A near-term target and a net-zero target are different commitments. What SBTi's current standards ask, what V2.0 changes, and where companies get the sequence wrong.
Updated 11 October 2026: SBTi published Corporate Net-Zero Standard Version 2.0 on 11 June 2026. Through 2026, SBTi validates against Version 1.3.1. Validation under V2.0 opens on 1 February 2027, Version 1.3.1 stays open for submissions until 31 January 2028, and from 1 February 2028 all new submissions must use V2.0. Existing near-term targets remain valid to the end of their timeframe. What V2.0 changes is set out in SBTi Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0: what changes for companies.
Companies routinely say they are “doing SBTi” without being clear which commitment they mean. There are two, they are governed by different documents, and they are not two names for the same thing.
- Corporate Near-Term Criteria, version 5.3
- Corporate Net-Zero Standard, version 1.3.1, with its own criteria document
These are the versions SBTi validates against until Version 2.0 takes over. Anything you are working from that predates them is worth checking.
Near-term targets
A near-term target commits to a specific reduction over roughly the next five to ten years. It is the usual entry point, and for most companies it is the right first commitment: the horizon is close enough that the actions required are ones the current management team will actually take.
The criteria set out what counts, which scopes must be included, and the ambition level required. Scope 3 inclusion is where most of the difficulty sits, because it is where most companies’ emissions sit and where the data is worst.
Net-zero targets
A net-zero target is a different order of commitment. It requires deep absolute reduction across the value chain, with only a limited residual neutralised at the end.
The point that gets lost most often: you cannot buy your way to it. Neutralisation applies to a small residual that genuinely cannot be eliminated, not to the bulk of a footprint. A company planning to hold emissions flat and purchase credits against them is not on a net-zero pathway under this standard, whatever it says in the annual report.
SBTi addresses support for mitigation outside a company’s own value chain separately, in its February 2024 report on beyond value chain mitigation. That work is treated as an additional contribution, not as progress against the target. Both things can be worth doing. Only one of them counts towards the target. Version 2.0 turns this into a voluntary recognition programme called ongoing emissions responsibility, which SBTi intends to make mandatory from 2035.
Where the sequence goes wrong
The common failure is treating target setting as the project.
Target setting is not the long part. Given a sound greenhouse gas inventory, calculating a compliant target is quick, and SBTi publishes tools for it. What takes the time is the inventory underneath, and specifically Scope 3.
A company that commits publicly to a target date and then starts building its Scope 3 inventory has sequenced the work backwards. It will usually discover that the categories driving its footprint are the ones with the least reliable data, that supplier engagement is a multi-year exercise rather than a data request, and that the number it announced was based on estimates it now has to revise.
Build the inventory, then set the target. It is slower to start and considerably faster to finish.
The supporting documents worth knowing about
Alongside the two main documents, several others carry practical weight:
- Getting Started Guide, version 1.2, October 2025, for orientation
- Criteria Assessment Indicators, version 1.5, July 2025, which shows how criteria are actually assessed
- Commitment Compliance Policy, version 4.0, October 2024, which governs what happens when a company commits and then does not follow through
- Target Validation Services Offerings, version 5, December 2024
- SBTi Glossary, version 1.3, December 2025
The compliance policy is the one companies read least and should read most, because it defines the consequences of a commitment that lapses.
A note on versions
SBTi documents move quickly and do not always state clearly which supersedes which. The two standard versions above were checked against the SBTi website on 11 October 2026; the supporting documents reflect versions held as at 28 August 2026. Before quoting any criterion in a board paper or a disclosure, confirm the current version on the SBTi website.
How ESGweise helps
We build the greenhouse gas inventory first, including the Scope 3 categories that decide the timetable, then take companies through target setting and validation on that foundation. See our carbon, ESG strategy and sustainability reporting services.
If you have committed to a target date and are not yet confident in the inventory beneath it, talk to us.
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a near-term and a net-zero SBTi target?
A near-term target commits to a specific reduction over roughly the next five to ten years and is the usual starting point. A net-zero target commits to deep absolute reduction across the value chain by a long-term date, with only a limited residual neutralised. Until V2.0 takes over they are governed by different documents: the Corporate Near-Term Criteria version 5.3 and the Corporate Net-Zero Standard version 1.3.1. A company can hold a validated near-term target without having a validated net-zero target, and under V2.0 a net-zero target becomes optional.
Can a company reach net zero by buying carbon credits?
Not under SBTi. The net-zero standard is built on deep absolute reduction of a company's own emissions across the value chain, with neutralisation reserved for a limited residual that cannot be eliminated. Purchasing credits in place of reduction does not satisfy it. SBTi treats support for mitigation outside the value chain as a separate contribution rather than as progress against the target.
What is beyond value chain mitigation?
Mitigation a company funds outside its own value chain, for example financing emissions reductions elsewhere. SBTi addressed it in a report published in February 2024. The key point is that it is additional to, and not a substitute for, reducing your own emissions against your target.
How long does SBTi target setting take?
The target calculation itself is quick once the underlying data is sound. The greenhouse gas inventory is what sets the timetable, particularly Scope 3, and for a company starting without a credible inventory it is normal for that groundwork to take several months. Companies that treat target setting as the project rather than the inventory tend to discover this late.