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Module 6 of 6 · ISO 9001:2026 · Block 6

Transition and certification from the 2015 edition

A three-year transition: from 31 March 2028 only initial certifications to 2026 are issued, and 2015 certificates expire on 30 September 2029.

Content reviewed on

The deadlines

Global ACI is the international accreditation organisation that replaced IAF and ILAC on 1 January 2026, and its transition documents are binding on the accreditation bodies in its arrangement and on the certification bodies they accredit. According to its transition document, the transition period lasts three years from the end of the month of publication. Accreditation bodies must be ready by 31 March 2027 at the latest; certification bodies submit their declaration before 30 June 2027, and accreditation decisions are completed before 30 September 2027.

From 31 March 2028 no initial certifications can be issued against the 2015 edition, and existing certificates must migrate before 30 September 2029, when certificates to the previous edition cease to be valid.

The transition audit

Migration is verified in a transition audit, which can coincide with the surveillance or recertification audit or be carried out as a special audit. As a minimum, it must review the requirements that change, changes in the organisation's context and any other change the system needs.

The certification body decides whether additional audit time is needed according to how much the system has changed, and may carry out the audit remotely if it can show that the audit objectives are met.

If you do not migrate in time

An organisation may decide not to migrate and keep being audited against the 2015 edition, but its certificate expires at the end of the transition even if its three-year cycle would have ended later. To avoid a last-minute rush, the sensible course is to transition at the surveillance or recertification audit closest to the date your certification body is accredited for the new edition.

What an auditor usually asks for

  • Confirmed date from which your certification body can audit against the 2026 edition
  • Transition audit scheduled, alongside surveillance or recertification or as a special audit
  • Gap analysis closed and actions implemented before the audit
  • Internal audit and management review already carried out against the new edition

How to cover this block in Kimobox

  1. 1Document the transition plan with owners and dates, linked to the gap analysis.
  2. 2Plan an internal audit with a checklist of the clauses that change ahead of the external audit.
  3. 3Keep the transition audit report and the new certificate as controlled documents.

The transition plan stays in the system with its deadlines, ready to review at every surveillance audit.

See the dates in the regulatory calendar

Where each figure comes from

References to the official text in force. If a standard is revised, this page is updated and the review date says so.

  1. ISO 9001:2026 — Quality management systems. Requirements ISO · 2026 ed., published 16 September 2026
  2. ISO press release on the publication of ISO 9001:2026 ISO · 16 September 2026
  3. ISO/TC 176/SC 2: ISO 9001:2026 has been released ISO/TC 176/SC 2 · 28 September 2026
  4. Global ACI-TECH-3-TR 2029-09-30 (M), transition requirements for ISO 9001:2026 Global ACI (successor to IAF and ILAC) · Version 1.0, 4 September 2026
  5. IAF notice of cessation and transfer of its documents to Global ACI IAF · 1 January 2026
  6. ISO 9001:2015 — Quality management systems. Requirements (withdrawn) ISO · 2015 ed., with Amd 1:2024; withdrawn 16 September 2026
  7. ISO 9000:2015 — Fundamentals and vocabulary ISO · 2015 ed.
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