LEED v4 certification matures: submittal documentation and reviews undergoing streamlining

Canadians have a 25-year history with the LEED rating system and have submitted more than 2,000 projects for LEED v4 and v4.1 certification. As each version of the rating system matures, CAGBC and GBCI reviewers notice market confidence with the credit requirements increasing as well, such that what was once a reach or unfamiliar to project teams becomes common knowledge to LEED practitioners. 

LEED v5 is now fully available in the market for LEED Building Design and Construction (BD+C) and LEED Interior Design and Construction (ID+C) projects, and the LEED v4/4.1 versions of these systems are expected to close to new registrations by the end of June 2026.  

Given the wealth of market experience with LEED v4/4.1, we’ve seen opportunities to streamline some documentation and review without compromising the certification outcomes. Previous versions underwent similar submittal and review streamlining efforts, allowing both consultants and staff at CAGBC time to focus on adapting to the newest version. 

How will changes apply?

LEED Forms: 

Now’s the time to read the forms again. Selected LEED Forms have changes to their text descriptions and/or required  documentation. In some cases, the changes are minor/only text, and all active projects would have the newly edited LEED Forms beginning in November 2025. In other cases, where changes are more significant, they will only show up on newly applied credits, or where credits are withdrawn and re-attempted.  

An example of a Form that changed for all projects, and provides a new allowance to demonstrate compliance, is the wording changes with WE prerequisite Indoor Water Use Reduction, where there is a new allowance to utilize plumbing schedules instead of product cutsheets. If you take a look in LEED Online, you’ll see your active projects will have the LEED Form within this prerequisite reflecting this change. 

Where the change resulted in a more complex update to the LEED Form, such as the removal of a checkbox or changing the content of a table, only a new version of the Form will show the adjustment. An example of this type of change is LEED v4 BD+C SS credit Protect or Restore Habitat, where in Version 03 of the Form the requirement for soil testing for restored soils has been removed. This is also an example of where market maturity resulted in a supporting document being deemed unnecessary. 

Project teams can review all the LEED v4/4.1 revised Forms in LEED Online, on the landing page under Tools. We hope the text edits for clarity and changes in documentation avoid confusion and save time when preparing project submittals. 

LEED Addenda to come: 

Some of the adjustments to documentation will require minor revisions in the LEED Reference Guides, under Documentation Requirements for each credit, to reflect the changes to the LEED Forms. A few of these were published in the November 2025 addenda; however, other changes will be included in upcoming addenda in 2026. 

Review Comments: 

Project teams may also notice that the certification review comments will focus on outlining the items that need to be addressed to demonstrate requirements or an achievement threshold, with decidedly fewer educational notes. This will be most apparent with MR credits Environmental Product Declarations, Material Ingredients, and Sourcing of Raw Materials, as well as EQ credit Low Emitting Materials.   

We hope this results in higher achievement rates at preliminary review, minimizing the time needed at final review. Stay tuned for next month’s article where CAGBC reviewers highlight their favourite updates! 

Ways to refresh your knowledge 

Now’s a good time to reread the LEED Forms and brush up on your submittal knowledge. There are great resources available to project teams: 

• Submittal Tips provided by GBCI in the Online Credit Library. 

• CAGBC’s Reviewer Insight videos offer visual instructions to avoid common errors. 

• CAGBC’s monthly Technical Bulletin to members offers articles and resources on helpful topics like energy modelling, the treatment of incomplete space, multiple buildings, and much more. These are posted to the CAGBC website for future access under News and Technical Resources. 

• USGBC LEED Certification FAQ.