Evidence checklists
Use these checklists to validate that your evidence holds up — before an auditor, customer or banker asks.
Why this matters
Most evidence problems are predictable. Running through a 5-minute checklist quarterly catches 90% of them before they become real issues.
Who is concerned?
- Compliance, finance and quality teams.
- Anyone preparing for a customer audit, tender or due diligence.
Key operational implications
- Run each checklist at least once per declaration cycle.
- Treat any unchecked item as a real gap, not a formality.
Common mistakes
Checking only at audit time
By then, gaps cost weeks of catch-up. Run quarterly.
Self-assessment by the same person
Have someone outside the workflow review evidence.
Audit-ready evidence checklist
- Every declaration line traces to a source file.
- Methodology is documented and versioned.
- Calculations exist as working files, not just PDFs.
- Supplier letters are stored, not summarized.
- Folder structure is consistent across periods.
- Access and modification history is available.
Supplier evidence checklist
- Tied to a specific production installation.
- Methodology and standard explicitly named.
- Reporting period stated.
- Signed letter or attached source document.
- Numbers within plausible ranges.
- Dated within the last 12 months.
Methodology checklist
- Standard referenced (ISO 14067, GHG Protocol, EU CBAM rules).
- Boundary explicitly defined.
- Assumptions documented.
- Version number and date.
- Owner and reviewer named.
- Change log maintained.
Documentation completeness checklist
- All in-scope products covered.
- All in-scope suppliers contacted.
- All declarations filed for the period.
- All evidence stored in the central vault.
- No reliance on personal inboxes or local drives.
What companies should do next
- Schedule a quarterly evidence review.
- Assign a clear owner per checklist.
- Track gaps as actions, not as notes.
Mission17 can help with
Operational support
- Each checklist runs automatically against your evidence vault.
- Gaps are surfaced as actions with owners and deadlines.
- Mock audit reports per regulation, on demand.
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