Certification body accreditation confirms that a certification body operates impartially, consistently, and competently when certifying management systems, persons, products, processes, or services.
Purpose
The program helps customers, regulators, and interested parties rely on certificates issued by competent certification bodies.
- Supports confidence in certification decisions.
- Promotes impartiality and control of conflicts of interest.
- Confirms competence of auditors, reviewers, and decision makers.
Typical requirements
Requirements depend on the type of certification activity and the standards used. Certification bodies should maintain documented procedures for application review, evaluation, review, decision, surveillance, suspension, withdrawal, and appeals.
- Impartiality committee or equivalent impartiality controls.
- Competence criteria for personnel involved in certification.
- Records supporting each certification decision.
- Complaint and appeal handling process.
Assessment focus
IACA assessment may include office assessment, file review, witnessing of certification activity, and review of decision records within the requested scope.
- Contract review and audit planning records.
- Technical review and certification decision independence.
- Use of marks, certificates, and surveillance controls.
Applications and contact
Organizations seeking accreditation should review the current documents in the Center of Documents and contact IACA before submitting an application, so the correct scope, standard, and supporting records can be confirmed.
Email: accreditation@iacaab.org / info@iacaab.org