# Which barriers can a carbon project use to prove additionality under the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) rules?

Canonical: https://senseible.earth/answers/ccp-barrier-analysis-which-barriers-count

Only financial, institutional and information barriers, plus others the methodology names. The owner must evidence each barrier, show carbon credit revenue is decisive in overcoming it, and show another alternative does not face significant barriers. Barriers must be combined with a common practice assessment (criterion 8.4).

## The barrier types allowed (criterion 8.6)

- Financial barriers, for example loans or other financing are not accessible for the type of activity and country because of the financier's assessment of risks.
- Institutional barriers, for example the investor is not the beneficiary of the cost savings from the investment.
- Information barriers, for example households do not know the lifecycle costs of energy-efficient appliances.
- Other barriers specific to the activity or region, only if the methodology or other program documents explicitly identify and elaborate them.

## What the owner must show

1. Identify specific barriers and, where possible, quantify them.
2. Provide verifiable evidence for each barrier, and verifiable evidence that carbon credit revenue is the decisive element in overcoming each one.
3. Show that at least one other alternative to the activity does not face significant barriers, including the barriers the activity faces.

## How the evidence is read

The evidence shall be applied conservatively. Where the level of a barrier is uncertain, it is interpreted so that it is very unlikely the effect of the barrier is overestimated. The framework lists independent studies, publicly available surveys, market data and national or international statistics as possible evidence, and a validation and verification body and/or the program assesses every element.

## Our reading for an Indian factory

A lender refusal letter and a note that the owner does not receive the saving (for example a rented unit where the landlord pays power) are the kinds of records that fit these types. A quotation showing the old technology is cheaper is a cost comparison for an investment test, not a barrier type. Whether they pass depends on the methodology you use.

## What Senseible does here

Senseible reads fuel invoices and electricity bills into monthly records, which gives a project its own fuel and power history. Credits are issued by the program's registry and checked by an independent verifier, not by Senseible's own check.

- [What additionality means and how it is tested](https://senseible.earth/answers/what-is-additionality-in-carbon-credits)
- [Proving additionality for an efficiency project](https://senseible.earth/answers/prove-additionality-energy-efficiency-project)
- [Common practice test in the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme](https://senseible.earth/answers/ccts-additionality-common-practice-test)
- [Carbon credits for Indian businesses](https://senseible.earth/carbon-credits)

Sources: [Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market, Core Carbon Principles Assessment Framework, Section 4, January 2024, version 1.1 (criteria 8.4 and 8.6)](https://icvcm.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/CCP-Section-4-V1.1-FINAL-15May24.pdf)

Last reviewed 2026-11-05. Based on Assessment Framework version 1.1 (January 2024). The Integrity Council's August 2026 rule architecture says Interpretations and Technical Notices may affect how criteria are assessed, so check icvcm.org for any in effect before you rely on a detail.