Refusal of Certificate
DGS may refuse an application for certification when there are fundamental or known reasons such as illegal activities or repeated non-conformities of certification requirements, inappropriate behavior, outstanding payment, etc. DGS have the discretion to refuse any of the certificate approval. If any threat to impartiality or certification decision occurs then DGS can refuse the certification.
Certificate Issue
Upon completion of the certification process, DGS shall issue the certificate of conformity on behalf of the Accredited Body, to the Customer, provided DGS finds that there is conformity with the relevant management system certification scheme.
Furthermore, if there is non-conformity(s) found during certification process, DGS will not issue the certificate if the client cannot provide an evidence of corrective action for every non conformance. Moreover, Certificate will be issue once the client provides an evidence of corrective action for all non-conformance(s).
Maintaining of certificate
Customer shall ensure at all times that the requirements of the relevant management system certification scheme(s) are complied with, and take necessary action in accordance with the reported non-conformities, observations, improvement opportunities and noteworthy efforts.
Suspension of Certificate
The Certificate of Approval may be suspended up to three months. During the period of suspension, the client shall not actively promote or advertise their certification registration. Suspension enforced by DGS should occur after normal corrective action procedures following a documented non-conformity, have failed to fully resolve the issue.
Restoring Certification
The restoring certification process are the following:
-Client request for restoring the certificate
-DGS will process the request by asking the client to submit correction and corrective action including conduct surveillance or recertification audit at the required frequency
Suspension will be lifted and certification will be restored upon satisfactory clearance of non-conformities and verification by DGS of the compliance of Client’s management system. DGS will inform the certified client that the restoring process is complete. Failure to resolve the issues that have resulted in the suspension in a time established by the DGS shall result in withdrawal or reduction of the scope of certification.
Extending or Reducing Scope
The scope of certification issued to a Customer may need to be reduced or extended in response to changes to a Customers operations and business. When a client has persistently or seriously failed to meet the certification requirements the parts of the scope affected shall be excluded. Any such reduction shall be in line with the requirements of the standard used for certification. Requests for changes to scopes received from Customers shall be reviewed by DGS and, in the case of an extension to scope; a decision will be taken on whether any additional on-site audit activity is required before a revised certificate is issued. A request to reduce or expanding the scope of certification shall be reviewed to ensure that it will not affect the frequency and duration of on-site audits. This information and review shall be recorded. The need for change may also be identified during on-site audit activity and this shall be recorded on the Audit Report and any recommendation for change will be subject to confirmation. Upon successful changes to scopes of certification, DGS shall be updated with the new scope of certification. DGS shall be notified of the change and will be requested to update their website with the certificate status.
Renewal of Certification
The Certificates will be valid for a period of three (3) years and shall be renewed automatically at the end of this initial period for successive periods of three (3) years unless the Client notifies the termination to DGS with a notice period of three (3) months prior to the end of the three (3) years contractual period.
Withdrawing Certificate
Withdrawal of Certificate is a serious step, and will be initiated only when it becomes apparent that normal corrective action proceedings, including suspension, will be unsuccessful in bringing about full compliance with the Management System Certification requirements. The entire last certification cycle history regarding the client’s certification shall be reviewed by the Operational Executive. The Operational Executive shall decide to take one of the following courses of action. Allow for extension of the suspension for a maximum of three months followed by another Special Surveillance (If an extension of the suspension is awarded, the procedure outlined in paragraph 5.2.9) will be repeated. NOTE: Only one extension of suspension shall be allowed during the three year contract with a given Client. Approval by the Operational Executive that withdrawal of the certificate is enforced. The Operational Executive will make a formal written notification to the Client’s MR, with copies to the DGS and the appropriate Governing Board as to the outcome of this decision. If it is decided that withdrawal should proceed, the following action shall be taken: The Operational Executive shall report his decision with all supporting documentation at the next meeting of the Governing Board. The Operational Executive shall advise the client’s MR in writing or email regarding the withdrawal decision. The Operational Executive shall notify the appropriate DGS Oversight bodies (if needed). The client shall be notified of the DGS Complaints and Appeals Procedure and advised that an appeal maybe raised within four weeks of the said notification. Records of this activity shall be maintained. The Operational Executive shall notify any other DGS subsidiary, holding accreditation for a certificate issued to the client in question, at this stage that withdrawal of that certificate has been enforced. Cancellation of the contract shall also be implemented.
For more information regarding certification issue, please email to winnerp@dgs-certification.com