Accreditation schemes
Each scheme defines the normative standard the applicant body is assessed against, the certification standards it may then certify, and the sector codes available for scoping.
Management systems — ISO/IEC 17021-1
Accreditation of bodies certifying management systems. Assessment covers legal standing, competence management, audit programme design, impartiality mechanisms, and certification decision-making, verified through office assessment and witness audits.
| ISO 9001:2015 | Quality management |
| ISO 14001:2015 | Environmental management |
| ISO 45001:2018 | Occupational health & safety |
| ISO/IEC 27001:2022 | Information security |
| ISO 13485:2016 | Medical devices |
| ISO 22000:2018 | Food safety management |
Product certification — ISO/IEC 17065
Accreditation of bodies certifying products, processes, and services against a defined technical specification, rather than a management system. Covers certification supporting CE marking technical files and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certification schemes.
| CE Marking | Product conformity |
| GMP | Manufacturing practice |
Inspection bodies — ISO/IEC 17020
Accreditation of Type A, B, and C inspection bodies. Scheme rules are in development; register interest with the registry to be notified when applications open.
Persons certification — ISO/IEC 17024
Accreditation of bodies certifying persons, including auditor and specialist personnel schemes. Scheme rules are in development.
Scope and sector codes
Accreditation is granted for defined technical sectors, following the IAF/EA sector code convention (codes 1–39) so that scopes remain comparable across the market. A body accredited for ISO 9001 in sectors 17–19 may not issue accredited certificates in, say, sector 32 without a scope extension assessed and granted separately. The full code table is published as EQSAB-AR-003.
What a scheme grant permits
An accredited body may issue certificates bearing the EQSAB accreditation mark within its granted scope, must reproduce the mandatory accreditation-status statement on every such certificate, and must submit to annual surveillance including witnessed audits. The complete obligations are set out in EQSAB-AR-001 and EQSAB-AR-002.