HKAS News Issue 79 Highlights Assessor Forum 2026

The Hong Kong Accreditation Service (HKAS) has published Issue 79 of HKAS News, led by coverage of the 2026 HKAS Assessor Forum and featuring updates on accreditation, assessor training and international cooperation. 

Kookmin University Wins Korea's 2026 Advanced Industry Standardization Competition

A team from Kookmin University has won Korea's 2026 Advanced Industry Standardization Competition after developing a proposed quality evaluation standard for a vehicle-integrated solar energy system for future mobility.

Vietnam Sets Transition Timeline for ISO/IEC 17024:2026

The National Accreditation Bureau of Vietnam (BoA) has announced the national transition to ISO/IEC 17024:2026, the updated international standard for bodies that certify the competence of individuals, replacing ISO/IEC 17024:2012.

GFSI Food Safety Culture Paper Now Available in Three More Languages

The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) has published Chinese, Japanese and Spanish translations of the second edition of its food safety culture position paper, making the updated framework more accessible to businesses and food safety professionals worldwide.

Circular Economy Draft Standard for Construction Opens for Public Comment in India

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has opened a public consultation on a draft Indian Standard that would establish a national framework for applying circular economy principles across India's construction sector.

CNAS Sets Transition to ISO/IEC 17020:2026 for Inspection Bodies

The China National Accreditation Service for Conformity Assessment (CNAS) has launched China's transition to ISO/IEC 17020:2026 by publishing updated accreditation criteria for inspection bodies and a timetable for replacing the current requirements.

Vietnam Updates National Standards Plan, Expands Workforce Development

Vietnam is advancing its national quality infrastructure through two new initiatives announced by the Commission for Standards, Metrology and Quality of Viet Nam (STAMEQ),

KSA Opens Entries and Publishes Rules for 2026 National Quality Innovation Competition

The Korean Standards Association (KSA) has opened entries and published the participation guide and competition rules for the 2026 National Quality Innovation Competition, which will take place Aug. 24-28 in Jeonju.

TSE Renews ISO 27001 Certification for Türkiye's National Examination Agency

The Turkish Standards Institution (TSE) has renewed the TS EN ISO/IEC 27001 Information Security Management System certificate of the Measurement, Selection and Placement Center (ÖSYM),

Vietnam's HALCERT Receives International Halal Accreditation From GAC

Vietnam's Halal certification body HALCERT has received international Halal accreditation from the Gulf Accreditation Center (GAC),

'Standard China' Social Media Network Goes Live

China's standardization authorities have launched the "Standard China" social media network to strengthen public communication about standardization and support the implementation of the National Standardization Development Outline.

HKAS Sets Transition Plan for ISO/IEC 17020:2026

The Hong Kong Accreditation Service (HKAS) has published its transition schedule for ISO/IEC 17020:2026, giving accredited inspection bodies until March 31, 2029, to comply with the revised international standard for inspection bodies.

Risk Management Guidance for AI-Powered Medical Devices: First Edition of ISO/TS 24971-2 Released

ISO has released the first edition of ISO/TS 24971-2:2026, providing guidance on applying the ISO 14971 risk management process to machine learning-enabled medical devices (MLMDs).

Revised ISO 19008 Expands Cost Coding System to Lower Carbon Energy

ISO 19008 has been revised to extend its common system for organizing and comparing cost data to lower carbon energy as well as oil and gas.

GLOBALG.A.P. Farm Assurance and Social Practice Standards Set for September Update

Agraya has announced that it will publish GLOBALG.A.P. Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) v6.1 Smart and GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice (GRASP) v2.1 on September 1, 2026.

IEC 63223-2 Sets Risk-Informed Decision-Making (RIDM) Process for Power Network Assets

The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) has published IEC 63223-2:2026, introducing a structured risk-informed decision-making (RIDM) process for managing existing assets in power networks.

VDA Releases ISA 2027 Information Security Assessment Catalogue for TISAX

The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) has published ISA 2027, the next version of the Information Security Assessment (ISA) catalogue used by TISAX, an information security assessment and exchange mechanism for the automotive industry. 

Global Standards Updates Flagship GOTS Standard to Version 8.1

The Global Standards (GS) has updated the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) to Version 8.1, its first revision since the major Version 8.0 release in March.

TÜV SÜD Acquires SustainCERT to Accelerate Digital Carbon Verification

Germany-based testing, inspection and certification company TÜV SÜD has acquired climate verification platform SustainCERT

ISO 30201 Adds Human Resources to the ISO Management System Family

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published ISO 30201:2026, the first international requirements standard for human resources management systems.

ISO/PAS 25171 Provides First International Auditing Guide for ISO 21001 Educational Management Systems

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published ISO/PAS 25171:2026, the first international guidance for auditing educational organization management systems under ISO 21001:2025.

Proposal Calls for ISO Committee on Responsible Business Practices and Sustainability Reporting

An International Organization for Standardization (ISO) technical committee has been proposed to develop standards for responsible business practices and sustainability reporting.

CanadaGAP Version 11 Achieves GFSI Recognition Under 2024 Benchmark

The Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) has recognized CanadaGAP Food Safety Program Version 11.0 against its 2024 Benchmarking Requirements (BMRs), allowing

ISO 9001:2026 Receives Final Approval Ahead of September Publication

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has approved the final draft of ISO 9001:2026 with overwhelming support, clearing the way for publication of the revised quality management standard, which is expected in September 2026.