SBTi targets: how to set and validate science-based targets

SBTi targets are greenhouse gas reduction targets that SBTi Services has validated against the criteria of the Science Based Targets initiative. For what the SBTi is, how it is governed and how it fits UK reporting, start with our SBTi guide. This page is the practical part: how to get targets validated.

There are two kinds. A near-term target covers the next 5 to 10 years. A net-zero target adds a long-term target for no later than 2050 and requires approved near-term targets first. The rules for both are in the SBTi's standards and guidance, and for a submission in 2026 they are the Corporate Near-Term Criteria V5.3.1 and the Corporate Net-Zero Standard V1.3.1.

SBTi Services sets the process out in six stages: register, commit, develop, submit, communicate and disclose. The stepper above groups registration with the commitment and gives validation its own step, because that is where most of the waiting happens.

The two January dates are easy to run together. Under Table 4 of the SBTi Services transition guide, the option to commit to separate near-term or net-zero targets closes on 31 January 2027; from then on a new commitment is a single commitment to set targets under V2.0. Validations under V2.0 open the next day, 1 February 2027, and submissions under V1.3.1 stay open until 31 January 2028. A company that commits in January 2027 is therefore committing under the old form but can still meet it with V1.3.1 targets, provided it submits by 31 January 2028.

Commitments that lapse are removed, and the Target Dashboard shows the removal alongside validated targets, so a missed deadline is public. Our overview of the Science Based Targets initiative explains the dashboard and the difference between committed and validated.

Most of the elapsed time is in step 3. SBTi Services answers questions during validation but does not offer consultancy, and the SBTi notes that many companies use consultants for the inventory and modelling. Our net-zero consultancy guide covers choosing one.

Each step has its own clock, and only some of them are fixed. The table gives the SBTi's own figure for each, with where it comes from.

Three validation timescales, and they disagree

The SBTi publishes three different answers to “how long does validation take?”, and they cannot all be right for the same submission:

The first is in the Service Offerings, the contract document; the second is in the FAQ on the SBTi Services site; the third is on the SBTi's how-it-works page. They also measure from different points: the first two from the validation start date, the third from submission. The Service Offerings is the document you sign, so treat 40 business days as the commitment and the others as indications. The business-day figures assume you pass screening and answer the analyst's queries within two business days.

The Corporate Near-Term Criteria V5.3.1, in effect since 14 April 2026, are what SBTi Services checks a corporate submission against. The main ones are summarised below.

The scope 3 rules need the most data. A company must first complete a scope 3 inventory for all relevant categories, and the SBTi does not accept “negligible” as a reason to omit one. Our scope 3 emissions guide covers the categories, and our scope 2 guide explains the location-based and market-based methods.

The target setting tool.Criterion C7 requires targets to be modelled with the latest SBTi-approved methods and tools. For most companies that means the Corporate Near-term Tool and Corporate Net-Zero Tool, which implement the cross-sector pathway. A target modelled on a superseded tool can only be submitted within six months of the new version's release. Version 5.3.1 updated the absolute contraction method to accommodate more recent base years, so the minimum cut now depends on how far the base year is from the net-zero year, with a floor of 4.2% a year for scope 1 and 2.

The SME validation route is a shorter process for smaller companies. Eligibility is confirmed at registration, and a company that qualifies can still choose the corporate route instead.

The size limits are in euros because, according to the SBTi Services SME FAQs, they were aligned with the EU's CSRD thresholds in December 2023 and February 2024. They are not the UK's. Under section 465 of the Companies Act 2006, a UK company is medium-sized if it meets two of three limits: turnover of no more than £54 million, a balance sheet total of no more than £27 million and no more than 250 employees. A UK company can be medium-sized in law and still fail the SBTi test on emissions or ownership.

What SME validation means in practice. SMEs go straight to target setting, with no commitment stage. They choose a predefined option in the Validation Portal and upload no separate forms. Near-term targets are absolute scope 1 and 2 targets over 5 to 10 years; SMEs must commit to measure and reduce scope 3 but need no near-term scope 3 target. The earliest base year is 2015. There is no fixed validation timeframe on the SME route, and SBTi Services may contact the company before confirming approval.

SME net-zero targets are different. They are open only to SMEs with validated 1.5°C near-term targets, they must include scope 3, and they come with a commitment to neutralise unabated emissions once the long-term target is met.

Forest, Land and Agriculture (FLAG) targets cover land-based emissions and removals: deforestation, land conversion, fertiliser and manure, and carbon stored by restoring ecosystems. The SBTi FLAG page says who must set them.

FLAG validation is an add-on service: it is priced separately and submitted with another service. The SBTi is revising the FLAG Guidance to fit the Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0, and its call for evidence is open until 8 October 2026. Existing FLAG guidance stays valid alongside V1.3.1 during the transition.

SBTi Services publishes its prices in its Target Validation Service Offerings, version 6.1, effective 5 January 2026. Fees depend on organisation type and a turnover tier set at registration. UK-registered companies are invoiced in pounds with 20% VAT on top; the pound prices are converted at £1 = $1.34 and may change. The fee lookup at the top of the page gives the dollar fee for each tier.

Corporate tiers in between cost £11,940 for near-term targets at €250 million to €1 billion of turnover, and £15,672 at €1 billion to €10 billion. SBTi's table prints €1 billion in both of those tiers, so a company at exactly that figure should ask SBTi Services which applies. Discounts apply to companies headquartered in low-income and lower-middle-income economies on the World Bank classification, and must be requested at registration.

On timing, the three SBTi figures are set out in the timelines chapter above: 40 business days in the Service Offerings, 30 business days for near-term targets in the SBTi Services FAQ, and usually within 12 weeks on the how-it-works page. Plan on the longest of these.

Validation is not the end. Criterion C25 requires public reporting of the full inventory and progress every year. C26 requires every active target to be reviewed at least every five years against the latest criteria, and revalidated if it no longer meets them.

C27 lists the events that force a recalculation before then: scope 3 rising to 40% or more of total emissions, a change of consolidation approach, significant changes in exclusions, acquisitions, divestments or mergers, and data or method changes that significantly alter base-year emissions. The significance threshold is 5% or less. Our GHG Protocol guide explains base-year recalculation on the inventory side.

The move to V2.0. The SBTi Services transition guide says V2.0 validation opens on 1 February 2027 and V1.3.1 submissions stay open until 31 January 2028. Companies with validated targets are not required to act immediately. A renewal due in 2026 or 2027 should be prepared under V1.3.1.

Validated targets also feed other work. A UK supplier bidding for major government contracts will need a PPN 006 carbon reduction plan that is consistent with them, and a company reporting under UK SRS S2 must disclose whether its targets were validated by a third party.

The six steps are the same for everyone, but the route, the price and the deadlines are not. Pick the description that fits; each tab says what applies, what to do next and by when.

The timeline marks what has passed and what comes next as of the day you read it. The version and fee dates are read from the corpus entries that cite the SBTi's own documents; the commitment and validation-resource dates are from Tables 1 and 4 of the transition guide.

Validation PortalSBTi Services

The online system for registration, commitments and target submissions.

Commitmentstep 1

A public intent to set targets, opening a 24-month window to submit; not open to SMEs.

Screeningstep 3

A check that a submission meets key criteria and has the right files before validation starts.

Validation start datestep 3

The date the assessment clock starts, given at least 10 business days ahead.

Target Dashboardstep 5

The SBTi’s public list of validated targets, commitments and removed commitments.

Near-term targetC13

A 5 to 10 year reduction target with a base year no earlier than 2015.

SME routeSME FAQs V6.2

The shorter, cheaper route for companies under 10,000 tCO2e of scope 1 and location-based scope 2 that pass its tests.

FLAGsector

Forest, Land and Agriculture emissions and removals, targeted separately.

RecalculationC27

Resetting a target after an event that significantly changes base-year emissions.