SBTi: reach validation with every answer ready and its evidence beside it

The SBTi (Science Based Targets initiative) is a global initiative that defines and validates corporate emission reduction targets aligned with climate science, to limit warming to 1.5 °C. It was founded in 2015 by CDP, the UN Global Compact, WRI and WWF, and it is the reference standard for showing a climate commitment verified by a third party.

They are greenhouse gas reduction targets calculated so that the company helps keep warming below 1.5 °C. In practice they mean cutting emissions at a set pace (around 4.2% a year in scope 1 and 2 for 1.5 °C) and covering scope 3 when it is material.

The process has five stages: 1) commit by signing the commitment letter; 2) develop the targets by measuring your carbon footprint and modelling them; 3) submit them to the SBTi for validation; 4) communicate the validated targets; 5) disclose progress every year. From commitment you have 24 months to submit your targets.

Yes. Under version 1.3.1, scope 3 must be in the target when it is 40% or more of total scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. For most companies it is the largest part of the footprint, so a credible target depends on measuring the value chain well: purchases, transport, use of sold products and, where relevant, FLAG.

Near-term targets set reductions for the next 5 to 10 years and are the first step. Net-zero targets require cutting emissions across the whole value chain by at least 90% before 2050 and neutralising only the residual with permanent removals. The SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard defines both.

From commitment you have 24 months to develop and submit the targets. Measuring and modelling usually takes two to four months depending on the data available, and the SBTi review can take several more months, with possible corrections. If your base-year footprint is already calculated by category, that first phase is shorter.

It is version 2.0 of the SBTi net-zero standard, published on 11 June 2026. It shifts the focus to executing and showing progress, not just setting the goal. It distinguishes category A (large companies, and medium-sized ones in high-income countries), with a mandatory scope 3 target for every category making up 5% or more of scope 3 emissions, and category B (small companies, and medium-sized ones in lower-income countries), with proportionate requirements. Until validation under 2.0 opens, submissions use version 1.3.1; during 2027 you can choose the version, and 2.0 becomes mandatory from 1 February 2028.

The main changes in version 2.0 are: scope 3 coverage by materiality (categories at 5% or more, instead of the 67% threshold); ambition for scope 1 and scope 2 set separately; a framework for taking responsibility for current emissions through climate finance beyond the value chain; a route to neutralise the residual up to 100% in the net-zero year; and recognition of good faith, which lets a company that acted but missed a target stay on the pathway.

Companies should disclose the base year, organisational boundary, scopes and categories covered, target pathway, calculation method, current emissions, progress against the target and any material changes to data or methodology. They should explain exclusions and estimates, separate gross reductions from offsets or removals, and keep the evidence behind the figures. Consistent annual data makes progress comparable and also serves the CSRD and CDP.

Yes. In an SBTi project, Leia reads the documents you upload (GHG inventory, annual report, current targets) and proposes the answer to each of the 175 questions in the validation portal, with the literal quote and the page it comes from. She answers the scope 1 and 2 emissions questions, the years and the base-year totals from your footprint in Dcycle. You review and confirm each answer before copying it into the portal.

No. The submission is made in the SBTi validation portal, with your account. Dcycle gives you every answer prepared and reviewed so you can copy and paste it, and a specialist supports you through the submission and any corrections.

Dcycle calculates your scope 1, 2 and 3 footprint as the base year, checks the SBTi criteria with their status, models your scope 1 and 2 target and your scope 3 target with the split by category, and links the target to a decarbonisation plan with actions, cost and follow-up. A specialist supports you in preparing the submission and in the corrections during validation.

The Criteria tab lists the 26 SBTi criteria (C1 to C24, with C20 in two parts): scope 1 and 2 coverage, gases included, bioenergy, subsidiaries, registration and target years, age of the base year, ambition level and method, among others. Each one shows your answer and its status. Dcycle answers the ones that depend on measurement with your footprint, and criteria that depend on another one unlock when you complete it.