FSC’s Advice Note (FSC-ADV-20-01-02) ‘Maximum timeline for certification decisions to be taken in order to maintain certification’ requires third-party certification bodies to suspend and subsequently withdraw certificates when they cannot take certification decisions to maintain a certificate within a specified time period, for circumstances beyond the control of the certification body. Such circumstances may include, but are not limited to, the client or other parties preventing the use of audit findings and/ or the delayed or declined acceptance of audit findings or the audit report by the client.
The new Advice Note takes immediate effect as of January 1st, 2015, and applies to all FSC Certification Bodies globally. The FSC International Board has approved this Advice Note as an interim measure. It will be incorporated into the ongoing revision process of the General Accreditation Standard (FSC-STD-20-001).
FSC’s primary aim is to ensure that the implementation of its certification system results in environmental, social and economic benefits and sees this Advice Note as a necessary step to help ensure that its system remains transparent and credible.
For more information contact:
Monika Patel
Director of Programs and Communications
FSC Canada
Toronto, Canada
m.patel@ca.fsc.org
www.ca.fsc.org
Karen Bennett Van der Westhuizen
Communications Director
FSC International
Bonn, Germany
k.bennett@fsc.org
www.fsc.org