Net Zero Corporate Carbon Credit Strategy: The 2026 Playbook

In a corporate net-zero plan in 2026, carbon credits come after emission cuts, never instead of them. Under the SBTi's Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0, credits do not count toward reduction targets; they have defined roles in voluntary recognition, in the removals large companies must support from 2035, and in neutralising what remains at net zero. EU law now limits what a company may say about them, and disclosure rules require it to report them.

This playbook sets out where credits fit, the claims that are and are not allowed, the disclosures that apply, and how to build the function that runs it.

The order of operations

Every credible framework puts the same steps in the same order.

1. Measure. A complete inventory of scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, with a base year and a method that will survive assurance.
2. Set targets. Near-term and long-term reduction targets aligned with a recognised standard.
3. Cut emissions. Efficiency, electrification, renewable power, supplier engagement and product changes. This is where almost all of the effort and money goes.
4. Take responsibility for what remains. Credits for emissions not yet cut, as a contribution, not an offset against the target.
5. Remove and neutralise. A rising volume of removals, and at net zero enough removals to neutralise residual emissions.

The carbon calculator gives a first estimate of scope 1 and 2 emissions from published conversion factors, showing the arithmetic, as a starting point for step 1.

What SBTi V2.0 allows

The Science Based Targets initiative published its Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 on 11 June 2026. It takes effect on 1 February 2027, and companies can still submit under V1.3.1 until 31 January 2028. Its treatment of credits is the part of the standard most companies need to plan around.

• Credits stay outside target achievement. Targets are met by reducing emissions, whatever the quality of the credits bought.
• Ongoing Emissions Responsibility. It replaces Beyond Value Chain Mitigation as a voluntary programme, with three levels of public recognition, for companies that take responsibility each year for emissions they have not yet cut.
• Category A and Category B. Large companies fall into Category A, with mandatory transition plans, third-party assurance and annual reporting. Category B has lighter requirements.
• Removals from 2035. Category A companies must support removals equal to at least 1% of ongoing scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions in 2035, rising in a straight line to 100% by their net-zero year, with long-lived removals covering a rising share of long-lived greenhouse gas emissions.
• Neutralisation at net zero. All companies must neutralise residual emissions with removals, and long-lived gases with long-lived removals.

Our article on SBTi V2.0 and carbon credits covers the standard in detail, and the SBTi 2035 removals planner works out a company's removal volumes year by year.

The four roles of credits in a plan

The removal ramp is the planning problem most companies underestimate. Durable removals are scarce: across the six registries in Berkeley's database, about 108,000 long-duration removal credits had been issued by mid-2026. A company that will need tens of thousands of tonnes a year from 2035 is competing for supply that is still being built, which is why many sign forward offtakes years in advance. Our comparison of removal technologies sets out the options.

Claims: what you can and cannot say

In the EU. Directive (EU) 2024/825, the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive, has applied since 27 September 2026. It bans claims that a product has a neutral, reduced or positive climate impact on the basis of offsetting emissions outside its value chain, and it bans generic environmental claims that cannot be substantiated. Company-level communications about credits are still possible, but they must be accurate and not imply a product benefit. Our guide to the EU ban on carbon neutral product claims explains the rules, and the EU green claims checker tests a draft claim against them.

Under the VCMI Claims Code. The Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative's code lets a company that has a science-based target and is on track to meet it make a Silver, Gold or Platinum claim, depending on how much of its remaining emissions it covers with high-quality credits. It is voluntary, and it does not override consumer law.

Everywhere. Say what was bought, under which standard, which registry, which vintage and when it was retired. A claim that a reader can check against a registry record is far harder to challenge than a label.

Inside the company. The same discipline applies to internal reporting. A board paper that counts credit purchases as emission cuts will produce figures that do not match the inventory, the disclosures or the SBTi submission, and the mismatch is usually found at assurance.

What you must disclose

• CSRD, ESRS E1-7. Companies reporting under the European Sustainability Reporting Standards disclose greenhouse gas removals and the carbon credits they have bought or plan to buy, with the share from removals and the standards used.
• IFRS S2. Companies reporting under the ISSB standard disclose how they plan to use carbon credits to meet any net emissions target, and the type and quality of those credits.
• California AB 1305. Companies that make carbon neutrality or net-zero claims in California, or buy or use voluntary credits to support them, must publish details of the credits and the basis for the claims.
• California SB 253 and SB 261. Large companies doing business in California report emissions and climate-related financial risk on the state's own timetable.

The regulation tracker follows the status of each regime, and the Climate Disclosure tool in the CRBN.credit terminal drafts IFRS S2, ESRS E1, SB 253 and SB 261 sections from a company's data, marked as drafts.

Buying: quality, vintage and timing

Quality. Start from the ICVCM's two-tick test: a CCP-Eligible programme and a CCP-Approved methodology. Our ranking of carbon credit types shows which types have approved methodologies, and each project's Credit Passport shows the decision that applies to it.

Vintage. Match vintages broadly to the period of the claim, and be wary of old vintages under methodologies that have since been revised or rejected.

Timing. Spot purchases suit issued credits. Removals often need forward contracts, which carry delivery risk; the Forward Offtake Calculator shows what a shortfall does to a contract's value.

Price. Voluntary credit prices are mostly private. Budget for removals and reductions separately, because removals cost far more, and expect removal budgets to rise as the 2035 ramp approaches. For allocation across tiers, registries and vintages, see our guide to carbon credit portfolio construction.

Building the carbon function

A credible programme needs four things more than it needs any particular purchase.

1. A written credit policy. Why the company buys credits, which roles they play, which types and quality tiers are permitted, and who approves exceptions.
2. Clear ownership. One owner for the emissions inventory, one for procurement and one for claims, with sign-off before anything is published.
3. A retirement record. Every claim tied to registry serial numbers and retirement records, kept together so it survives staff changes and audit. The Retirement Ledger in the CRBN.credit terminal checks each retirement against the registry that recorded it.
4. An annual review. Holdings and policy checked against new standards, ICVCM decisions and the company's own progress on reductions.

Common mistakes

• Buying credits before the inventory is solid. A credit programme sized on a weak inventory will be wrong in both directions once the numbers are assured.
• Presenting purchases as progress on the target. Under SBTi V2.0 they are not, and saying so invites challenge.
• Leaving removals to the 2030s. Durable supply takes years to build; companies that wait may find little available at any price.
• Treating a label as a claim. A CCP-labelled credit still cannot support a product neutrality claim in the EU.
• Losing the paper trail. A claim without serial numbers and retirement records is a claim no one can verify.

CRBN.credit provides data and research on carbon markets. It does not broker, sell or execute trades in carbon credits.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Sources

• Science Based Targets initiative, Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0, published 11 June 2026
• Directive (EU) 2024/825 on empowering consumers for the green transition
• European Sustainability Reporting Standards, ESRS E1 Climate Change, disclosure requirement E1-7
• IFRS Foundation, IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures
• California Health and Safety Code, Voluntary Carbon Market Disclosures Act (AB 1305)
• Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative, Claims Code of Practice
• Berkeley Carbon Trading Project, Voluntary Registry Offsets Database, release v2026-06

A note on this article. Standards and reporting rules change, and their application depends on a company's size and jurisdiction. Confirm the requirements that apply to you with the issuing body or an adviser. General information, not legal advice.