Withdrawal: definition (ISO/UNDP 53001)
Withdrawal (French: retrait) is the permanent cancellation of an ISO 53001 certificate by the certification body. It occurs in particular when the causes of a suspension have not been resolved in time, or in the event of a serious breach. The organisation must then stop all reference to the certification.
Updated: · edition covered: ISO/UNDP 53001:2026
In an ISO/UNDP 53001 audit
Withdrawal is not pronounced by the auditor on site but by the people responsible for certification decisions, on the basis of the file. The organisation concerned is informed in writing and has a right of appeal.
After a withdrawal, an organisation that wishes to be certified again starts over with a full initial audit. It removes references to the certification from its materials, and the certification body makes sure use of the logo has stopped. See suspension and withdrawal, complaints and appeals and the ISO/UNDP 53001 standard.
Withdrawal requested by the organisation
Withdrawal is not always a sanction. An organisation that stops the certified activity, or decides not to continue with certification, can ask for its certificate to be withdrawn. The effect is the same: the certificate ceases to be valid, its status is updated for anyone who checks it, and every claim to certification must stop.
See also
- Suspension: definition (ISO/UNDP 53001)Suspension (French: *suspension*) is the temporary invalidation of an ISO 53001 certificate, decided by the certification body.
- Certificate: definition (ISO/UNDP 53001)A certificate (French: *certificat*) is the document issued by a certification body after a favourable decision.
- Certification decision: definition (ISO/UNDP 53001)A certification decision (French: *décision de certification*) is the act by which a certification body grants, refuses, maintains, renews, suspends or withdraws an ISO 53001 certificate.