Green Tourism prepares new certification standard to meet incoming EU green claims rules

Green Tourism has submitted a new sustainability certification standard to the UK’s accreditation body, UKAS, marking the first UK tourism standard designed to align with upcoming EU anti-greenwashing rules.

The proposed Green Tourism Certified Standard is intended to help tourism and hospitality businesses meet new European requirements that will require environmental claims to be backed by independent, third party verification.

The new legislation – the EU Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive – is intended to prevent greenwashing by requiring environmental claims to be clear, accurate and supported by independent evidence, giving consumers greater confidence in sustainability information when choosing where to travel and stay.

From September 2026, businesses promoting environmental or sustainability credentials to European consumers will be required to provide independent, third party verification of those claims, regardless of where the business is based or where customers are travelling.

This level of verification is also expected to become essential for tourism businesses wishing to appear in ‘green’ search filters on major online travel and booking platforms linked to the industry collaboration and standardisation organisation Travalyst. These include Booking.com, Google and Expedia.

Green Tourism is a UK based sustainability consultancy that works with hospitality and tourism businesses to support and advise them on responsible environmental and social practices. It has worked with tourism and hospitality businesses for more than 30 years, and has supported more than 10,000 businesses, completing over 50,000 assessments and working across the UK and internationally.

The organisation plans to launch this new product in September 2026 as an international certification standard with recognition by UKAS and alignment with ISO 17965. It will sit alongside its long established business development programme, which will continue to focus on practical guidance, support and continuous improvement for businesses at different stages of their sustainability journey.

Audits for the new standard will be carried out by Control Union, an international certification and inspection body that is extending its scope of UKAS accreditation to include Green Tourism certified. Auditor training programmes are being developed in partnership with a recognised training organisation, and a dedicated certified certification manager has been appointed.

The certification will be delivered through the compay’s GreenCheck digital platform, which has supported the organisation’s award programme for more than five years. The platform allows businesses to upload evidence once for auditor review, with evidence assessed remotely before any site visits are carried out where required.

Commenting on the submission to UKAS, Andrea Nicholas, chief executive, said: ‘As expectations around sustainability claims change, it is increasingly important that businesses can demonstrate what they are doing in a way that is credible, transparent and independently verified. Creating the Green Tourism certified standard and submitting it to UKAS is a significant step in supporting the sector as new regulatory requirements come into force.’