Disclaimer: "Our partnerships with various CIs do not imply formal collaboration. We maintain strong relationships, allowing us to unburden organizations in the certification process. CBs act independently and are supervised by the Council for Accreditation (RVA)."
What is a Certifying Body (CI).
A certification body is an independent organization authorized to issue certificates. They verify that your organization meets the relevant ISO standard. For example, ISO 9001 for quality management or ISO 27001 for information security. A CB must be competent and independent to ensure the reliability of the certification process. Therefore, the certification body may not play an advisory role.
When will your organization come into contact with a CI
Your organization comes into contact with a CB when you go up for ISO certification. The CI tests whether your organization meets the relevant ISO standard through an external audit. They then conduct control audits every year. Want to read more about the audit cycle? Check out our blog here.
What is the difference between accreditation and certification
The Accreditation Council (RVA) tests the competence and independence of the CB. If the CB meets all guidelines, they may issue certificates under accreditation. This is done per standard. So it is possible for a CB to certify ISO 27001 under accreditation, but not ISO 9001. To ensure the quality of the certificate, we only maintain contact with accredited CBs.
What is our relationship with the CIs
To best support organizations during an implementation process, we have partnerships with several CIs. Through these partnerships we are in direct contact with the CI. This offers many advantages for your organization, such as:
- Request for quotation support:
A request for quotation for an external audit can be complex. We are experienced in this process and are in weekly contact with our contacts within the CIs. This makes requesting quotes easy and fast. This saves you worries and time.
- Price:
We are familiar with IAF-MD guidelines and ISO 27006 standard, which describes the requirements for estimation to which a CI must conform. This allows us to make an accurate estimation of audit days and know in which areas reduction is possible. For example, consider the risk level of an organization or the maturity of the ISMS.
- Impartiality
We have no obligations or financial gain when requesting quotes or consulting in a CI. We always request multiple quotes from our partner CIs.
- Expertise from multiple parties:
We are quickly up to speed on developments in the market, such as changes in standards, renewal of accreditation and the capacity of CBs with respect to certification.
We maintain weekly contact with the following CIs:
