The body keeps authority for the decision, which must be made by someone not involved in the evaluation, and a refusal must give the reasons.
What applies today
The body is responsible for, and must retain authority over, its certification decisions. The body must name at least one person to decide on the basis of the evaluation file, the review and anything else that bears on the case. The decision must be made by a person or group, such as a committee, that was not involved in the evaluation. The review and the decision may be completed at the same time by the same person or group. A decision maker who is not a committee member must be on the payroll of, or contracted to, the body or an entity under its organisational control. Organisational control means whole or majority ownership, majority participation on the board, or a documented authority over another entity in a network linked by ownership or board control. People in controlled entities must meet the same requirements as the body's own people. If certification is refused, the body must notify the client and identify the reasons.
Why it matters
The decision is the point where the certificate is granted, and the clause protects it from two pressures: commercial urgency and evaluation bias. Independence from the evaluation is mandatory. The employment and control rules stop a body from outsourcing the decision to an unrelated party while keeping the certificate in its name. The refusal duty is a matter of fairness and record: a client is entitled to know why.
The public FDIS contents lists clause 7.6 as Certification decision. The FDIS requirement wording is not held, so the requirement above is the 2012 text that applies until publication.
Where this clause lands in the revision
This is a process clause. The public record confirms the number and title, and the process as described today is what an assessment uses until publication. A first artefact an assessor commonly asks for here is decision, decision maker, date and material considered. The party this touches first is The decision maker or committee, and the body that retains the authority.
What the assessor asks for
| Category | Artefact to have ready |
|---|---|
| Decision record | Decision, decision maker, date and material considered |
| Independence | Record that the decision maker was not involved in the evaluation |
| Employment | Contract or employment evidence for a non-committee decision maker |
| Control | Ownership or board evidence for a controlled entity that makes decisions |
| Refusal | Notice to the client with the reasons for refusal |
One common question. read a refusal file and a grant file. A refusal with no reasons, or a decision signed by the evaluator, are both immediate findings.
Common failures
- The decision is a signature on the review form by the same person who evaluated
- A committee makes decisions but its members were never appointed in writing
- A refusal letter states the outcome and no reasons
Prepare before publication
List every decision maker and committee member. Check appointment, independence and employment against the clause before the assessment.
Dates that matter
The public record gives stage 50.20 on 4 August 2026 and voting to 27 October 2026. The planning date, 15 February 2027, is an estimate from that stage and not an ISO date, and clause 7.6 has no separate date.
Cross-references
7.5 Review · 7.7 Certification documentation · 5.1 Organizational structure and top management · 4.2 Management of impartiality
Source
Source for 7.6: ISO/IEC 17065:2012, Clause 7.6, with the ISO/IEC FDIS 17065 public record. Our statement, not the instrument verbatim; the FDIS wording is not held.
Not legal advice; does not certify. A reading of the requirement and the evidence an assessor commonly samples, not a substitute for the standard or your accreditation body's rules.