Verra, one of the world’s leading voluntary carbon market standards bodies, rejected four forest carbon projects in China and launched a broader review of dozens of others. The organization identified serious concerns related to government approval documentation. This decision emphasizes the increasing global scrutiny of carbon projects, particularly regarding legal compliance, transparency, and documentation integrity.
Compliance issues lead Verra to reject forest carbon projects in China
Verra rejected four projects that were registered under Verra’s Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) program and fall within the agriculture, forestry, and other land use (AFOLU) category. According to the Standard, the projects failed to meet a fundamental VCS requirement: compliance with local laws. In China, AFOLU projects must obtain explicit authorization from relevant government authorities and demonstrate alignment with national land use and forestry regulations.
The rejected projects, identified by project IDs 1847, 1864, 1865, and 2070, were developed by Guizhou Baiheng Fertilizer Co., Ltd. During Verra’s quality control reviews (QCRs), independent validation and verification bodies (VVBs) could not confirm that the necessary government approvals had been granted. Additionally, the VVBs could not verify the authenticity of the approval documents submitted by the project developer. Therefore, Verra concluded that the projects did not meet the required legal and procedural standards and formally rejected them.
The four projects together had issued around 4.42 million VCUs. Around 3.1 million of these credits had already been retired, and about 1.32 million remain active. Verra has contacted the project proponent and is seeking the replacement of all issued VCUs. In addition, the projects' contributions to Verra's shared buffer pool have been cancelled. These contributions were nearly half a million credits. The buffer pool is designed to manage non-permanence risks in land-use projects. By removing these credits, Verra is demonstrating the severity of the compliance failures identified.
Beyond the four rejected projects, Verra has expanded its investigation to include a larger group of China-based carbon projects. The standards body has initiated additional quality control reviews for 35 other registered projects facing similar uncertainties regarding government authorization. These projects have not yet been rejected but have been placed on hold and are prohibited from issuing new carbon credits.
As part of the review process, Verra has instructed the projects’ VVBs to contact the relevant Chinese government authorities directly to confirm whether valid approvals were granted. Verra has made clear that if these confirmations cannot be obtained, further action may follow. This could include rejecting the projects and requiring developers to replace any VCUs already issued.
Verra’s concerns also extend to inactive projects. The organization announced that it will conduct separate checks on ten additional AFOLU projects in China that issued approximately 7.1 million VCUs before withdrawing from the Verra Registry. Although these projects are no longer operational, Verra considers it necessary to verify that they received the required government approvals when their credits were issued. These reviews will adhere to the specific provisions of the VCS Program Guide and aim to determine if further corrective action is necessary.
Notably, Verra has already suspended the validation and verification bodies associated with these withdrawn projects. This signals that accountability extends beyond project developers to third-party auditors responsible for verifying project compliance. Verra has stated that it will announce additional measures once the reviews are complete.
Verra’s chief executive officer, Mandy Rambharos, emphasized that adherence to local legal requirements is essential to credible carbon markets. She stated that the integrity of Verra’s standards depends on projects complying with all applicable laws, including obtaining genuine government approvals. In response to the findings in China, Verra has strengthened its procedures. VVBs must now independently verify the authenticity of all government approvals for projects in China and submit clear evidence as part of the registration and issuance process.
Credit integrity and transparency under growing scrutiny
These actions reflect the growing trend in voluntary carbon markets toward stricter oversight and greater transparency. As buyers, investors, and policymakers question the environmental and social integrity of carbon credits, standards bodies like Verra face pressure to ensure credited projects deliver genuine climate benefits and operate within legal frameworks. The situation in China shows the difficulties of carrying out land-use carbon projects in complex regulatory environments.
Credit integrity and transparency have become even more important following COP30, where negotiators and market participants emphasized the need for high-quality carbon credits to support credible climate action. As international cooperation under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement continues to evolve, confidence in compliance and voluntary carbon markets requires clear rules, robust verification, and strong oversight. Trust in individual projects and the broader market as a climate finance tool is at risk when unclear approvals or questionable documentation are involved. Many stakeholders now view these safeguards as essential to aligning carbon markets with global climate goals and maintaining their role in post-COP30 climate strategies.