A contribution claim
We funded X tonnes of verified removals, beyond our own reductions.
Describes what was done.Software · carbon offsets, for buyers
Carbon offset software: running an offsetting programme that stands up
Carbon offset software helps a company decide what offsets are for, buy and retire them, and report and describe them accurately.
No UK law requires offsetting, but what you say about it is regulated; this page sets out the order of work and quotes the one platform in this site’s registry that mentions offsets in its own words.
What it does
What does carbon offset software actually do for a buyer?
Carbon offset software runs four jobs: measuring the emissions offsets are bought against, sourcing credits, retiring them in a registry, and producing the report and the claim.
The first job sets the rule for the rest: gross Scope 1, 2 and 3 are reported without deducting credits, under ¶29(a) and ¶36(e) of UK SRS S2.
The record each credit needs — serial, programme, methodology version, vintage — is set out on carbon credit software.
A buyer’s programmeExplore
A buyer’s programme
Report and claim
Planned use, types, and wording that does not mislead.
Order of work
In what order should a company offset?
- 1
Measure gross emissions
Scope 1, 2 and 3, kept gross.
- 2
Set and pursue reductions
The VCMI Claims Code expects progress first.
- 3
Decide what offsets are for
Beyond-target contribution, or a net target UK SRS S2 asks you to disclose.
- 4
Buy with a dated quality check
Programme and methodology status on the day.
- 5
Retire and record
Registry entry held against the claim.
- 6
Word the claim
What was done, not “carbon neutral” to EU consumers.
The VCMI Claims Code ties its Silver, Gold and Platinum claims to progress on a company’s own reductions, so software that starts at the marketplace skips the step the claim depends on.
The rules
Which offsetting rules bind you, and which are guidance?
No UK instrument is written for voluntary offsets; what binds is general consumer law applied to the claims you make.
Part 4 of the DMCC Act 2024 makes misleading commercial practices unlawful, and the CMA’s Green Claims Code explains how that applies to environmental claims.
Selling to EU consumers, offset-based claims that a product is neutral, reduced or positive are banned from 27 September 2026 by Directive (EU) 2024/825.
The checker beside this sorts each rule by what it is today, so a proposal never reads as law.
Offsetting rules · pick who you are
1 binding now · 0 made but applying later · 1 proposed only · 3 voluntary
| Instrument | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|
| DMCC Act 2024, Part 4 Binding now | Any offset-based claim to consumers must not mislead; nothing in the Act is written for carbon. | DMCC Act 2024 Part 4 |
| UK VCNM formal response Proposed only | Consulted 2025; formal response not found as at 23 October 2026. | DESNZ consultation |
| Green Claims Code Voluntary | CMA guidance on how consumer law applies to environmental claims. | CMA |
| UK VCNM principles Voluntary | Six integrity principles, 15 November 2024; “should”, not “must”. | DESNZ |
| VCMI Claims Code Voluntary | Silver, Gold and Platinum claims, after progress on reductions. | VCMI v3.1 |
Each status is dated to the instrument linked beside it; a proposal is never shown as law.
Nothing is stored or sent.
Choosing offsets
How does a buyer tell good offsets from weak ones?
No law defines a high-quality offset, so buyers rely on market labels and on what they disclose.
ICVCM’s Core Carbon Principles labels attach to programmes and methodology versions, not to every credit, so the check has a date and a version.
UK codes such as the Woodland Carbon Code and the Peatland Code issue units for UK projects, and the EU’s removals regulation certifies removals in the Union.
Four quality signalsExplore
Claims
What can you say after you offset?
Say what you did: how many tonnes, of what type, retired where, alongside your own reductions.
Carbon neutrality now has its own standard, ISO 14068, after BSI withdrew PAS 2060, as the UKAS bulletin records.
The claim itself is where risk sits, so software that drafts wording from the retirement record is worth more than a dashboard.
After
retiring
retiring
A neutrality claim
Our product is carbon neutral.
Banned to EU consumers from 27 September 2026 where based on offsets.In the demo
What should you ask a carbon offset platform to show?
Ask for the record and the report, not the marketplace.
Each question beside this comes from a rule or a standard, with what a passing answer looks like, so you can run the same eight against every platform.
Carbon offset demo questions · tick the ones you need
The pass tests are our reading of the cited provisions.
Nothing you tick is stored or sent.
Platforms
Which platforms say they handle offsets and credits?
From this site’s registry, read 11 October 2026 and 30 September–1 October 2026: each platform whose own pages mention offsets, carbon credits or removals, alphabetically and in its own words.
| Platform | What its own site says | Ownership |
|---|---|---|
| Terrascope | The platform produces outputs aligned with the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard and associated Standards and Guidance, including Scope 2, Scope 3 and the Land Sector and Removals Standard; ISO 14064, SBTi, and ISSB (IFRS S2). | Part of XeleratedFifty since February 2026 |
Few platforms in the registry describe offsetting on the pages this site read, and a missing mention is a question to put to a platform in writing, not evidence that it lacks the feature.
The wider list is on carbon accounting software, where every platform is quoted in its own words.
In one sentence
The whole page, said once
We cut our own emissions first, and we only say what our offsets actually did.
Takeaways
Five facts, then the next step
| Fact | Source |
|---|---|
| No UK law requires a company to offset. | No UK instrument targets voluntary offsets |
| Gross emissions are reported without deducting credits. | UK SRS S2 ¶29(a), ¶36(e) |
| Offset-based neutrality claims to EU consumers are banned from 27 September 2026. | Directive (EU) 2024/825 |
| ICVCM labels attach to programmes and methodology versions. | ICVCM |
| PAS 2060 is withdrawn; ISO 14068 replaces it. | UKAS; ISO |
Where to go nextExplore
Frequently asked
Carbon offset software, answered
What is carbon offset software?
Software that helps a company run an offsetting programme: decide what offsets are for, buy them, retire them in a registry, and report and claim them accurately.
Many carbon accounting platforms include a marketplace or a credits module.
Is carbon offset software the same as carbon credit software?
Closely related.
This page is about running a buyer’s programme; the carbon credit software page sets out what a register must record for every credit, from purchase to retirement.
Do UK companies have to offset?
No. No UK law requires a company to buy voluntary offsets.
Listed companies reporting under UK SRS S2 disclose planned use of credits toward a net target, on a comply-or-explain basis for periods from 1 January 2027.
Can offsets reduce our reported emissions?
No. Gross Scope 1, 2 and 3 are reported without deducting credits; credits are disclosed separately.
Can we call a product carbon neutral using offsets?
Not to EU consumers from 27 September 2026, under Directive 2024/825.
In the UK any such claim must not mislead under the DMCC Act 2024, and the CMA’s Green Claims Code sets out what that means.
What makes an offset high quality?
No law defines it.
Market signals include ICVCM’s Core Carbon Principles labels, which attach to programmes and methodology versions, and the VCMI Claims Code for how a company may describe its use.
What happened to PAS 2060?
BSI withdrew PAS 2060 at the end of 2025, and UKAS removed it from its schedule; ISO 14068 is the carbon neutrality standard, and its 2023 first part was withdrawn on 11 September 2026 when the replacement was published.
Are UK woodland and peatland credits different?
They are UK codes.
The Woodland Carbon Code issues Pending Issuance Units, a promise of future units, before trees have grown; software should keep them apart from verified units.
Are UK ETS allowances offsets?
No. UK ETS allowances are a compliance instrument surrendered by installations and operators, not voluntary offsets.
Which carbon offset platforms are there?
The table on this page lists, alphabetically and in their own words, the platforms in this site’s registry whose own pages mention offsets, credits or removals. This site ranks none and has tested none.
Is the government regulating voluntary carbon markets?
It consulted in 2025 and published integrity principles in November 2024, which are guidance.
Its formal response had not been found as at 23 October 2026.
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.
Checked against 17 sources fromDepartment for Business and TradeFinancial Conduct AuthorityDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroICVCMVCMIEUR-Lex
- Department for Business and TradeUK SRS S2 (PDF), ¶36(e), B70–B71
Planned use of credits toward a net target.
- Financial Conduct AuthorityPS26/19 — UK SRS reporting by listed companies
Comply or explain for UKLR 6, 14, 15, 16 and 22, periods from 1 January 2027.
- Department for Energy Security and Net ZeroPrinciples for voluntary carbon and nature market integrity
Six principles; guidance, not law.
- Department for Energy Security and Net ZeroVoluntary carbon and nature markets: raising integrity (consultation)
Formal response not found as at 23 October 2026.
- ICVCMAssessment status
CCP labels by programme and methodology version.
- ICVCMThe Core Carbon Principles
Ten principles.
- VCMIClaims Code of Practice v3.1
Silver, Gold and Platinum claims after reducing.
- EUR-LexDirective (EU) 2024/825, Annex I point 4c
Offset-based neutrality claims to EU consumers banned from 27 September 2026.
- European ParliamentGreen Claims Directive procedure file
Not adopted; not withdrawn.
- legislation.gov.ukDMCC Act 2024, Part 4
Misleading commercial practices.
- Competition and Markets AuthorityGreen Claims Code
Claims about offsetting must be clear about what was done.
- ISOISO 14068 — Carbon neutrality
Replaces ISO 14068-1:2023, withdrawn 11 September 2026.
- UKASISO 14068-1 migration from PAS 2060
PAS 2060 withdrawn by BSI at the end of 2025.
- Woodland Carbon CodeWoodland Carbon Code v3.0 (January 2026)
Pending Issuance Units are a promise of future units.
- IUCN UK Peatland ProgrammePeatland Code
UK peatland restoration units.
- EUR-LexRegulation (EU) 2024/3012 (carbon removals)
Voluntary EU certification of removals.
- Department for Energy Security and Net ZeroParticipating in the UK ETS
Allowances, not offsets.