Evidence Vault
5-year secure, timestamped digital storage of all your GHG compliance documentation — organised by regulatory category, instantly accessible for audit or inspection, and built to satisfy the record retention requirements of Article 6 of Federal Decree-Law No. (11) of 2024.
What is the Evidence Vault?
The Evidence Vault is twodegree's secure document management system for GHG compliance records. Every document we produce or collect on your behalf — activity data, calculation workbooks, emission factor references, verification statements, MOCCAE submission confirmations, reduction plans, and supporting correspondence — is stored in a structured, timestamped, access-controlled digital vault. It is the physical implementation of the 5-year record retention requirement under UAE Federal Decree-Law No. (11) of 2024.
What does Article 6 of Federal Decree-Law No. (11) actually require?
Article 6 of Federal Decree-Law No. (11) of 2024 requires all covered entities to retain the data, records, and documentation underlying their GHG inventories and submissions for a minimum of five years. These records must be available for inspection by MOCCAE, UAE judiciary, or authorised regulatory bodies upon request. 'Documentation' means the supporting evidence, not just the final report — including raw activity data, purchase invoices, fuel consumption logs, utility bills, and the methodological decisions made during the inventory process.
What counts as required documentation?
Examples of records that must be retained: DEWA electricity bills (monthly), diesel purchase invoices, fleet mileage logs, refrigerant top-up service records, third-party verification statements, MOCCAE submission confirmations, emission factor sources and version references, internal calculation workbooks, and any correspondence with your verifier or MOCCAE.
What happens if records are not available?
If MOCCAE or a regulatory body requests documentation and it cannot be produced within a reasonable timeframe, this constitutes a violation of Article 6 — subject to fines of AED 100,000 to AED 300,000 per offense, separate from any fines for non-reporting. In a judicial proceeding, inability to produce records can affect the defensibility of your compliance position.
Why 5 years specifically?
The 5-year retention period aligns with the standard period for regulatory audit cycles and legal proceedings in the UAE. It means that by the time a 2026 filing could be subject to retrospective audit (e.g., in 2030), the original supporting data is still available and intact. Records from your first mandatory submission (May 2026) must therefore be retained until at least May 2031.
What gets stored in your Evidence Vault?
Your Evidence Vault is organised into annual compliance packages, each containing all the documentation for that reporting year — structured so that any document can be located and produced within minutes of a regulatory request.
How we deliver it
Vault setup and structure
We configure your Evidence Vault with a folder structure matched to UAE regulatory categories — Scope 1 sources, Scope 2 sources, Scope 3 categories, verification documents, MOCCAE correspondence, and reduction plan records — with naming conventions and indexing designed for rapid retrieval.
Document collection and upload
Throughout the compliance process, we collect all supporting documents from your team — utility bills, fuel logs, invoices, service records — and upload them to the vault alongside our own calculation workbooks, methodology notes, and correspondence records.
Timestamping and access control
Every document is timestamped on upload and linked to the relevant reporting period, emission source, and MOCCAE submission. Access is controlled to authorised users only — with a read-only inspection mode for when regulatory access is needed.
Annual package completion
At the end of each reporting cycle, we complete your annual compliance package — confirming all required documents are present, cross-referenced, and accurately labelled — and provide you with a compliance package checklist signed off by twodegree.
Retention management
We manage the 5-year rolling retention schedule — flagging when records from older years are approaching their retention end date and confirming with you before any scheduled archival or deletion. No records are removed without explicit sign-off.
Audit support
If MOCCAE, a verifier, or a client requests documentation, we prepare the relevant package from your vault — structured for the requesting party's format — and provide it within the required timeframe, with a covering index and document summary.
Deliverables included
Structured Evidence Vault
A secure, access-controlled digital document management system organised by reporting year, emission scope, and document category — structured for regulatory inspection.
Annual Compliance Package
A complete, signed-off annual package containing all required documentation for your GHG inventory, verification, MOCCAE submission, and reduction plan — indexed and ready for inspection.
Timestamped Document Records
Every document stored with metadata showing when it was created, when it was uploaded, who uploaded it, and which reporting period and emission source it relates to.
Retention Schedule
A documented 5-year retention schedule linked to each annual compliance package — with automated flags as records approach their minimum retention end date.
Audit-Ready Document Packages
On-demand preparation of document packages for regulatory inspection, verifier requests, or client due diligence — structured, indexed, and delivered within agreed timeframes.
Compliance Package Checklist
An annual sign-off document confirming all required records are present in your vault, cross-referenced to the relevant articles of UAE Federal Decree-Law No. (11) of 2024.
The business case
Article 6 of Federal Decree-Law No. (11) of 2024 legally requires 5-year record retention. Inability to produce records on request is a separate violation from non-reporting — with its own penalty range of AED 100,000–300,000.
Without a structured vault, tracking down 3-year-old utility bills, service records, and emission factor sources across multiple departments becomes operationally difficult under time pressure — exactly when a regulatory request arrives.
Third-party verifiers require access to supporting documentation as part of the verification process. A well-organised Evidence Vault dramatically reduces the time and cost of annual verification.
Client ESG due diligence, bank lending assessments, and tender evaluation increasingly require documentary evidence of compliance — not just a summary certificate. The vault enables rapid, credible response to these requests.
Over time, your Evidence Vault becomes a structured history of your emissions performance — enabling trend analysis, year-on-year benchmarking, and the baseline evidence needed if your compliance record is ever questioned.
Ready to get this done?
Book a free 30-minute assessment. We'll confirm your obligations, scope the work, and give you a fixed price — no surprises.