In June 2026, the Science Based Targets initiative published version 2.0 of its Corporate Net-Zero Standard – the first full rewrite since the framework launched in 2021. It becomes effective on February 1, 2027, and version 1.3.1 stays valid until January 31, 2028, after which every new target must use version 2.
The dates matter, but they are not the story. The story is what changed underneath them.
For five years, the hard part of net-zero was setting a credible target. Version 2 assumes you can do that. The work it cares about now is everything that comes after: delivering against the target, evidencing your progress, and standing behind your position in public. The standard has shifted from ambition to implementation – and that shift moves carbon out of the sustainability report and into the same category as any other operational and financial decision your business makes.
That is not a burden. For companies that have been treating climate as a strategic question rather than a compliance one, it is an advantage. Here is how to think about it across the three places carbon actually shows up in your business: measuring your emissions, reducing them, and addressing what you cannot yet eliminate.
Climate ambition starts with audit-ready data
Version 2 raises the bar on data, and it does so deliberately. You will be expected to report your scope 1 and 2 footprints every year, with a complete scope 1-3 footprint on a five-year cycle. For larger companies – Category A under the new structure – assurance becomes mandatory. Your emissions number now has to withstand the same scrutiny as a line in your financial statements.
This is the step where a lot of companies will stall, because they cannot act on anything else until they know their number. You cannot set a defensible target without a baseline. You cannot size a credit purchase without one. You cannot build a transition plan on data you are not confident in.
So treat your inventory the way you would treat any control your auditors will look at: complete, documented, and ready to defend. If your baseline is not there yet, that is not a reason to wait on everything else. It is simply the place to start.
A transition plan written in time, is one you can stand behind
The mitigation hierarchy has not changed: reduce first, and remove or compensate only what you cannot eliminate. But what counts as a credible near-term commitment has expanded considerably. Version 2 introduces process-oriented target types alongside emissions reduction targets – supplier engagement programmes, data quality improvements, and life cycle assessment thresholds – giving companies a structured way to demonstrate progress even where Scope 3 data is still maturing. For businesses that could not set credible reduction targets under V1 due to data gaps or supply chain complexity, this is a substantive change.
What has not changed is the expectation of transparency. For Category A companies, a Climate Transition Plan is now mandatory – published within twelve months of target validation, with a credible decarbonisation pathway, milestones, annual reporting, and clear board accountability. The plan is no longer an internal document. It is a public commitment that lenders, investors, and regulators will read.
Companies that begin scoping their target selection and data infrastructure now will enter the validation process with documented baselines, realistic milestones, and governance already in place. Those that do not will produce a plan that lenders, investors, and regulators will recognise for exactly what it is, a documentation exercise assembled under deadline.
Start your carbon credit portfolio before the standard requires it
This is the change that matters most for buyers, and it is the one most companies have not fully absorbed yet.
Version 2 restructures the Beyond Value Chain Mitigation concept into a new framework called Ongoing Emissions Responsibility. Where BVCM was loosely encouraged and undefined in quality, OER introduces formal tiers, integrity criteria, and future mandatory requirements. The OER is built on top of existing crediting registries and standards, not replacing them. The principle is straightforward – you are now formally asked to take responsibility for the emissions that persist on your path to net-zero, not just to reduce them, but to address them. Two consequences follow from that.
First, removals will be moving from optional to required. Category A companies are expected to neutralize 1% of their scope 1-3 footprint by 2035, rising to 100% by their net-zero target year. There is also a durability requirement attached: long-lived removals start at 10% of covered emissions in 2035 and climb to 100% by the net-zero year. In plain terms, you will be expected to start modest and build toward higher-quality, higher-durability removals over time.
That trajectory is not a new idea. It is the staircase — beginning with what is accessible today and moving progressively toward durable removals as your strategy matures. Version 2 has effectively written the staircase into the standard. The companies that start climbing now get to do it deliberately, spreading cost and learning over years. The companies that wait will be buying high-quality removals in volume, on someone else’s timeline, under a deadline that is already visible on the horizon. Those are not the same purchase.
Second, where you stand is now public. The standard allows companies to take responsibility for ongoing emissions either through verified mitigation outcomes (carbon credits) or through a financial contribution budget. At validation, every company has to declare whether it intends to take part in the recognition program. Opt out, and you have to explain why, and that decision appears on the SBTi dashboard for the market to see. For most companies, credits are the more tangible and auditable route. Quality and intent are no longer private choices. They are on the record.
The practical answer to both points is the same: use verified, registry-backed credits only, and build your portfolio gradually so that quality and cost stay under your control rather than the market’s.
The window is the opportunity
You do not have to act under version 2 yet – but the window is shorter than it looks. Mandatory compliance for new submissions kicks in from 2028, and voluntary validation under the new standard opens in early 2027. That makes 2027 the natural inflection point: the companies that arrive there prepared will validate on their own terms. The ones that don’t will be building their baseline, transition plan, and credit portfolio under time pressure.
There is no minimum to begin. Whether you are addressing a few hundred tonnes or a few hundred thousand, the right move is the same: start now, build the practice, and let it mature alongside the standard rather than behind it.
The companies that treat this transition window as breathing room will spend 2027 catching up. The ones that treat it as a head start will spend 2027 ahead. The difference is entirely a matter of when you begin.
Atmoz is a carbon management company. We help companies measure their emissions with our Agentic Carbon Intelligence platform, help plan their reduction journey, and address residual emissions with verified carbon credits.
Reach out to us if you want help with your Science Based Targets initiatives or producing a Transition plan.
