Q18: IAF ID 3:2011 §3 says that “If the risk of continuing certification is low, and based on the collected information the CAB may need to consider alternative short-term methods of assessment to verify continuing system effectiveness for the organization. This may include requesting relevant documentation (for example, management review meeting minutes, corrective action records, results of internal audits, test/inspection reports, etc.) to be reviewed off site by the CAB to determine continuing suitability of the certification (on a short-term basis only)”. Is this time, used to off-site review the documentation provided by the company, to be considered as “audit time” according to IAF MD 5:2019?

Posted on by IAF FAQ TF

A18: yes, the off-site review of the documentation provided by the company is needed to plan and accomplish a complete and effective audit of the client organization’s management system. This time is to be considered as “audit time” according to IAF MD 5:2019. Audit duration may be reduced due to such off-site documentation review.