Version history

Version history and changes to the Rainbow Standard Rules

👉 See Archived Rainbow Standard Documents for full versions of previous documents

Change log for Rainbow Standard Rules V7.2

May 2026

Additionality:

• Add Common Practice analysis requirement

• Investment analysis:

  • require assumptions and conclusions to be documented, investment analysis to be consistent with information presented to decision makers, and financial indicators used to be internally consistent

  • create investment comparison analysis option, explicitly differentiate from benchmark analysis

  • limit financial indicators allowed to IRR or NPV

• Barrier analysis:

  • redefine financial and institutional barrier scope

  • remove technological barrier option

  • add information barrier option

Crediting period duration: add instructions on how methodologies must set appropriate crediting period durations

Monitoring plan: must include for each monitored parameter, plan for conservatively treating and/or deducting credits related to unexpected interruptions in monitoring

Double counting:

• specify no double issuance within Rainbow Standard

• consequences for double counting

• require VVB to conduct cross checks across other platforms

• add Rainbow double registration cross check requirements

• add requirement to prove compatibility with a transition to net zero by reference to the net zero objectives of the host country

Materiality assessment: in GHG quantification, require processes with small impacts to be substituted by default emission deduction rather than excluded from calculations.

No scheme hopping: only applies to projects rejected within the last 3 years. Disclosure period of 5 years remains.

Change log for Rainbow Standard Rules V7.1

March 2026

Additionality

• Investment: move IRR calculation instructions from additionality template to Standard Rules

• Regulatory: define "upcoming regulations"

Specify downward adjustment required for baseline setting

Co-benefit reporting must include, if applicable, include any SGD indicators that are required by the host country.

Specific standard-level requirement to assess, mitigate, deduct and monitor leakage.

Change log for Rainbow Standard Rules V7

Replace V6.2 with V7, linked with Procedures Manual V3.0 release

Public Consultation: November 2025

• General

  • Eligibility criteria replaced with Principles and requirements

  • Remove Minimum impact requirement

• Environmental and social safeguards

  • Specify all projects must prove compliance with local and national regulations

  • Strengthened stakeholder consultation procedure, including a required meeting and thorough documentation

  • New IPLC and FPIC requirements

  • Risk assessment: any material risk identified must have a risk mitigation plan

  • Expanded list of risks to assess

• No scheme hopping

  • New requirements for Project Developers to disclose if they have applied for certification under another standard or registry in the last 5 years

• Durability

  • Renamed from Permanence section

  • Move risk of reversal assessment to methodology-level, if no material risks identified, no project requirements. If material risks are identified, projects follow risk assessment procedure.

  • Defined avoidable vs unavoidable reversals

  • No standard-level minimum durability threshold, methodologies define minimum permanence

  • Minimum contribution to buffer pool changed to 2%, higher minimums may be determined in methodologies

• Co-benefits

  • Require quantification approach to be detailed and publicly disclosed

  • All co-benefits must be monitored

  • Removed minimum and maximum limit of 2-4 co-benefits

• Delivery

  • New section, addresses the removed Real eligibility criteria requirements

  • Removed TRL eligibility criteria requirements, replaced with Feasibility

  • Added requirements for minimum content of Monitoring plan

• GHG quantification

  • Added cumulative limit for exclusion cutoff threshold

  • Strengthened Uncertainty assessment requirements, and approaches to making conservative choices when faced with uncertainty

  • Maximum uncertainty level/discount factor of >15%

  • Allow for GWP100 from other IPCC versions, if required for compliance with regulatory schemes

• Monitoring plan

  • Specify information to be provided with each monitored parameter

• Baseline

  • Moved out of GHG quantification and into new section, Project and baseline scope

  • Replace Guidance on Avoided Emissions by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) with other best-practice guidelines for baselines (from ICVCM, CORISA, CRCF)

  • Specify baseline must account for government policies and legal requirements that lower GHGs

  • Remove substitution and targets alignment, reference these principles in Baseline section

Post-Public Consultation: January 2026

• Remove all mention of carbon “reduction”, in relation to avoidance, for clarity

• Update high-level carbon removal quantification equtions and sign conventions

Change log for Rainbow Standard Rules V6.2

Replace V6.1 with V6.2 October 2024

• Replace DPD and Detailed Project Description with PDD and Project Design document

• Revised Additionality Template with new requirements:

  • Sensitivity analysis

  • For barrier analysis, demonstrate alternative activities does not face same barrier

• Revise ESDNH criteria, minimum risks to consider for all projects

Change log for Rainbow Standard Rules V6.1

Replace V6.0 with V6.1 August 2024

• New appendix with IT Security requirements

• Terminology changes, reflected in the Glossary (notably discount factor and buffer pool)

Change log for Rainbow Standard Rules V6

Change log for Rainbow Standard Rules V5.2