ISO 14064 · greenhouse gas standards
ISO 14064: inventory, project, verification
ISO 14064 is a three-part series: ISO 14064-1 for an organisation’s greenhouse gas inventory, ISO 14064-2 for projects, and ISO 14064-3 for verifying the statements the other two produce.
None of them is required by UK law, but the verification world they belong to — ISO 14065 and UKAS accreditation — is mandatory for the UK ETS.
This page separates the three parts and shows where each meets UK reporting.
The series
Three parts, three different jobs
The parts are often cited together as “ISO 14064”, which hides that they answer different questions.
Part 1 asks how much an organisation emitted; Part 2 asks how much a project reduced; Part 3 asks whether a statement of either can be relied on.
| Part | Full title (ISO) | What it does, in ISO’s words | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| ISO 14064-1:2018 | Specification with guidance at the organization level for quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and removals | “principles and requirements at the organization level for the quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and removals”, including the inventory’s design, development, management, reporting and verification | Confirmed 2024; to be revised (90.92) |
| ISO 14064-2:2019 | Specification with guidance at the project level for quantification, monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gas emission reductions or removal enhancements | Planning a GHG project, identifying its sources, sinks and reservoirs against a baseline scenario, and monitoring and reporting its performance | Confirmed 2024; to be revised (90.92) |
| ISO 14064-3:2019 | Specification with guidance for the verification and validation of greenhouse gas statements | “principles and requirements … for verifying and validating greenhouse gas (GHG) statements”, for organisation, project and product statements | Confirmed 2024 (90.93) |
Every part is “GHG programme neutral”: where a programme such as a trading scheme or a crediting standard applies, its requirements are added on top.
Part 3’s 2019 edition reversed its title’s word order to “verification and validation”, so matching older citations by title can mislead.
ISO 14064-1
The organisation’s inventory, beside the GHG Protocol
ISO 14064-1 is a specification for building an organisation’s greenhouse gas inventory and reporting it.
Unlike the inventory-only framing people expect, its abstract says it includes requirements for the inventory’s management and verification as well.
The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard does the same job.
It is the one UK SRS S2 names: paragraph 29(a)(ii) requires emissions to be measured in accordance with its 2004 edition, unless a jurisdictional authority or an exchange requires a different method.
So a company preparing UK SRS S2 disclosures uses the GHG Protocol for measurement, even if it also keeps an ISO 14064-1 inventory for another purpose.
The two are converging deliberately.
The GHG Protocol’s development plan records a strategic partnership with ISO announced in September 2025, whose scope includes ISO 14064-1 and the Corporate Standard.
In the first quarter of 2026 members of the ISO working group joined the GHG Protocol’s technical working groups.
Both bodies say they remain fully independent and keep full authority over their own standards, so neither has absorbed the other.
ISO 14064-1:2018 has a double status worth stating in full: ISO confirmed it in 2024, and it is now at stage 90.92, “to be revised”, with a successor draft in work.
For what falls in each scope, with UK examples, see Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions.
Two inventory standards, one programme of work
| ISO 14064-1 | GHG Protocol Corporate Standard | |
|---|---|---|
| Publisher | ISO (TC 207/SC 7) | GHG Protocol |
| Edition in force | 2018 | Revised edition, 2004 |
| Revision | Successor draft under development | Update programme; no revised standard yet |
| Relied on by UK SRS S2 | No | Yes |
Sources: ISO catalogue; GHG Protocol; UK SRS S2
ISO 14064-2
Projects, baselines and removal enhancements
ISO 14064-2 works at a different level: a project intended to reduce emissions or enhance removals, measured against a baseline scenario.
It covers planning the project, identifying the relevant sources, sinks and reservoirs, then monitoring, quantifying and reporting what the project achieves, with data-quality management.
That is a different question from an inventory, and the GHG Protocol draws the same line: its Corporate Standard says it should not be used to quantify project reductions for use as offsets or credits.
ISO 14064-2 does not issue credits.
A crediting programme adds its own rules, registry and verification on top of a programme-neutral standard like this one.
How credits are then treated in a company’s own reporting is a separate matter; UK SRS S2 requires gross emissions, never figures with credits subtracted.
Like Part 1, ISO 14064-2:2019 was confirmed in 2024 and is now marked to be revised.
ISO 14064-3 and ISO 14065
Who checks the statement, and who checks the checker
ISO 14064-3 sets principles and requirements for verifying and validating GHG statements, whether for an organisation, a project or a product.
It says how the engagement is done, not who may do it.
The bodies are governed by ISO 14065:2020, which ISO describes as a sector application of ISO/IEC 17029:2019 and which it confirmed again in 2026.
In the UK, UKAS is the national accreditation body under regulation 3 of the Accreditation Regulations 2009, and ISO 14065 is among the activities it accredits.
UKAS accredits bodies, not consultants or individuals, and its directory of accredited organisations is where to check a verifier.
ISO itself certifies nobody, so “ISO 14064 certified by ISO” describes something that does not exist.
For sustainability assurance more broadly, the FRC issued ISSA (UK) 5000 for voluntary use, effective for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2026.
Internationally, ISAE 3410 on GHG statements is withdrawn from that date, while the UK position on ISAE (UK) 3000 has not been settled by the FRC.
Three layers of standard
| Standard | Governs |
|---|---|
| ISO 14064-3:2019 | How a verification or validation engagement is done |
| ISO 14065:2020 | The bodies that do it |
| ISO/IEC 17029:2019 | Validation and verification bodies generally; 14065 is its sector application |
Source: ISO catalogue records for ISO 14064-3 and ISO 14065
In UK regimes
Where verification is mandatory, and where it is not
| Regime | Verification or assurance position | Where ISO standards come in |
|---|---|---|
| UK ETS | Mandatory: verified emissions report by 31 March | Verifier accredited by UKAS to ISO 14065 and the Verification Regulation |
| SECR | No statutory requirement for assurance; recommended as good practice | Any standard used is voluntary |
| UK SRS, FCA final rules | Assurance not required; if obtained, name provider, scope and standards (PS26/19 ¶2.45) | Whatever standard was used is disclosed |
| Carbon reduction plans | Footprint to a reasonable level of assurance, but no audit requirement | None named |
| ISO 14068 claims | Third-party verification of the claim | Built on a quantified footprint |
The UK ETS row is the one that is compulsory, and it is verification of a regulated emissions report, not sustainability assurance.
Its instrument is the Verification Regulation, with bodies accredited to ISO 14065; ISO 14064-3 is not what the scheme names.
The SECR guidance says there is no statutory requirement to have environmental information audited, and recommends independent assurance as best practice.
Under the FCA’s final UK SRS rules, a listed company reports on a comply-or-explain basis and is not required to obtain assurance.
Where it does obtain assurance, it names the provider, the disclosures assured and the standards used — which is where ISO 14064-3 or ISSA (UK) 5000 would be named.
The emissions figures themselves are usually built with the DESNZ UK emission factors, whichever inventory standard frames them.
Inventory versus claim
ISO 14064-1 counts; ISO 14068 claims
A frequent question is how ISO 14064-1 differs from the carbon neutrality standard.
ISO 14064-1 produces an organisation’s inventory and makes no claim about it.
ISO 14068 sets out how to achieve and demonstrate carbon neutrality through quantifying, reducing and offsetting a carbon footprint, and includes requirements for making the claim.
It puts reductions and removals within the value chain ahead of offsetting.
Its 2023 edition, ISO 14068-1:2023, was withdrawn on 11 September 2026 and is being replaced by ISO 14068:2026.
How that standard works, and how it is verified, is on our ISO 14068 carbon neutrality page; the withdrawn British specification it replaced is on our PAS 2060 page.
An inventory under ISO 14064-1 or the GHG Protocol reports gross emissions.
A neutrality claim is a separate statement about credits retired, and never a smaller inventory.
How the frameworks compare as a whole is set out in our overview of carbon reporting frameworks.
To talk through which standard fits a specific reporting need, you can book a free 15-minute call.
Frequently asked
Questions people ask
What is ISO 14064?
A three-part ISO series on greenhouse gases. Part 1 (ISO 14064-1:2018) covers quantifying and reporting an organisation’s emissions and removals. Part 2 (ISO 14064-2:2019) covers GHG projects that reduce emissions or enhance removals. Part 3 (ISO 14064-3:2019) covers verifying and validating GHG statements. The series is GHG programme neutral: a programme’s own rules sit on top of it.
What is the difference between ISO 14064-1 and the GHG Protocol?
Both set out how an organisation builds a greenhouse gas inventory. ISO 14064-1 is an ISO specification that also carries requirements for the inventory’s management and verification; the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard is published by the GHG Protocol, and UK SRS S2 requires emissions to be measured in accordance with its 2004 edition unless an authority or exchange requires another method. Since September 2025 the two bodies have been working together to harmonise them, while each keeps full authority over its own standard.
What is the difference between ISO 14068 and ISO 14064-1?
ISO 14064-1 quantifies an organisation’s emissions. ISO 14068 is about achieving and demonstrating carbon neutrality — quantifying a carbon footprint, reducing it, offsetting what remains and making a claim. A carbon neutrality claim needs a footprint, but a footprint on its own makes no claim.
Is ISO 14064-1:2018 still current?
Yes, but it is due to be replaced. ISO’s record says it was last reviewed and confirmed in 2024 and remains current, and also shows it at stage 90.92, "to be revised", with a successor draft under development. ISO 14064-2:2019 is in the same position. ISO 14064-3:2019 is confirmed with no revision under way.
Is ISO 14064 verification mandatory in the UK?
No UK law requires ISO 14064. UK ETS reports must be verified by a verifier accredited by UKAS to ISO 14065 and the Verification Regulation, which is a different requirement. SECR carries no statutory assurance requirement, and the FCA’s final UK SRS rules require a company only to say, if it obtained assurance, who provided it, over what, and under which standards.
Does ISO certify organisations to ISO 14064?
No. ISO writes standards and says it does not perform certification or issue certificates. A GHG statement is verified by an independent body; in the UK, accreditation of such bodies is UKAS’s job, against ISO 14065.
Who can verify a GHG statement against ISO 14064-3?
Any competent independent body can carry out the engagement, but accredited verification in the UK means a body accredited by UKAS to ISO 14065, the standard for bodies validating and verifying environmental information. UKAS accredits bodies, never individual consultants.
Is ISO 14064-2 used for carbon credits?
ISO 14064-2 sets principles and requirements for quantifying, monitoring and reporting a GHG project’s reductions or removal enhancements against a baseline scenario. It is programme neutral, so a crediting programme adds its own rules on top; the standard does not by itself issue or approve credits.
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.
- ISOISO 14064-1:2018 — Part 1: organisation-level quantification and reporting (catalogue record)
Abstract; confirmed 2024; stage 90.92, to be revised, successor ISO/WD 14064-1.2.
- ISOISO 14064-2:2019 — Part 2: project-level quantification, monitoring and reporting (catalogue record)
Abstract; confirmed 2024; stage 90.92, to be revised.
- ISOISO 14064-3:2019 — Part 3: verification and validation of GHG statements (catalogue record)
Abstract; applies to organisation, project and product statements; confirmed 2024.
- ISOISO 14065:2020 — bodies validating and verifying environmental information (catalogue record)
A sector application of ISO/IEC 17029:2019; confirmed again in 2026.
- ISOISO 14068 — Climate change management — Carbon neutrality (catalogue record, std 94470)
The carbon neutrality standard that builds on a quantified footprint.
- ISOCertification — "ISO does not perform certification"
Certification and accreditation defined; ISO issues no certificates.
- GHG ProtocolCorporate Accounting and Reporting Standard (revised edition, 2004)
The corporate inventory standard, and its line between inventories and project accounting.
- GHG ProtocolConsolidated Corporate Standard Development Plan v2.0 (29 July 2026), §§2 and 8(b)
The ISO partnership covering ISO 14064-1; ISO WG4 joining the working groups in Q1 2026.
- GHG Protocol / ISOISO–GHG Protocol partnership: frequently asked questions
Both bodies "retain full authority over their standards".
- legislation.gov.ukAccreditation Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/3155), regulation 3
UKAS appointed as the UK national accreditation body.
- UKASSearch UKAS accredited organisations
Where to check that a verification body is accredited.
- Department for Energy Security and Net ZeroUK ETS for installations: how to comply — appointing an independent verifier
Verifiers must be UKAS-accredited to ISO 14065 and the Verification Regulation.
- DESNZ / DefraEnvironmental Reporting Guidelines including SECR guidance (March 2019), Ch. 1 and Ch. 2 §9
No statutory requirement to have SECR data audited or assured.
- Financial Conduct AuthorityPS26/19: Aligning listed issuers’ sustainability disclosures with international standards, ¶2.45
Where assurance is obtained, name the provider, the disclosures assured and the standards used.
- Department for Business and TradeUK SRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures, ¶29(a)(i)–(ii)
Absolute gross emissions by scope, measured in accordance with the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard (2004).
- Financial Reporting CouncilISSA (UK) 5000, ¶¶11 and 15
For voluntary use; effective for periods beginning on or after 15 December 2026.
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