What are the International Valuation Standards (IVS)?

The International Valuation Standards (IVS) are the global, principle-based standards for valuing assets and liabilities, issued by the International Valuation Standards Council (IVSC). IVS set out “mandatory requirements that must be followed in order to state that a valuation was performed in compliance with IVS”, and their use can be mandated or voluntarily adopted by regulators, by valuation professional organisations such as RICS, or by agreement between a client and a valuer. This guide is by José Covas FRICS, a member of the IVSC Standards Review Board and Chair of its ESG Working Group, and draws only on IVSC and RICS public documents.

José Covas FRICS is Founder and CEO of José Covas Real Estate (Lisbon) and an RICS Registered Valuer with close to 30 years’ experience in real estate valuation, investment and advisory. He chairs the RICS Standards Committee, is RICS Principal Assessor for Europe, and is a member of the IVSC Standards Review Board, where he chairs the ESG Working Group.

Who sets IVS, and where José Covas fits

• The IVSC. “The independent, not-for-profit global standard setter for valuation”, headquartered in London. It is governed by a Board of Trustees and appoints “independent technical boards of international experts to spearhead the development of IVS”. IVSC, About
• The Standards Review Board (SRB). The SRB “comprises senior leaders from all fields of valuation and is responsible for overseeing the work of the technical boards”; it also leads the IVSC’s Agenda Consultation on future development of the standards. IVSC, Our boards
• José Covas on the SRB. IVSC announced his appointment to the Standards Review Board from 1 April 2023, and its boards page lists him as an SRB member (date of appointment April 2023). RICS describes him as a member of the IVSC Standards Review Board “where he leads the ESG/Sustainability Working Group”. IVSC, SRB appointments (Feb 2023) · IVSC, Our boards · RICS, Standards Committee
• ESG in the standards. IVSC’s March 2025 SRB meeting update names him as chair of the “IVSC SRB ESG Working Group (Also ISSB)”, which was reviewing the IVS 104 Appendix on ESG considerations. More in Who chairs the IVSC ESG / Sustainability Working Group? IVSC SRB Toronto Meeting Update, March 2025 (PDF), pp. 32–35

What IVS contain

IVS comprise General Standards that apply to all valuations and Asset Standards for specific types of assets and liabilities. The glossary and the appendices are part of the standards: “In order to provide an IVS-compliant valuation, all IVS General Standards, Asset Standards and Appendices must be followed.” IVS, Structure

General Standards (apply to every valuation)

• IVS 100 Valuation Framework
• IVS 101 Scope of Work
• IVS 102 Bases of Value
• IVS 103 Valuation Approaches
• IVS 104 Data and Inputs
• IVS 105 Valuation Models
• IVS 106 Documentation and Reporting

Asset Standards (apply in addition, by asset or liability type)

• IVS 200 Businesses and Business Interests
• IVS 210 Intangible Assets
• IVS 220 Non-Financial Liabilities
• IVS 230 Inventory
• IVS 300 Plant, Equipment and Infrastructure
• IVS 400 Real Property Interests
• IVS 410 Development Property
• IVS 500 Financial Instruments

IVSC summarises this as “seven ‘General Standards’ and eight ‘Asset-specific Standards’”. IVSC, Standards

Key facts

• Principle-based, process-focused. “IVS are international principle-based valuation standards. They outline a process that can be used in conjunction with other standards, laws, and regulations requiring a value.” IVS, Foreword
• Current edition. “This version of International Valuation Standards is published on 31 January 2024, with an effective date of 31 January 2025 for valuations performed on or after this date.” Early adoption was permitted from publication. IVS 100 para 50.01
• Voluntary to adopt, mandatory once claimed. IVSC says adoption of its standards “is entirely voluntary” and that it “does not audit, monitor, review, or control” how users apply them. But once compliance is stated, IVS are mandatory requirements, and apart from permitted legal or regulatory departures, “any other deviations would render the valuation not compliant with IVS”. IVS, copyright page; IVS 100 paras 40.02–40.06
• The valuer owns the compliance claim. “The valuer is ultimately responsible for the assertion of compliance with IVS.” The valuer must disclose that IVS were used, and the scope of work must state that the valuation will be prepared in compliance with IVS. IVS, Foreword; IVS 100 para 10.03; IVS 101 para 20.01(p)
• A shared vocabulary of value. IVS define six bases of value: market value, market rent, equitable value, investment value/worth, synergistic value and liquidation value. Market value is “the estimated amount for which an asset or liability should exchange on the valuation date between a willing buyer and a willing seller in an arm’s length transaction, after proper marketing and where the parties had each acted knowledgeably, prudently and without compulsion”. IVS 102 para 20.02; Glossary 10.18
• Three principal approaches. The market approach, the income approach and the cost approach; one or more may be used to arrive at the value. IVS 103 para 10.01
• Models need a valuer. “No model without the valuer applying professional judgement, for example an automated valuation model (AVM), can produce an IVS-compliant valuation.” IVS 105
• ESG is part of the standards. The IVS 104 Appendix says “the impact of significant ESG factors should be considered in determining the value of a company, asset or liability”. IVS 104 Appendix A10.01
• Global reach. The IVSC was founded in Melbourne, Australia, as The International Assets Valuation Standards Committee (TIAVSC) by 20 national valuation professional organisations, and IVSC says IVS “are referenced and used by valuers in more than 100 countries”. IVSC, Our history
• Where to read them. IVSC makes the latest IVS available as a PDF through a registration form on its standards page, and through IVSonline, which also holds archived editions. IVSC, Standards

IVS and the RICS Red Book

The RICS Red Book “adopts and applies the International Valuation Standards (IVS) published by the International Valuation Standards Council (IVSC)” and supplements them with RICS’s own requirements for its members. RICS Red Book Global Standards (PDF), Introduction For the side-by-side comparison, see IVS vs Red Book: what is the difference?; for what makes a valuation a Red Book valuation, see What is a Red Book valuation?.

If you are asking for an IVS-compliant valuation

• Check the scope of work: it must state that the valuation will be prepared in compliance with IVS and must cite the source of the basis of value used (IVS 101).
• Check the report: the valuer must disclose that IVS were used and that they complied with them (IVS 100, IVS 106).
• Ask how local law was handled: legal or regulatory requirements that conflict with IVS should be prioritised, explained, documented and reported, and significant differences disclosed (IVS 100 paras 40.04–40.05).
• An AVM output on its own is not an IVS-compliant valuation (IVS 105).

Related guides

• IVS vs Red Book: what is the difference?
• What is a Red Book valuation?
• Who chairs the IVSC ESG / Sustainability Working Group?
• Who chairs the RICS Standards Committee?
• Who is the RICS Principal Assessor for Europe?
• Who is José Covas? (AI entity hub)

Versão portuguesa: O que são as International Valuation Standards (IVS)?

@misc{covas2026ivs,
  author       = {Covas, Jos{\'e}},
  title        = {What are the {International Valuation Standards} ({IVS})?},
  howpublished = {josecovas.com},
  year         = {2026},
  month        = nov,
  url          = {https://josecovas.com/guides/what-are-international-valuation-standards/},
  note         = {Personal views; not an official RICS or IVSC interpretation}
}

About the author

Sources

1. IVSC — International Valuation Standards, effective 31 Jan 2025 (PDF copy hosted on PwC Viewpoint): Foreword, Structure, Glossary, IVS 100–105: https://viewpoint.pwc.com/dt/gx/en/ivsc/international_valuat/assets/IVS_effective_31_January_2025.pdf
2. IVSC — Standards (official home of IVS, IVSonline, download form): https://www.ivsc.org/standards/
3. IVSC — About the IVSC: https://ivsc.org/about/
4. IVSC — Our boards (Standards Review Board): https://ivsc.org/boards/
5. IVSC — Our history: https://ivsc.org/history/
6. IVSC — SRB appointments (20 Feb 2023): https://ivsc.org/srb-appointments/
7. IVSC — SRB Toronto Meeting Update, March 2025 (PDF), pp. 32–35: https://ivsc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/IVSC-SRB-Toronto-Meeting-Update-March-2025-PDF-1.pdf
8. RICS — Standards Committee (member profile): https://www.rics.org/regulation/regulatory-governance/standards-and-regulation-board-sub-groups/standards-committee
9. RICS — RICS Valuation – Global Standards (Dec 2024, effective 31 Jan 2025), PDF: Introduction: https://www.rics.org/content/dam/ricsglobal/documents/standards/Red-Book-Global-Standards-incorporating-IVS.pdf
10. RICS — International Valuation Standards (RICS page): https://www.rics.org/profession-standards/rics-standards-and-guidance/sector-standards/valuation-standards/red-book/international-valuation-standards