Certification / Accreditation

ISO 14068-1 Carbon neutrality

ISO 14068-1 (formally BS ISO 14068-1:2023) is the international standard for achieving and demonstrating carbon neutrality, for organisations, products or events. It replaced PAS 2060 at the end of 2025, and sets out a clear hierarchy: reduce emissions first, then enhance removals, and only then offset what remains.

At its core, it stops carbon neutrality being a label you can buy through offsets alone. A credible claim under this standard means showing real reductions over time, not just purchasing enough credits to balance the books.

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Who it’s for and what’s involved

Relevant if you are:

Already claiming carbon neutrality under PAS 2060 and needing to transition

Setting a carbon neutrality or net zero commitment for the first time

Under pressure from customers or investors to back up climate claims

Relying heavily on offsetting and wanting a more defensible approach

Achieving carbon neutrality involves:

Quantifying your carbon footprint to ISO 14064-1 or ISO 14067

Setting a carbon neutrality pathway with short and long-term targets

Prioritising emission reductions and removals ahead of offsetting

Publishing a carbon neutrality report and having claims verified

How Q! supports your claim

From PAS 2060 to ISO 14068-1, without losing the work you’ve already done

If you are already certified to PAS 2060, most of what you have built carries forward, the underlying logic of reduce-then-offset is the same. What changes is the rigour: a documented pathway, named reduction targets, and stricter criteria for any carbon credits you still rely on. We map what you have against the new requirements rather than starting your carbon neutrality work from zero.

Already claiming carbon neutrality under PAS 2060? Here’s what the switch to ISO 14068-1 actually means.

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Mini FAQs

PAS 2060 was withdrawn on 31 December 2025, so any claim resting on it will need to move across to ISO 14068-1. The good news is the underlying principle, reduce first, offset what’s left, carries forward; the main changes are a more structured carbon neutrality pathway and tighter criteria for the carbon credits you use.

No, and that is rather the point. The standard puts offsetting last in a hierarchy behind genuine emission reductions and removals, and requires you to justify why you have not reduced further before offsetting what remains. It is designed to stop carbon neutrality being achievable through offset purchasing alone.

Carbon neutrality and net zero are closely related but not identical under this standard. Carbon neutrality typically allows offsetting of residual emissions through carbon credits, while net zero, as commonly defined, restricts offsetting to removal credits only once residual emissions remain. The standard sets requirements for carbon neutrality; net zero claims sit slightly beyond its formal scope.

A quantified carbon footprint, built to ISO 14064-1 for an organisation or ISO 14067 for a product, comes first. From there you need a documented carbon neutrality management plan with a pathway and targets, evidence of genuine reductions, and, if you are offsetting, credits that meet the standard’s criteria. Claims also need independent verification.

Carbon credits have to be real, additional, measurable, permanent or backed against reversal, and certified, and you cannot use credits more than five years old relative to your reporting period. This rules out a lot of the cheaper, lower-quality credits that have drawn criticism in voluntary carbon markets.