Certification rules.

Scope

These rules apply to any organisation that applies to Gardiant Certification for certification or that will hold one of its certificates. They cover two schemes: Qualiopi, for providers of skills development actions in France, and ISO/UNDP 53001, for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) management systems.

Qualiopi certifies a provider and falls under ISO/IEC 17065. ISO 53001 certification concerns a management system and falls under ISO/IEC 17021-1. Where the two frameworks differ, these rules say so.

Should these rules conflict with the requirements of the standard, the applicable regulations or the rules of the accreditation body, the latter prevail.

Gardiant Certification is preparing its application for accreditation by COFRAC. Certificates will be issued once accreditation is granted.

Definitions

• Applicant: an organisation that has submitted an application for certification which is still under review.
• Certified organisation: an organisation holding a valid certificate issued by Gardiant Certification.
• Standard: the requirements the organisation must meet — the national quality framework (référentiel national qualité) for Qualiopi, and ISO/UNDP 53001 for management system certification.
• Scope: what the certificate covers. For Qualiopi, the certified category or categories of actions; for ISO 53001, the activities and sites included in the management system.
• Finding: the evidence-based outcome of assessing a requirement: conformity, minor nonconformity, major nonconformity or observation. An observation is not a nonconformity.
• Certification decision: a decision to grant, maintain, renew, extend, reduce, suspend or withdraw a certificate, taken by someone who did not carry out the audit.
• Certification cycle: the three-year period covered by a certificate, from grant or renewal to expiry, including its surveillance audits.

Commitments of Gardiant Certification

• No consulting, training or compliance support for the organisations it certifies (see the impartiality statement).
• An auditor qualified for the sector, who signs a declaration of no conflict of interest before each assignment. Auditors' names are given before the audit, and the organisation may object to one, stating its reasons.
• A certification decision taken by a person who did not carry out the audit.
• Findings that are traced and backed by evidence; every nonconformity is explained in writing, with the requirement concerned.
• An audit report sent within 10 working days of the closing meeting.
• Confidentiality of the information gathered, on the terms set out below.
• Prior written notice to the organisation of any change to these rules or to the certification requirements that affects it.
• A price set by quotation, based on the audit duration calculated for the organisation, and published complaints and appeals procedures and list of certified organisations.

Obligations of the certified organisation

By signing the certification agreement, the organisation undertakes to:

• meet the requirements of the standard at all times across the whole certified scope;
• provide accurate and complete information when applying, and keep it up to date;
• give the audit team access to the sites, people, documents and records it needs, including for outsourced activities that fall within the scope;
• accept observers announced in advance, such as assessors from the accreditation body or auditors in training;
• tell Gardiant Certification promptly of any change that could affect its conformity: legal form, ownership, management, sites, headcount, activities or categories of actions, outsourcing;
• keep a record of complaints received about its certified activities and of how they were dealt with, and make it available to the auditor;
• address the nonconformities raised within the set deadlines;
• accept an additional audit, at short notice where necessary, when a complaint, a significant change or a suspension calls for one;
• follow the rules for using the certificate and logo and make no misleading statement about its certification;
• stop all reference to the certification while it is suspended or once it has been withdrawn;
• pay the fees set out in the agreement.

Conditions for granting

Certification is granted after an initial audit covering every requirement that applies to the requested scope. The practical sequence is summarised in the certification process.

1. Application. The organisation completes the quote request: activity, headcount, sites, requested scope, any outsourcing, any previous certification. This information is used to check eligibility and to work out the audit duration.
2. Application review. Gardiant Certification checks that the information is sufficient, that the scope falls within its field, that competent auditors are available and that there is no conflict of interest. It sends a quote within 2 working days, followed by the certification agreement. An application may be declined, with written reasons.
3. Initial audit. The audit takes place 4 to 6 weeks after the agreement is signed. For Qualiopi, it covers every indicator applicable to the requested categories of actions. For ISO 53001, it runs in two stages: stage 1 looks at the design of the system and the organisation's readiness, partly as a desk review; stage 2 assesses whether the system is actually implemented and effective.
4. Report and handling of findings. Findings are presented at the closing meeting and confirmed in the report. A major nonconformity must be corrected, and both the correction and the corrective action verified, before any favourable decision. For a minor nonconformity, Gardiant Certification reviews and accepts the organisation's corrective action plan. For Qualiopi (order of 6 June 2019 as amended by the order of 31 May 2023), a minor nonconformity calls for an action plan submitted within 6 months, whose implementation is checked at the next audit; a major nonconformity must be cleared within 3 months, failing which the certificate is suspended or withdrawn.
5. Decision. Someone who took no part in the audit reviews the complete file and decides, no later than 3 weeks after the audit if no major nonconformity remains open. A decision to grant leads to a certificate stating the organisation, the standard, the scope, the certificate number, the date of grant and the expiry date. A refusal is reasoned and may be appealed.

Maintaining certification: surveillance

Surveillance audits check that conformity is maintained throughout the validity of the certificate: for Qualiopi, between the 14th and 22nd month; for ISO/UNDP 53001, every year. The certificate is valid for three years; a renewal audit takes place before it expires. For Qualiopi, these timescales come from the order of 6 June 2019 as amended by the order of 31 May 2023; renewal is carried out early enough for any major nonconformities to be cleared before expiry.

For ISO 53001, surveillance takes place at least once every calendar year, with the first audit within 12 months of the certification decision.

A surveillance audit looks in particular at changes since the last visit, the effectiveness of corrective actions taken after the previous audit, the handling of complaints and the way the certificate is being used. It is followed by a decision to maintain certification, taken with the same independence as the decision to grant.

An audit missed through the organisation's doing, an uncleared major nonconformity or a breach of these rules may lead to suspension or withdrawal of the certificate.

Renewal

The renewal audit re-examines the whole standard and how the organisation has operated over the past cycle. It is scheduled so that the renewal decision can be taken before the certificate expires. Findings are raised and cleared under the same rules as at the initial audit.

If no decision can be taken before expiry, the certificate lapses on that date. The conditions under which certification may then be restored without a fresh initial audit are set under the rules of the accreditation body and on the terms of the certification agreement.

Extending and reducing the scope

A certified organisation may ask to extend its scope: a new category of actions for Qualiopi, new activities or sites for ISO 53001. The request goes through the same review as a new application. An extension audit, which may be combined with a surveillance audit, covers the requirements specific to the added scope. The extension is decided by someone who did not carry out that audit; an updated certificate is then issued, with the cycle's expiry date unchanged.

The scope may be reduced at the organisation's request, or by decision of Gardiant Certification where part of the scope no longer meets the requirements. The certificate and the public list are updated, and the organisation stops all reference to the part removed.

Use of the certificate and marks

The certificate may be cited only for the certified scope and while it is valid. The detailed rules, including those for the Qualiopi mark, are on the certificate and logo use page. Misuse that is not put right may lead to suspension.

Suspension and withdrawal

Grounds, the procedure for hearing both sides, consequences and conditions for reinstatement are set out on the suspension and withdrawal page.

Complaints and appeals

Any organisation may contest a finding or a decision, and anyone may lodge a complaint. The procedure, timelines and safeguards of independence are on the complaints and appeals page.

Confidentiality

Information obtained during the application, the audit and the follow-up is confidential. It is used solely for certification and is not disclosed to any third party without the organisation's written consent.

• Staff, auditors, decision-makers and members of the impartiality committee are bound by a confidentiality undertaking.
• Assessors from the accreditation body may consult files under the same obligation.
• Where the law requires information to be disclosed, the organisation is told beforehand unless the law forbids it. For Qualiopi, the information passed to the public authorities is that required by the applicable regulations.
• The following are public: the name of the certified organisation, the standard, the scope, the certificate number and status (valid, suspended, withdrawn) and its validity date.

Changes to these rules

These rules may change, in particular when the standard is revised (version 10 of the national quality framework, for instance, applies to audits carried out from 1 November 2026), when the accreditation body's requirements evolve, or following an internal review.

Gardiant Certification notifies each certified organisation in writing of any change that affects it, allowing a reasonable period to adapt. Compliance with new requirements is checked at the next audit at the latest. An organisation that does not accept a change may end the agreement on the terms it provides. The version in force is the one published on this page, as of the date shown.