How long do Gold Standard design and performance reviews take, and what if we reply late?
A design review lasts at least 4 weeks and a performance review at least 3, and each ends only when all requests are closed. You and your validation body have six weeks to answer new comments. A late reply means the request is rejected and must be resubmitted; delays over a year force an update to the latest rules.
Review lengths
The design certification date is the last day of the 4-week design review period, even if the review closes later.
- Design review: at least 4 weeks, ending when all corrective action and clarification requests are closed. The public consultation runs inside it.
- Performance review: at least 3 weeks, ending the same way, with the public consultation inside it.
Who can raise new points
New corrective action, forward action and observation requests can be raised by any party during either review, including Gold Standard. They must be answered by the developer, the validation body or both.
The six-week rule
- Reply within six weeks of receiving the comments.
- A late reply means the complete rejection of the request.
- After a rejection you must submit a new request for the review.
- If delays exceed one year, project documents must be updated to the latest standard requirements, including methodology updates and new validation or verification as applicable.
What to do
Put the six-week date in your calendar the day comments arrive and agree with your validation body who answers which point.
What Senseible does here
Senseible does not issue or verify carbon credits and is not a registry. It gives carbon credit eligibility signals from your own records and keeps those records in order for a verifier. Verified here means rule checks passed against the evidence, not third-party assurance.
- Gold Standard: report a non-conformity in 30 days
- Gold Standard preliminary review in 14 days
- Carbon credits
Sources: Gold Standard for the Global Goals, Principles and Requirements, version 2.1
Last reviewed 2026-11-04.