Do you need a Bilan Carbone® to obtain B Corp certification?

1Why the question was still being asked two years ago

Bilan Carbone® is France's reference method for measuring an organisation's greenhouse gas emissions. Created by ADEME and now managed by the Association pour la transition Bas Carbone (ABC), it covers the 3 scopes: scope 1 (direct emissions, boilers and vehicles), scope 2 (purchased electricity and heat) and, above all, scope 3 (everything else: purchases, logistics, product use, waste, travel).

For a French SME, scope 3 accounts for an average of 80 to 90% of total emissions. It is the most costly part to collect, and also the part that says most about the company's climate exposure. An assessment that stops at scopes 1 and 2 leaves out most emissions and does not follow the Bilan Carbone® method.

2What it contributes to a B Corp application

Under the previous framework, the B Impact Assessment (BIA) was the central certification questionnaire, organised into 5 areas: governance, workers, community, environment, customers. Bilan Carbone® earned points in the environment area, but a company could pass the 80-point threshold without having produced one, making up the difference with other items (environmental policy, waste management, community engagement).

In practice, many B Corp companies in the first French cohorts had no formal Bilan Carbone®: documented "good environmental practices" were enough. Hence the idea that a Bilan Carbone® is "not mandatory" to become B Corp. This remains true for an SME, but no longer for a large company.

3What changed with the 2025 B Lab standards

In April 2025, B Lab published a major overhaul of the standards, applied to recertifications since January 2026 and new certifications since March 2026. The cumulative points system gives way to a model of mandatory prerequisites organised around seven Impact Topics: Purpose & Stakeholder Governance, Fair Work, Justice Equity Diversity & Inclusion, Human Rights, Climate Action, Environmental Stewardship & Circularity and Government Affairs & Collective Action.

Climate Action is now a topic in its own right. For certification or renewal applicants from 2026 onwards, the minimum requirements come down to three points:

• For large companies (at least 250 employees and US$75 million in turnover), a third-party-verified GHG emissions inventory covering scopes 1, 2 and material scope 3 categories (the categories that account for a large share of your emissions), kept up to date
• For all companies, a published climate action plan with measurable reduction targets
• For companies above certain thresholds, alignment with a 1.5°C pathway (consistency with SBTi, the global framework for reduction targets aligned with the Paris Agreement)

For a large company, Bilan Carbone® therefore becomes the input without which the application cannot succeed. For an SME, it remains optional, but provides the soundest basis for setting quantified targets in the climate action plan. Companies certified under the previous framework benefit from a transition period when recertifying.

4The typical route for a French SME in 2026

For a French SME seeking certification in 2026, the sequence that works best is as follows:

• A complete Bilan Carbone® (scopes 1, 2 and 3), using the Bilan Carbone® V9 or GHG Protocol method, carried out by an ABC-certified consultancy. Allow €10,000 to €30,000 excl. VAT for a private engagement depending on complexity, or €6,000 excl. VAT payable by the company through Diag Décarbon'Action if it is eligible
• A quantified action plan, with a reduction pathway and milestones, integrated into the assessment deliverable: an assessment without a strategy is no longer enough
• Integration into the B Corp application, connecting the assessment deliverable with the BIA's Climate Action questions
• A certificate valid for 5 years, with surveillance audits: the inventory kept up to date and demonstrated progress along the pathway

5The 3 common mistakes

The first mistake is to treat B Corp and Bilan Carbone® as 2 separate projects: a CSR agency handling the B Corp application, a climate consultancy handling the assessment, without coordination. The assessment calculates in tCO2e, the B Corp application expects qualitative KPIs and nobody connects the two. This needs planning from the outset, since Bilan Carbone® directly feeds the BIA's Climate Action sections.

The second is to settle for an assessment limited to scopes 1 and 2. For a large company, the new standards require a verified inventory covering material scope 3. For an SME, nothing requires scope 3, but a climate action plan that ignores it misses 80 to 90% of its emissions and sets targets for the smallest part of the problem.

The third is to confuse B Corp and EcoVadis, 2 frameworks with different methods and audiences. A good EcoVadis score guarantees nothing for B Corp, and vice versa; the distinction is explained in our analysis of whether EcoVadis replaces a Bilan Carbone®.

6The assessment → BIA mapping table

At Celsius, we have developed a habit over successive B Corp engagements: systematically producing a mapping table between Bilan Carbone® deliverables (GHG inventory, action plan, pathway) and the new BIA's Climate Action sections. This saves the B Corp consultant, often another provider working for the client, from starting from scratch, and avoids repeating this alignment work at recertification.

Another sequencing point: schedule the Bilan Carbone® one year before submitting the B Corp application. This one-year gap allows Diag Décarbon'Action to be used for the initial assessment (€6,000 excl. VAT payable by the company), followed by certification with an already quantified application. A rushed sequence generally costs more in fees and time, because part of the data collection has to be repeated for the application.

7The order to follow: Bilan Carbone® then B Corp

The assessment in year N, the B Corp application in year N+1: this is the order that works. Since the April 2025 B Lab standards, the assessment has been central to Climate Action. For a large company, it is the input, verified by a third party and covering material scope 3; for an SME, it gives the required climate action plan credible quantified targets. Companies that compress the sequence often pay 2 times for the same collection and submit a weaker application.

Before signing anything, check your eligibility for Diag Décarbon'Action and allow at least 18 months between starting the assessment and submitting the application.

Further resources

Frequently asked questions

1Is Bilan Carbone® mandatory for B Corp certification?

Not for all companies. In the new B Lab standards, published in April 2025, Climate Action becomes a prerequisite: every company must publish a climate action plan with quantified targets. Only large companies as defined by B Lab (at least 250 employees and US$75 million in turnover) must measure their scopes 1, 2 and 3, have this inventory verified by a third party and adopt science-based targets. For an SME, Bilan Carbone® is not required as such, but gives the action plan a quantified basis.

2How does Bilan Carbone® contribute to the B Corp score?

Under the new B Lab standards, it no longer earns points: the cumulative points system, requiring 80 points in the B Impact Assessment, gives way to mandatory requirements across 7 Impact Topics, including Climate Action. Bilan Carbone® then serves as an input for this topic: it quantifies emissions, identifies the categories for which to set climate action plan targets and enables progress to be demonstrated at surveillance audits. A mapping table between assessment deliverables and Climate Action requirements avoids repeating this work in the B Corp application.

3Does B Corp require a Science Based Targets pathway?

Only for large companies. Under the standards published by B Lab in April 2025, companies with at least 250 employees and US$75 million in turnover must adopt science-based reduction targets, validated by SBTi or verified by an independent third party, covering scopes 1, 2 and 3. SMEs must publish a climate action plan with measurable targets, without any requirement for SBTi validation. Aiming for a pathway aligned with 1.5°C remains useful for an SME anticipating growth or requests from its clients.

4What does B Corp certification cost?

In France, B Lab Europe's 2026 fee schedule provides for a one-off submission fee of €250 to €1,000 depending on turnover, followed by an annual membership fee of €2,000 up to €2.5 million in turnover, rising in bands (€6,000 between €10 and €15 million, €20,000 between €50 and €75 million). The initial audit by an accredited third party is additional, from €1,500 for a micro-enterprise to €15,000 for a large company. A Bilan Carbone®, if carried out, costs €10,000 to €30,000 excl. VAT depending on complexity, around €6,000 excl. VAT with Diag Décarbon'Action.

5B Corp or CSRD: do you have to choose?

No, the 2 approaches follow different principles and can be combined. CSRD is a European sustainability reporting requirement: the Omnibus I Directive, published in February 2026, restricts it to companies with more than 1,000 employees and €450 million in turnover, with transposition expected by March 2027. B Corp is a voluntary certification awarded by B Lab, assessing the company across 7 Impact Topics, including Climate Action. For a company concerned by the 2, the same emissions inventory feeds CSRD's ESRS E1 and B Corp's Climate Action component.

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