When does ISO 9001:2008 expire?

   In order to cooperate with the change of ISO standard and ensure the smooth transition of the new version of the standard, IAF officially released the "ISO9001:2015 Version Conversion Implementation Guide" in January 2015. The document makes it clear: IAF and CASCO have reached an agreement that the transition period of the new version of the standard is: the transition will be completed within 3 years after the official release date of ISO9001:2015.

  According to this calculation, the validity period of the current ISO 9001:2008 standard will be extended to around September 2018. The ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 9001:2015 standards will co-exist during a 3-year transition period. By September 2018, all ISO 9001:2008 certificates will be voided and expired. All certified organizations need to take steps to convert their current ISO 9001:2008 certificates to ISO 9001:2015 certificates during the 3-year transition period.

   In fact, after the revision of the standard is promulgated, all certificates issued in accordance with ISO 9001:2008 will be marked with the same expiry date: 3 years from the date of promulgation.

  The role and positioning of the conversion process?

The    conversion process is determined by the participation of five institutions, and the order is as follows:

  1, ISO (International Organization for Standardization)

   Determine the four key nodes of each standard revision: promulgation of final international standards (FDIS), promulgation of formal international standards (IS), elimination of old standards, and invalidation of old standards.

  2, IAF (International Accreditation Forum)

   Jointly promulgated the transition period guidance document with ISO.

  3. Accreditation body

   will refine the IAF guidelines to identify detailed requirements for accredited certification bodies.

  4. Certification body

   Then synthesizes ISO, IAF and accreditation body regulations and guidelines to determine the transition process and options available to certified organizations.

  5. Certified organization

   Work with the certification body to develop a detailed optimal conversion strategy.

   What is the ISO 9001 Certification Conversion Process?

   There are two options for certification bodies and certified organizations.

  Option 1: One-time audit

  Manage the certification transition process with a one-time transition audit. This transition audit can be conducted concurrently with a surveillance audit, a recertification audit, or during a special audit process.

  The above one-time audit only assesses compliance with the 2015 edition of ISO 9001. If an organization is determined to be non-compliant, certification will not be issued and the organization will not be able to obtain ISO 9001 certification.

  Option 2: Staged review

   Manage the certification transition process using a “phased” or “incremental” approach. The IAF has not yet made detailed provisions for the scheme, but the idea is to adopt the surveillance audits and re-certification audits originally used to maintain ISO9001:2008 certification, and conduct additional and follow-up assessments of the subcategories of the revised standard.

   Once all the requirements are met, the decision to grant certification can be made.

   On the one hand, the "phased" transition reduces the risk of the organization, but on the other hand, formulating such a transition plan is more complicated and requires careful discussions between the organization and the certification body to reach a good consensus.

   The following measures are recommended for organizations that are using ISO9001:2008:

   Carry out a difference analysis of the application of the old and new standards within the organization as soon as possible;

   Establish a conversion implementation plan;

   Train or inform all departments involved in the effectiveness of the management system of changes to their standards;

   Update the existing management system in accordance with the new version of the standard to ensure that the system continues to meet the requirements of the new standard and maintain its effectiveness;

   When using the new standard, please contact the existing certification body providing services to make relevant arrangements for the conversion.

   Clarify the conversion form of ISO9001:2008 certification:

  1. The certification body must conduct ISO9001:2015 audits for each client.

  2. Based on the agreement with the certification organization, the certification body may carry out conversion activities during routine surveillance audits, re-audits and/or special audit schedules.

3. When a transition audit occurs during a pre-scheduled surveillance audit or an audit at a certain stage (an ongoing audit in the process or an audit at a certain stage), the certification body should add additional audit time to ensure that the audit activities are fully covered Existing requirements and requirements of new editions of the standard.

  4. The assessment activities implemented during the DIS draft stage cannot be regarded as formal conversions.

  5. Any such earlier assessment must be reassessed and fully validated prior to ISO9001:2015 transition.

   As planned, what is the ideal transition schedule?

   First of all, it must be clarified that the time arrangement for ISO9001 certificate conversion depends on the specific situation of each company. The following time schedule is only a theoretical deduction. It is only an example of a company certified by the ISO 9001:2008 standard. It is not applicable to every company and is for reference only.