The IS rating, explained for infrastructure teams
The Infrastructure Sustainability rating scores how a project is planned, designed, built and run. Here is how the score bands, stages and workforce credits work under the current v2.2 tool.
What is IS Rating?
An IS rating is the Infrastructure Sustainability Council's independently verified score for the sustainability of infrastructure in Australia and New Zealand. Design and As Built projects earn points across governance, economic, environmental and social credits. A score of 20 out of 100 earns Bronze, rising to Platinum at 80 and above.
Major Infrastructure Projects
IS Design and As Built covers the design and construction of all asset classes, including roads, rail, water, aviation and maritime. The project must be in its design or construction phase to be eligible.
Projects of $5m to $100m
IS Essentials is a lighter tool based on Design and As Built v2.1, with 34 credits and no mandatory credits. ISC asks projects under $5m to contact it first.
Projects of $100m to $500m
ISC has introduced a screening process for these projects under v2.1 and v2.2, so the tool scales better to their size.
Early Planning and Operating Assets
IS Planning (v2.1) quantifies sustainability opportunities early in a project, and IS Operations (v1.2) assesses how operating assets, networks or portfolios perform.
What IS Rating asks for.
What you report, and when.
Registration of Interest
To ISC
Design Submission
To two independent verifiers
As Built Submission
To two independent verifiers
Final Score
To the project team, from verifiers
- Base Case Proposal and Materiality Assessment
- Credit Summary Forms
- Sustainable Procurement Strategy
- Jobs, Skills and Workforce Planning Records
- Workplace Culture and Wellbeing Records
- Diversity and Inclusion Records
- Heritage Stakeholder Engagement Records
Treating Design as the Result
The Design score is interim, and the As Built score replaces it once verified. Both stages must be finished to receive an award, so a good Design result is not yet a rating.
Reading v2.1 Rules on a v2.2 Project
ISC updated 25 of 37 credits in v2.2, and it describes the Wfs-1 changes as substantial. Check which version your rating agreement names before copying a template from an earlier project.
Registering Late on a Design and Construct Contract
ISC notes that design and construct teams can still reach the Wfs-1 Design criteria, but timing of appointment and workforce planning at tender affect it. Workforce planning done only after award may be too late to count.
How Catchment manages IS Rating.
No Ready-Made IS Template
GovAssureCatchment has no built-in IS framework. You set it up as your own framework in the Policies & Frameworks library, versioned, using the wording of the Technical Manual named in your rating agreement.
Workforce Figures for the Wfs Credits
SocialProYour own framework can hold labour targets with their own kind, value and denominator, which each work package switches on. Monthly hours then count against attributes such as gender, apprentice, trainee and Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, which gives you the record to report from for Wfs-1 and Wfs-3.
Supplier Spend Behind Spr-1
SocialProWhere your Sustainable Procurement Strategy sets supplier targets, Certified Spend keeps one row per invoice with supplier ABN, certifications, value excluding GST and any invoice file you attach. It records certification and checks spend against your project spend targets.
Environmental Data From the Same Packages
EnviroTrackIS also scores energy and carbon, water, resource use and environmental impacts. Packages report energy, fuels, water, waste, materials and transport monthly against project commitments, using emission factors.
A Requirement for Each Stage of Evidence
GovAssureSet each credit's documents as a requirement at project or package level, one-time or on a monthly, quarterly or half-yearly cycle, so trade partners (subcontractors) receive theirs directly. You submit to ISC and its verifiers yourself, working from the exports.
Catchment has no ready-made template for this one. You build it in the Policies & Frameworks library, then adopt it on each project.
IS Rating questions.
What are the IS rating levels?
ISC's Design and As Built FAQs list Bronze at 20 to 34.9 points, Silver at 35 to 54.9, Gold at 55 to 79.9 and Platinum at 80 to 100. A score of 19.9 or below receives no rating.
What is the difference between IS v2.1 and v2.2?
IS v2.2 Design and As Built is an iterative update released on 28 October 2025. ISC updated 25 of its 37 credits, removed 109 must statements and 53 credit criteria, and reworked the Sustainable Workforce category and Spr-1. ISC reports most eligible v2.1 ratings have partly or fully moved across.
What is IS Essentials?
IS Essentials is ISC's lighter tool for projects with a capital value of $5m to $100m. It has 34 credits and no compulsory credits. Ten permanent credits apply automatically and others are screened in by materiality score.
Which IS credits cover workforce and social procurement?
The Sustainable Workforce category has four credits: Wfs-1 Jobs, Skills and Workforce Planning, Wfs-2 Workplace Culture and Wellbeing, Wfs-3 Diversity and Inclusion, and Wfs-4 Sustainable Site Facilities. Procurement sits under Spr-1 Sustainable Procurement Strategy, and heritage engagement under Her-1.
How long does IS verification take?
ISC says final scores typically arrive about three months after a rating is submitted for verification. Design and As Built submissions are reviewed by two independent third-party verifiers.
How much does an IS rating cost?
ISC publishes fees by tool, capital value and membership, split into stages such as registration, annual support, verification and certification. As one example, IS Essentials registration at $5m to $19m is listed at $6,600 for non-members and $5,100 for members. Check ISC's current table for your project.
- IS Rating Scheme (Infrastructure Sustainability Council)
- FAQs: IS Design and As-Built (Infrastructure Sustainability Council)
- IS Design & As-Built Rating (Infrastructure Sustainability Council)
- The Version 2.2 Design and As Built Technical Manual: Change Summary (October 2025) (Infrastructure Sustainability Council)
- IS Essentials (Infrastructure Sustainability Council)
- IS v2.2 Design & As-Built Rating Tool & Verification Workplans in 2025 (Infrastructure Sustainability Council)
- Technical Workplan (Infrastructure Sustainability Council)
- IS v2.1 Welcome Pack (Infrastructure Sustainability Council)
Reviewed 4 November 2026. General information to help you plan reporting, not legal advice. Policies change, so check the current version with the policy owner before you rely on it.
Report against IS Rating from one record.
Bring a live project and see this policy set up against it.
Book a Demo →