ISO 9001 renewal: keep your certificate valid for three years

An ISO 9001 certificate is not a single event. It shows that your quality management system works, and that has to be confirmed again and again. With Zertify this happens once a year, online, without an auditor visiting your premises.

The certificate is valid for 3 years. In each year you complete a short online re-audit. It is part of the yearly fee, so there is no separate booking and no separate invoice for it.

Validity

The certificate is valid for 3 years from the date of issue.

Yearly confirmation

A short online re-audit confirms every year that your quality system is still in place. It is included in the yearly fee.

Price

CHF 599 (€599) in the first year, then CHF 399 (€399) per year including the yearly online re-audit. Prices include 8.1% Swiss VAT for customers in Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

Billing and cancellation

The fee is an automatic yearly subscription. You can cancel at any time in your customer account, effective at the end of the current year. If you cancel, the certificate ends with the paid year.

Several standards

If you hold more than one Zertify certificate, a multi-standard discount applies: 20% for 2 standards, 30% for 3 or more. It also applies to the yearly fee.

• See pricing

The re-audit is short, but it is only useful if your quality system reflects how you work today. Use the main requirements of ISO 9001:2015 as a yearly checklist. Go through them in this order.

1. 01

   Context of the organisation (clause 4)

   Has anything changed in your products, customers, markets, suppliers or legal requirements? Update your notes on the context and on the parties who depend on you.

2. 02

   Quality policy and objectives (clauses 5 and 6)

   Is the policy still right for the company? Did you reach your measurable objectives? Close the old ones and set new ones.

3. 03

   Risks and opportunities (clause 6)

   Review your list of risks. Remove what no longer applies, add what is new, and check that the planned actions were carried out.

4. 04

   Processes (clause 8)

   Compare the documented processes with daily practice. New tools, new work steps or a change of supplier should show up in your documents.

5. 05

   Resources and competence (clause 7)

   Check that new employees are trained, that roles are clear and that equipment and infrastructure are fit for use.

6. 06

   Performance and improvement (clauses 9 and 10)

   Look at customer feedback, complaints and internal checks. Make sure corrective actions are closed and that you can show what you improved.

The yearly re-audit is what keeps your certificate confirmed. Do not plan on a grace period. The terms in your customer account set out what applies to your certificate. If you are close to the date or have already missed it, check them and contact Zertify without delay.

Every Zertify certificate can be verified publicly by number and QR code. Customers, tender partners and auditors may look it up at any time. A certificate that you cannot show as confirmed weakens the trust you built with it.

Three habits prevent most problems. Put the re-audit date in the company calendar. Name one person who is responsible. Start your review about four weeks before the date.

Cancelling is a different case. If you cancel the subscription, the certificate ends with the paid year. You can cancel at any time in your customer account, effective at the end of the current year.

On the classic route, an on-site audit by a certification body, the cycle usually runs over three years. A surveillance audit takes place in between. A recertification audit follows at the end of the cycle and looks at the whole system again. These audits are planned together with the auditor.

Zertify keeps the same idea, a regular confirmation that the system is alive, and moves it online.

• Compare the certification routes
• Read the cost guide

You start with an online self-assessment of 30 yes/no questions. You pass with 20 of 30. SICE, the Swiss Institute of Certification and Education, reviews every assessment before the certificate is issued. The certificate itself is issued by G6 Agency AG under licence from SICE.

After you pass and pay, you receive the certificate within 4 hours. You do not need an account to buy. From then on, a short online re-audit each year keeps it confirmed.

The price is CHF 599 (€599) in the first year, then CHF 399 (€399) per year including the yearly online re-audit. If your company is not certified yet, the self-assessment is the place to begin.

• ISO 9001 certificate
• Pricing
• How it works
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