In reaction to the restrictions on social and economic life due to the 2019-2020 coronavirus pandemic, the accreditation bodies DAU and DAkkS have adapted their certification regulations or pointed out possibilities for adaptation.
The following information has been published so far:
DAU – Deutsche Akkreditierungs- und Zulassungsgesellschaft für Umweltgutachter mbh (German Accreditation and Licensing Body for Environmental Auditors)
For verifications under EMAS and other legislation with upcoming deadlines of 30 June 2020, the following key points apply. These were agreed on by DAU in consultation with the German Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) and the EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) registration body.
- Any deadline for EMAS registration by 30 June 2020 shall be extended by three months by the registration body upon request. The extension is granted for delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic or related containment measures.
- The extension of the deadline is granted independently and thus in addition to any extension of up to two months already granted, in accordance with the usual procedure.
- The extension of the deadline can be requested informally (in writing, by email, by telephone) from the registration office and must be confirmed in writing. The confirmation shall be presented to the environmental auditor.
- Deadline extension shall have no impact on any subsequent time limits in force.
- Registration offices can also confirm an active registration during the renewal period if necessary; for example, for peak balancing or special balancing arrangements.
- The principle that no validation by the environmental auditor can take place without on-site verification will remain in place. However, auditors and organisations are of course free to agree that the document review is carried out in advance, thus reducing on-site audit time.
Here you can obtain detailed information on the measures taken by DAU (click to automatically download the PDF in your browser).
DAkkS – Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH (German Accreditation Body)
- Due to internationally applicable regulations, certification bodies have the responsibility to respond to exceptional circumstances by providing appropriate plans and implementing suitable measures.
- The certification bodies can evaluate on a case-specific basis how to deal with the certification procedure and its monitoring within the framework of legal requirements, local official regulations as well as customer requirements.
- Audits can be postponed by up to 6 months. In the case of re-certification audits, certificates can also be initially extended by this period if alternative assessment methods are applied (document review or audit by remote technology).
In many cases, the use of remote technologies (telephone or video conferences) will be put in practice. The degree of use is determined by the certification body after a risk assessment with the customer. An audit by full use of remote techniques will be an exception in this context. As a general rule, on-site assessment will be carried out at a later stage.
For more information, please follow this link: DAkkS package of measures
Your contact at Arqum:
Dr. Uwe Goetz
