is never the source for a number.
- Science Based Targets initiativeCorporate Net-Zero Standard Version 2.0 (June 2026)
Published 11 June 2026; effective 1 February 2027.
- Science Based Targets initiativeCorporate Net-Zero Standard V2 — Criteria, CNZS-C5.4
Market instruments accounted for separately from the physical inventory.
- Science Based Targets initiativeCorporate Net-Zero Standard V2 — Main Changes Document
Approval, adoption and transition dates.
- SBTi ServicesGuide for companies in the transition to Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0, Table 1
Validations open 1 February 2027; V2.0 mandatory from 1 February 2028.
- Science Based Targets initiativeThe Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 is here: what comes next (11 June 2026)
Use V1.3.1 for commitments and renewals due in 2026 or 2027.
- Science Based Targets initiativeCorporate Net-Zero Standard V2 — landing page
Credits “a complement and not a substitute”.
- Science Based Targets initiativeSBTi Corporate Near-Term Criteria, Version 5.3.1 (April 2026)
Effective 14 April 2026.
- Science Based Targets initiativeAbout us
The five founding partners.
- Science Based Targets initiativeForest, land and agriculture (FLAG)
FLAG Standard V2 call for evidence open until 8 October 2026.
- GHG ProtocolA Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard (revised edition)
The inventory rules targets are set against.
- GHG ProtocolCorporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard (2011)
The fifteen Scope 3 categories.
- Department for Business and TradeUK SRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures, ¶¶29(a) and 36
Gross emissions; how targets, gross and net, are disclosed.
- FCAPS26/19: Aligning listed issuers’ sustainability disclosures with international standards
Final rules, 30 September 2026; transition plan statement.
- DESNZClimate-related transition plan requirements (consultation)
Closed 17 September 2025; no government response published.
- IPCCIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
The climate science the pathways draw on.
Continue reading