Editing ISO 9000 family (section)

==Certification==
The [[International Organization for Standardization]] (ISO) does not certify organizations themselves. Numerous certification bodies exist that audit organizations and issue ISO 9001 compliance certificates upon success. Although commonly referred to as "ISO 9000" certification, the actual standard to which an organization's quality management system can be certified is ISO 9001:2015 (ISO 9001:2008 expired around September 2018). Many countries have formed [[accreditation]] bodies to authorize ("accredit") the certification bodies. Both the accreditation bodies and the certification bodies charge fees for their services. The various accreditation bodies have mutual agreements with each other to ensure that certificates issued by one of the [[accredited registrar|accredited certification bodies]] (CB) are accepted worldwide. Certification bodies themselves operate under another quality standard, ISO/IEC 17021,<ref>ISO/IEC 17021: "Conformity assessment. Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems" (2011)</ref> while accreditation bodies operate under ISO/IEC 17011.<ref>ISO/IEC 17011: "Conformity assessment. General requirements for accreditation bodies accrediting conformity assessment bodies" (2004).</ref>

An organization applying for ISO 9001 certification is audited based on an extensive sample of its sites, functions, products, services, and processes. The auditor presents a list of problems (defined as "nonconformities", "observations", or "opportunities for improvement") to management. If there are no major nonconformities, the certification body issues a certificate.  Where major nonconformities are identified, the organization presents an improvement plan to the certification body (e.g., corrective action reports showing how the problems will be resolved); once the certification body is satisfied that the organization has carried out sufficient corrective action, it issues a certificate.  The certificate is limited by a particular scope (e.g., production of golf balls) and displays the addresses to which the certificate refers.

An ISO 9001 certificate is not a once-and-for-all award but must be renewed, in accordance with the requirements of ISO 17021, at regular intervals recommended by the certification body, usually once every three years.<ref>{{cite web |title=ISO/IEC 17021-1:2015 Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems — Part 1: Requirements |url=https://www.iso.org/standard/61651.html |website=www.iso.org |publisher=ISO |access-date=9 April 2020}}</ref>  There are no grades of competence within ISO 9001: either a company is certified (meaning that it is committed to the method and model of quality management described in the standard) or it is not. In this respect, ISO 9001 certification contrasts with measurement-based quality systems.