New ISO 9001 Quality management standard published

16 September 2026 marks the publication of the new version of ISO 9001 Quality management – Requirements, the first full revision since 2015 of the world’s most widely used ISO standard.

Along with the publication of a new version of ISO 14001 Environmental management systems – Requirements with guidance for use earlier this year, 2026 has now seen the revision of ISO’s two most significant management system standards. Between them the standards are used by millions of organisations across the globe to help them become better. Whether an organisation is at the start of its journey to using ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 or has used them for years, they will become a better organisation through the implementation of the standard.

The simplicity of the Plan-Do-Check-Act process at the heart of these standards helps ensure that the better word is key – organisations will improve.

Taking it a step further into being certified against these standards adds additional layers of benefits such as:

• Improved access to markets, whether domestically or internationally
• Greater understanding and visibility about the organisation
• Increased stakeholder confidence
• A wide range of internal benefits, both generic and relating to the specific standard.

IIOA members all offer certification to these two key standards – as well as to many other standards and schemes. All IIOA members are accredited by Global ACI members. This means that each IIOA member is assessed against an independently produced ISO standard (in this case ISO/IEC 17021-1 Conformity assessment – Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems Part 1: Requirements). Such accreditation ensures that through regular assessment, the IIOA member:

• is competent to carry out the audit
• applies impartial and consistent audit methodologies
• delivers a globally developed rules for certification
• is part of a globally recognised system, which includes multilateral arrangements.

The publication of a new version of standards is always an exciting one and one with a degree of apprehension for organisations using standards such as ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. With the above benefits and the assurance of the accredited certification system, the value and robustness of certification to these standards go hand-in-hand.

Those organisations who hold certification with IIOA members of the existing (2015) versions of these standards will, like all organisations who have been certified by an assurance body accredited by a Global ACI member accreditation body, have three years to transition to the 2026 version of the standards.

Very simply, the best places to start are to get the standard and then to talk to your assurance body, such as IIOA members, about the transition.

For those yet to use these two standards, the publication of new versions is a great opportunity to explore how they can make your organisation better.

ISO 9001:2026

ISO 14001:2026

IIOA Members