In certain locations there may be initiatives promoted by public entities, tourism bodies, destination managers or business associations to facilitate companies' access to certification, training, advisory or promotional services. Each programme sets its own terms, scope and participation requirements.
In some destinations, the promoting body or entity — a municipal council, a regional tourism body or a business association — puts together its programme by contracting us for a set number of certification services, which it makes available to the beneficiary companies in its destination through discount codes or other means of participation determined by the promoter itself. That promoter freely decides the access terms for the services in its programme (for example, being up to date with municipal fees, belonging to a local association or having their registered tax address in the destination) and whether to offer these services free of charge or at a reduced cost for beneficiaries.
Some programmes may facilitate our certification services at reduced prices, according to the terms defined by the promoting entity and the applicable scope in each case.
If the programme provides for it, your entity may appear in information or promotional spaces linked to its promoter, in accordance with its participation and publication terms.
There are programmes where the promoter offers bonuses or additional services in training, advisory and other support actions for participating entities with other service providers.
The programme's promoter — a municipal council, a local tourism manager or a business association — contracts us for a set number of certification services for individual entities in its territory. Depending on the terms it has set for allocating these already-paid services, it may provide you with a code that works as a discount coupon for your certification service. If your entity can benefit from this support, request your code and apply it when taking out your certification service under the Biosphere Scheme through our Biosphere Sustainable platform: your annual fee of €359/entity will be reduced according to the percentage set by the programme's promoter.
Check whether any destination management body or business association in your destination runs this type of programme. If so, request your code on its official website, providing your corporate email and your company's details: it is the promoter itself that checks you meet its conditions before providing it to you.
Check whether there are active programmes in your location that allow your entity to access discounts on our certification services. Review the available list and select the corresponding programme or promoting entity to request its code. To submit your application, use a corporate email address and provide your entity’s name and website. The issue of the code and the applicable terms and conditions will be subject to a review of the information provided and to the requirements of each programme.
Some destination management body programmes may offer discounts on our certification services under the Biosphere Scheme for individual entities. The discount and scope of this subsidy will depend on each programme, on the location of the beneficiary entity and on the discount's applicable requirements as determined by its promoter. The subsidy applied under the programme will take effect on the services to be contracted from our organisation through a discount code, which must be provided by the discount's own promoter, in accordance with the terms it determines for its access and application.
Please note that certification is never obtained automatically through the use of a code. To obtain a certificate through our certification services, your entity must complete the conformity assessment process set out in the Biosphere Scheme and demonstrate conformity with the requirements applicable to the relevant certification level.
The codes act solely as discount coupons at the payment gateway for our certification services, and may apply up to a 100% discount on our annual fee, depending on the subsidy provided by the code's promoter.
Biosphere Responsible Tourism (BRT) does not organise or manage these programmes: they are initiatives run by each destination management body or business association in its own right, which may choose to include in them the certification services it contracts from us. So the first step is to check whether a programme of this kind exists in your entity's location and who promotes it. If there is one, request the code directly from the promoter, through the channel it has set up for that purpose; it will normally ask you for a corporate email address, your entity's legal name and website, and whether the code is granted will depend on that information and on its programme's terms.
On this page we try to compile the programmes we are aware of that include a discount for our certification services, but for any question about their terms or the services they offer, contact the promoter directly, as BRT does not hold that information. Our involvement is limited to applying the corresponding reduction to the fee for our certification services when a discount code is applied.
Yes, but whether the respective reduced rates apply will depend on the terms and conditions of each code or promotion. If the promotions cannot be combined, the code with the most favourable terms for your entity will apply, in accordance with the terms and conditions of our certification services.
Please also bear in mind that these programmes are not fixed: they depend on a destination management body or business association in your area deciding, at a given moment, to contract our certification services in order to make them available to businesses in their territory, with or without a discount for beneficiaries. If no such initiative exists today where your activity is located, one may be launched later on, so we recommend checking this list again from time to time, or asking your town council, local tourism body or business association directly whether they are planning to launch a programme of this kind.
In the meantime, you can start your certification process with us whenever you like: creating your profile on the Biosphere Sustainable platform is free, and you only pay the fee once you decide to move forward to the assessment and request the external audit of the certification process.
