Carbon credit quality: avoidance vs removal, CCPs and claims

Carbon credit quality comes down to whether each tonne is real, additional, permanent, counted only once and independently verified. Avoidance credits prevent emissions that would otherwise occur; removal credits take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. The ICVCM Core Carbon Principles now give buyers a common benchmark for quality, but due diligence and honest claims remain the buyer's job.

Avoidance, reduction and removal credits

Every carbon credit represents one tonne of CO2 equivalent. What that tonne means depends on the type of project behind it.

Type	What it does	Examples	Points to check
Avoidance	Prevents emissions that would have happened without the project	Avoided deforestation (REDD+), some clean cooking projects	Credible baseline, leakage, risk of reversal
Reduction	Cuts emissions from an existing source	Landfill gas capture, methane destruction, industrial gas abatement	Additionality, monitoring of the destroyed gas
Removal (nature-based)	Stores carbon in trees, soils or coastal ecosystems	Afforestation, reforestation, mangrove restoration	Permanence, buffer pools, monitoring period
Removal (engineered)	Stores carbon in durable forms	Biochar, direct air capture with storage, enhanced rock weathering	Measurement method, durability claims, price

Avoidance and reduction credits are often grouped together. Neither is inherently low quality; a well-designed methane destruction project can be very robust. The difference matters most for claims: net-zero frameworks generally expect residual emissions at the net-zero date to be balanced with removals, not avoidance.

Carbon credit quality: what makes a high-quality credit

Whatever the type, the same tests apply:

• Additionality — the reduction would not have happened without carbon credit revenue. Projects that are already profitable or legally required usually fail this test.
• Conservative quantification — a realistic baseline, deductions for leakage and uncertainty, and monitoring against an approved methodology.
• Permanence — for stored carbon, a plan to manage reversals, usually through a buffer pool and long monitoring.
• No double counting — each tonne issued once, retired once and claimed once, tracked in a public registry.
• Independent validation and verification by an accredited third party.
• Safeguards — social and environmental safeguards, consultation with local communities and fair benefit-sharing.

ICVCM Core Carbon Principles: where things stand

The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) sets ten Core Carbon Principles (CCPs) covering governance, emissions impact and sustainable development. Its assessment works at two levels:

1. Programme level — a carbon-crediting programme (standard-setter) is assessed and, if it meets the governance and transparency requirements, becomes CCP-eligible. As at the ICVCM's August 2026 update, thirteen programmes were CCP-eligible, including Verra's Verified Carbon Standard, Gold Standard, ACR, Climate Action Reserve, ART, Puro.earth and Isometric.
2. Methodology level — categories of methodologies are assessed. Credits from an approved methodology issued by a CCP-eligible programme can carry the CCP label.

Decisions have gone both ways. In 2024 the ICVCM concluded that existing renewable energy methodologies did not meet its additionality test, while other categories — several cookstove, biochar, reforestation and engineered removal methodologies among them — have been approved, some with conditions. CCP-labelled supply has been limited while large programmes move projects to new methodologies, and it is expected to grow.

The CCP label is a strong screen, not a guarantee for every project. Read the specific project documents even when a credit carries the label.

Article 6 basics for corporate buyers

Article 6 of the Paris Agreement lets countries co-operate on emission reductions. Two parts matter for carbon credit buyers:

• Article 6.2 allows countries to transfer emission reductions bilaterally as internationally transferred mitigation outcomes (ITMOs). The host country applies a corresponding adjustment, so the same tonne is not counted towards two countries' targets.
• Article 6.4 sets up the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism, supervised by a UN body. It can issue units authorised for use towards other countries' targets or international schemes, and mitigation contribution units that are not authorised. The first credits under the mechanism were approved in early 2026.

For most voluntary buyers, a corresponding adjustment is not required. It becomes relevant when a credit will be used for compliance — for example under CORSIA for airlines — or when a buyer wants to make a claim that the tonne is counted only by them. Expect authorised credits to cost more.

Claims: what you can say about the credits you buy

Buying credits does not reduce your own inventory. GHG Protocol inventories report gross emissions, and credits are disclosed separately. Three references shape credible claims:

• VCMI Claims Code of Practice. A company must first meet foundational criteria — a full Scope 1, 2 and 3 inventory, science-aligned near-term targets and progress against them. It can then claim Silver, Gold or Platinum status by retiring high-quality credits equal to 20 to under 60 per cent, 60 to under 100 per cent, or 100 per cent or more of its remaining emissions. VCMI's separate Scope 3 Action Code (2025) sets time-limited rules for using credits to address a Scope 3 target gap.
• SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard version 2.0, published in June 2026, keeps credits out of target achievement: progress is measured on the physical inventory. Removals are expected to counterbalance residual emissions on the way to and at net zero. Read the standard for the exact requirements and transition dates.
• Consumer protection rules. In the EU, Directive 2024/825 applies from 27 September 2026 and bans claims that a product has a neutral, reduced or positive climate impact based on offsetting. Other markets are tightening green-claims rules too.

"Carbon neutral" claims based mainly on cheap avoidance credits carry the most legal and reputational risk. A specific, factual statement — tonnes retired, project, vintage, registry serial numbers — is safer.

How to buy carbon credits: a due-diligence checklist

1. Define the purpose first. Contribution beyond your value chain, a VCMI claim, an event, or compliance? The purpose sets the criteria.
2. Set minimum criteria — CCP-labelled or CCP-eligible programme, methodology, vintage window, removal share and any corresponding adjustment requirement.
3. Review project documents: the project design document, latest verification report, baseline and additionality argument, buffer contribution and safeguards.
4. Check the registry: confirm issuance, serial numbers and that units have not already been retired.
5. Look for red flags: very old vintages, prices far below comparable projects, unresolved complaints or negative ratings.
6. Build a portfolio rather than relying on a single project, and plan to increase the removal share over time.
7. Contract carefully: delivery terms, replacement if credits are cancelled or invalidated, and retirement in your name.
8. Retire and record: keep retirement certificates and disclose the details alongside, not netted against, your inventory.

Companies in India should also follow the offset mechanism under the national carbon market; see our guide to the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme.

How EKOTRACE helps

EKOTRACE includes a carbon credits register that keeps purchased and retired credits — project, programme, methodology, vintage, type, serial numbers and retirement evidence — separate from your gross inventory, so reports show emissions and credits side by side rather than netted. Targets and net-zero pathways track physical reductions first. Ekobon also sources vetted projects for clients; see Carbon offsetting and our net-zero target-setting guide.

Frequently asked questions

Are removal credits better than avoidance credits?

Not automatically. Removals are needed to balance residual emissions at net zero, and durable removals address long-lived CO2 directly. But a robust avoidance or reduction credit can be higher quality than a poorly monitored removal credit. Judge each project on additionality, quantification and permanence.

What is a CCP-labelled carbon credit?

It is a credit issued by an ICVCM CCP-eligible programme under a methodology the ICVCM has approved against its Core Carbon Principles. The label signals that both the programme and the methodology passed an independent integrity assessment.

Can carbon credits count towards our emissions reduction target?

Under the GHG Protocol and the SBTi, no. Targets are measured on your actual inventory. Credits are reported separately and can support contribution claims or counterbalance residual emissions.

Do voluntary buyers need corresponding adjustments?

Usually not. Corresponding adjustments matter for credits used towards national targets or schemes such as CORSIA. Some buyers choose authorised credits to make a stronger claim, at a higher price.