Templates and records · ISO 9001 · Clause 8.7

ISO 9001 nonconforming output record

What is done with a product or service that does not conform before it reaches the customer, or afterwards if it has already left: who decides, what is decided and with what authorisation.

In one sentence

The nonconforming output record describes the output that does not conform, the decision taken on it — correct, segregate, return, suspend or accept under concession — any concession obtained and the person with authority who made the decision, which are the four items clause 8.7.2 of ISO 9001 requires to be retained.

Content reviewed on 17 October 2026

Where the standard requires it: ISO 9001 · Clause 8.7 Clauses are cited using the numbering of the 2015 edition, the same one the Academy uses; certificates issued against it remain valid during the transition to the 2026 edition.
Type of information: Mandatory record Documented information to be retained (8.7.2)
Who fills it in: Quality, together with whoever has authority to decide The standard asks you to identify the person who decides the disposition; it is usually set by value or by type of defect
When: When the nonconforming output is detected Before release, during production or after delivery
How long it is kept: Set by the organisation The standard sets no periods: it asks you to decide on retention and disposition (7.5.3.2). Covering at least the three-year certification cycle lets you show the history at recertification.

What the standard requires

What ISO 9001 demands and what it leaves to your judgement

The standard asks you to identify and control outputs that do not conform to requirements to prevent their unintended use or delivery, and to act according to their nature and effect. The routes it provides for are correction, segregation or containment, return or suspension, informing the customer and obtaining authorisation to accept it under concession.

It also covers what is discovered after delivery, and requires conformity to be verified again when the output is corrected.

This is not the same as the nonconformity report in clause 10: this record deals with the specific product; that one with the cause in the system. A rejected batch can generate both.

Read it in context: Operation, in the ISO 9001 Academy

Structure

Fields the template should include

Product or service identification: reference, batch or serial number and quantity
Description of the nonconformity and the requirement not met
Where and when it was detected (goods-in, process, final inspection, customer)
Containment measures: identification, segregation, hold
Disposition decided: correction, rework, scrap, return, concession
Customer concession, if any, with its reference
Person who decides the disposition
Verification after correction
Link to the nonconformity report, if corrective action is opened

Example

Example: batch with diameter out of tolerance

Company, people and figures are fictitious: the example only shows what a properly completed record looks like.

Field	Content
Product	CB-12 bushing · batch 26-0412 · 1,200 units
Nonconformity	Inside diameter 12.08 mm against a tolerance of 12.00 ± 0.05 mm
Detection	Final inspection, 14 April 2026
Containment	Batch held in the quarantine area with a red label
Disposition	400 units reworked; 800 accepted by the customer under concession
Concession	Written authorisation from the customer, reference CON-0077, valid for this batch only
Decided by	Technical director
Verification	Reinspection of the 400 reworked units: conforming
Nonconformity report	NC-2026-044, due to undetected tool wear

At the audit

Mistakes auditors commonly flag

Product set aside without identification, which ends up mixed with conforming stock.
Verbal concessions from the customer with no written trail.
No record of who decided to accept or rework.
Reworked product is not reinspected before release.
Defects found by the customer after delivery are not recorded here.

In Kimobox

How this record is kept in Kimobox

1The nonconforming product is recorded linked to its batch, with traceability from raw material to delivery.
2The workflow requires a decision on what to do with the product before it can be closed.
3The customer's authorisation sits in the same record, next to the decision and the person who made it.
4If the defect calls for corrective action, the nonconformity follows its own route of root cause, action and verification of effectiveness.

Frequently asked questions

What people ask us before getting started

What is a concession?

Permission to use or release a product or service that does not conform to specified requirements. ISO 9000 defines it, and it is usually limited to a specific quantity or period; if it comes from the customer, it should be in writing.

Is it the same as the nonconformity report?

No. The nonconforming output record deals with the specific output and what is done with it; the nonconformity report in clause 10 analyses the cause and the corrective action. One often leads to the other.

Does it apply to service companies?

Yes. A service delivered late or not as agreed is a nonconforming output, and the decision — redo it, compensate, inform the customer — is recorded in the same way.

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Sources

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.

ISO 9001:2015 — Quality management systems. Requirements ISO · 2015 ed., with Amd 1:2024
ISO 9000:2015 — Fundamentals and vocabulary ISO · 2015 ed.
ISO 9001:2026 — Quality management systems. Requirements ISO · 2026 ed., published 16 September 2026