The GSTC MICE Criteria are the Global Sustainable Tourism Council's sustainability standard for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions, now named the GSTC MICE Standard version 1.0 and dated 29 February 2024. They set 33 criteria in four sections, with separate indicators for venues, event organisers and recurring events, and GSTC added MICE certification to its accreditation rules in March 2026.
This guide is for convention and exhibition centres, professional conference organisers, event agencies and the owners of recurring events.
What is the GSTC MICE Standard?
It is GSTC's own sustainability standard for business events, not an adaptation of the hotel and tour operator Industry Criteria. GSTC calls it its third set of criteria, after the Industry and Destination sets. It was developed over 18 months, from September 2022 to February 2024, with support from the Singapore Tourism Board, and GSTC announced it on 19 March 2024.
One document covers three sub-sectors: venues, event organisers, and events and exhibitions. Each criterion is written three times, once per sub-sector, with its own indicators. GSTC also publishes each sub-sector's indicators on separate pages, linked from its MICE Standard page.
In the events and exhibitions sub-sector, the standard was designed for recurring events, not one-time events. Criteria are applied as far as possible, and one that does not apply can be set aside if you justify it. GSTC plans to revise the standard about every five years.
What do the 33 criteria cover?
The table counts the criteria in each section. The evidence column is AGS's reading of what an auditor usually asks to see, not GSTC's wording.
| Section | Criteria | What it covers | Typical evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| A. Effective sustainable management | 9 (A1 to A9) | Policy and plan, risk management, legal compliance, reporting, staff, stakeholders, destination sustainability, materials in buildings and temporary structures, purchasing and contracting | Signed policy and multi-year plan, risk analysis for people, environment and community, legal register, annual sustainability report, purchasing policy, supplier contracts |
| B. Social and economic benefits | 9 (B1 to B9) | Community support, local employment, community services, local livelihoods, code of conduct, exploitation and harassment, access for all, inclusion, decent work | Local hiring and sourcing records, code of conduct, anti-harassment procedure, accessibility information, wage records |
| C. Cultural heritage | 3 (C1 to C3) | Cultural interactions, protecting heritage, presenting culture | Guidance for cultural programmes and heritage venues, consultation records |
| D. Environment | 12 (D1.1 to D3.4) | Energy, water, greenhouse gases, transport, wastewater, waste, harmful substances, pollution, biodiversity, invasive species, natural sites and wildlife, animal welfare | Energy and water data per event, Scope 1 and 2 inventory, transport plan, waste by type and per attendee, chemical inventory |
How do the indicators differ for venues, organisers and events?
The criteria are shared, but the evidence is not. This is where most generic event checklists fall short.
A venue answers for its building and what it supplies. If it belongs to a multi-location brand, it needs a sustainability plan for that property, not only a group policy. After each event it gives the client a sustainability report with the waste, energy and water data for the functions it ran. Planned construction or major renovation should pursue a third-party green building certification.
An event organiser answers for its office and every event it runs. Under A7 it needs a documented process for weighing the sustainability of destinations during site selection, such as certification or distance from attendees. Under A9 it gives exhibitors guidance on sustainable booths and displays.
An event or exhibition is assessed edition by edition. Its sustainability policy is approved by a senior leader of the event owner, and its waste goals are set per attendee for each occurrence.
What evidence will an auditor expect on waste, carbon and suppliers?
Waste is the most measurable part. Under D2.4 you record solid waste by type, such as food waste, recyclables and waste to landfill. Reduction goals are calculated as total waste divided by attendees. The diversion rate should at least match the national or municipal recycling rate, whichever is higher, and batteries and electronics need their own recycling route.
For carbon, D2.1 asks for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions plus significant Scope 3 sources, reduction targets aligned with IPCC guidance and a written reduction plan. The standard's own examples are virtual attendance and serving less meat. Offsets that remove carbon are preferred over ones that avoid emissions, and they should be additional, permanent and verified.
For suppliers, A9 needs a written purchasing policy covering displays, food and drink, temporary structures, promotional items and consumables. Rented or reusable goods come first. Supplier contracts should carry sustainability requirements, including a target share of certified products where relevant. Where no local definition exists, local suppliers are those within 50 to 400 km of the venue or event.
Can a venue, organiser or event be certified?
GSTC does not certify businesses. It accredits certification bodies, which certify against its standards. Version 5.0 of GSTC's accreditation manual for industry, approved on 1 March 2026 and listed on its accreditation documents page, added MICE certification. Accredited bodies had until 5 September 2026 to move to it.
The manual sets different audits for each sub-sector. A venue audit lasts more than one working day and includes watching at least one live event. An organiser audit lasts at least two working days and covers live events, though the organiser needs no certified event to apply.
An event must have been held at least three times by the same host before it applies, and its audit takes place during a live edition. Surveillance is annual and the default cycle is three years.
Check availability before you plan. GSTC's certification page still lists hotels, tour operators and destinations as the scopes currently available, and its list of accredited bodies, updated 24 September 2026, showed no MICE scope. Ask GSTC or a certification body for the current position. Separately, GSTC recognised the Singapore MICE Sustainability Certification framework in December 2024 as equivalent to the MICE Criteria, for venues and organisers in Singapore.
How does it relate to ISO 20121 and hotel certification?
ISO 20121:2024, published in April 2024, is a management-system standard for event sustainability. It sets out how you plan, run and improve an event sustainability system. The GSTC MICE Standard also asks for a policy and plan, but most of its indicators set expected practice on waste, carbon, suppliers and local benefit, and you can work to both. Our guide to ISO 20121:2024 covers the ISO side.
A hotel with meeting rooms may not need a separate MICE certificate. Under GSTC's manual, a hotel may include an on-site venue in its hotel certification if the venue is wholly owned or managed under the same management system. Its indoor event space must be under 600 square metres, and it must not be promoted as a stand-alone venue. Our guide to the GSTC Hotel Standard v4 covers that route.
How AGS can help
The GSTC MICE Sustainability Management System contains 79 editable Microsoft Word documents. It includes a sustainability manual, a scope document, a sustainability policy and 22 procedures, among them destination and site selection, venues and temporary structures, and sustainable procurement. There are 22 forms, including an event sustainability plan and a post-event report, 13 registers, 7 checklists, 6 guidance notes, 5 training documents and a document index. More kits are in the Environment, Sustainability and Occupational Safety collection.
Frequently asked questions
Can a one-off event use the GSTC MICE Standard?
It can be used as guidance, but GSTC designed it for recurring events and exhibitions. Certification of an event requires at least three earlier editions run by the same host.
Is there a lighter route for a small organiser or venue?
GSTC's accreditation manual can class an organiser as extremely low-risk if it has five or fewer permanent staff and runs up to 24 events a year of up to 100 participants, among other conditions. Extremely low-risk cases can have a shorter audit, with the certification body's written justification.
Is the MICE Early Adopter Program still open?
No. It ran from June 2024 to June 2026 to test the standard with venues and organisers in real conditions.
Does buying documentation mean the venue or event will be certified?
No. Documents are a starting point. Certification depends on how the system runs and on the certification body's audit findings.
AGS provides independent documentation toolkits. This guide and the referenced documents are prepared to support GSTC MICE Standard requirements. They are not affiliated with, endorsed by or approved by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council or any certification body, and they do not guarantee any certification outcome.
Reviewed October 2026. Facts checked against the sources current at publication.
