Avoid
Consider remote delivery where scheme rules, risk and audit effectiveness permit.
AVA ZeroAudit™ · Carbon-Neutral Audit Delivery
A New Standard for Responsible Audit Delivery.
AVA ZeroAudit™ is AVA’s proprietary methodology for managing audit-delivery emissions. It avoids and reduces emissions first, measures what remains, and counterbalances the defined residual footprint through the documented retirement of eligible carbon credits, with traceable evidence for the client.
Explore ZeroAudit delivery eligibility →Program purpose
A climate-conscious model for delivering independent assurance.
AVA ZeroAudit™ manages emissions associated with delivery of eligible AVA audits, assessments and verification engagements. Its delivery boundary is defined before an outcome is stated. Audit effectiveness, impartiality and applicable conformity-assessment requirements remain essential.
How it works
A five-step delivery hierarchy.
AVA follows a five-step hierarchy: avoid emissions where permitted, reduce necessary travel, measure material emissions, counterbalance the measured residual amount and document the result.
Reduce
Use regional auditors, efficient travel plans and lower-emission transport where practical.
Measure
Calculate material emissions from flights, ground transport and accommodation.
Counterbalance
Address measured residual emissions through documented retirement of eligible carbon credits.
Document
Maintain traceable calculation and retirement evidence, and provide a ZeroAudit™ Audit Delivery Statement where applicable.
Remote first
Travel only when the audit needs it.
AVA evaluates whether all or part of an engagement can be performed remotely without compromising conformity-assessment requirements, evidence quality, competence, impartiality or audit effectiveness.
Where remote or hybrid delivery is appropriate
- Document and record review
- Management and process interviews
- Performance-data review and preliminary verification
- Follow-up activities where permitted
- Secure virtual tours and ICT-supported evidence collection where suitable
Where on-site presence remains necessary
- Physical operational controls and process observation
- Site-specific risks and facility conditions
- Worker interviews and physical sampling
- Activities required by accreditation or scheme rules
- Any case where remote delivery would weaken audit confidence
Delivery boundary
What the ZeroAudit™ footprint covers.
The footprint relates to delivering the AVA engagement itself. AVA records the selected boundary, data sources, emission factors, assumptions, reduction measures and residual amount addressed. Additional sources may be included where material and measurable.
Potentially included
- Auditor air travel
- Ground transportation and rental vehicles
- Rail travel, where relevant
- Accommodation
- Other material and measurable delivery sources
Delivery eligibility
Which engagements may use ZeroAudit™?
Labels describe potential delivery modes. The final mode depends on applicable rules, scope, complexity, site configuration, activities, risk and sufficient objective evidence.
A fully remote approach may be considered where program rules, risk and evidence permit.
Examples
ISO 14064 · ISO 14067 · ISO 14040 / ISO 14044 · GRI · AA1000 · IFRS S1 & S2 · ISSA 5000 · ISO 20400 · ISO 26000 · Human-rights due diligence · ESG Report Assurance
Delivery mode is selected according to the organization’s scope, complexity and evidence needs.
Examples
ISO 9001 · ISO 14001 · ISO 45001 · ISO 50001 · ISO 22301 · ISO 37001 · ISO 28000 · ISO/UNDP 53001
Remote planning and review may be combined with the on-site activity needed for an effective engagement.
Examples
ISO 22000 · ISO 15378 · EU / WHO GDP · ICH Q7 · IPEC GMP · EFfCI GMP · ISO 22716 · FDA cGMP · HACCP · Purity-IQ Certified Authentic™ Program · TAPA FSR / TSR / BSR · RBA / SMETA support · Supplier QHSE assessment
All delivery modes remain subject to accreditation, scheme-owner, regulatory, risk and audit-effectiveness requirements. Eligibility is not accreditation or certification and does not guarantee remote delivery. Final arrangements are confirmed during application and audit planning.
When travel is required
Lower-impact travel by design.
Competence and audit integrity determine auditor assignment first. Where equally competent options exist, AVA can prefer the assignment that reduces unnecessary travel. For rental vehicles, battery-electric vehicles are preferred where reasonably available and operationally suitable, followed by plug-in hybrid or hybrid vehicles and then fuel-efficient conventional vehicles.
Air travel
- Avoid the flight where an effective remote alternative is permitted
- Use regional auditors where competence requirements allow
- Prefer direct and efficient routing where practical
- Use documented airline carbon/SAF options where credible and available
- Include residual flight emissions in AVA’s centrally controlled carbon-credit retirement process
Ground transportation & accommodation
- Prefer EV rental vehicles where practical
- Then plug-in hybrid/hybrid or fuel-efficient vehicles
- Use public transport, rail or shared travel where suitable
- Select accommodation close to the audit site where practical
- Include material travel and hotel emissions in the engagement footprint
Illustrative audit-delivery footprint
Air travel 455 kg CO₂eRental vehicle 64 kg CO₂eHotel accommodation 81 kg CO₂eOther transportation 18 kg CO₂eTotal 618 kg CO₂e (≈ 0.62 tCO₂e)
Illustrative figures only. Actual calculations use the engagement’s defined boundary and documented data and factors.
Client evidence
ZeroAudit™ Audit Delivery Statement
For an eligible engagement, AVA can provide a statement identifying the delivery boundary, covered period, measured footprint, data and method basis, assumptions, avoidance and reduction measures, residual amount addressed, credit-retirement details and technical review status.
The statement relates only to emissions associated with delivering the identified AVA engagement. It does not verify the client’s inventory or establish a carbon-neutrality claim for the client, site, product, service or management system.
Example Statement Record
- Audit reference
- AVA-ZA-2026-0048 (example)
- Delivery footprint
- 0.62 tCO₂e
- Credits retired
- 1.00 tCO₂e
- Reduction measures
- Hybrid planning + regional auditor + EV rental
- Retirement reference
- Official registry / retirement ID
- Status
- Completed
Client documentation
Traceable evidence for every eligible engagement.
Depending on the engagement and program requirements, the client evidence package can include a ZeroAudit™ Audit Delivery Statement, a Carbon Credit Retirement Certificate or confirmation, and an official registry record or link.
Illustrative example only
ZeroAudit™ Carbon Credit Retirement Certificate
This sample shows the information that a certificate may record. Actual registry, project, vintage, retirement reference, date and official registry evidence must be verified and supplied for the specific engagement.
- Certificate number
- AVA-ZA-RC-2026-0001 (example)
- Client / engagement
- [Client] · [Audit or assurance engagement]
- AVA reference
- AVA-ZA-2026-0087 (example)
- Audit delivery footprint
- 0.62 tCO₂e (illustrative)
- Credits retired
- 1.00 tCO₂e (illustrative)
- Registry / project
- [Registry and project details]
- Retirement record
- [Official retirement ID, date and registry link]
This document concerns only the defined emissions from delivering the identified AVA engagement. It is not a client carbon-neutrality certification or a claim that no emissions occurred.
Program rules
How ZeroAudit™ claims may be used.
A ZeroAudit™ outcome may be communicated only for a defined engagement boundary after the planned method is complete and its supporting records have been reviewed. The wording must never imply that no emissions occurred.
Required claimZERO does not mean zero emissions occurred. ZERO means that the defined residual audit-delivery carbon footprint has been addressed under the ZeroAudit™ methodology.
Core safeguards
- Define covered activities, locations, period and emission sources; note material exclusions.
- Avoid and reduce first; credits do not replace reasonable remote options or efficient travel planning.
- Retain activity data, methods, emission factors, assumptions, reduction records and review evidence.
- Keep traceable credit ownership, retirement and registry records and prevent double counting.
- Limit claims to the defined residual audit-delivery footprint.
- Keep eligibility labels distinct from accreditation and certification claims.
Program governance
- Auditors follow the travel hierarchy and submit required travel data.
- Credit selection and retirement remain centrally controlled by AVA.
- Each client statement links to a retirement record or pooled retirement batch.
- Use the consistent reference format AVA-ZA-[year]-[number].
- Review the program for consistency, data quality and continual improvement.
AVA ZeroAudit™
Assurance That Travels Lighter.
AVA — Where Trust Meets Accountability.