Accreditation is not granted once and left to run indefinitely. It is reviewed on a defined cycle, and re-accreditation is the point in that cycle where ASCB carries out a fuller review than any of the routine surveillance assessments in between. This page sets out how the cycle works, what re-accreditation actually assesses, and when to start preparing so the process completes before your current accreditation expires.
The four-year cycle explained
ASCB accreditation runs on a four-year cycle. Within that cycle, routine surveillance assessments take place at scheduled intervals to confirm ongoing conformity against the requirements of the relevant standard, the standard for your activity together with any sector-specific requirements that apply to your scope. Re-accreditation sits at the end of the cycle, not alongside surveillance, and is a distinct event: it is the point at which ASCB reassesses your conformity assessment body against the full requirements of the standard, rather than checking a sample of activity since the last assessment.
Reaching the end of the four-year cycle without a completed re-accreditation assessment puts your accreditation status at risk, which is why the timing guidance below matters as much as the content of the assessment itself.
What re-accreditation assesses that routine surveillance doesn't
Surveillance assessments sample specific areas of your operation at each visit, on the assumption that a full assessment has already established the baseline and that surveillance is checking for drift from it, not starting from scratch.
Re-accreditation does not make that assumption. It is a comprehensive reassessment against the full scope of your accreditation: impartiality safeguards, personnel competence, your conformity assessment process end to end, information and documentation practices, and the management system supporting all of it. The difference from your original, first-time assessment is what ASCB is now looking at alongside those same requirements: an established track record. Re-accreditation reviews four years of surveillance findings, complaint handling, significant change notifications and conformity assessment decisions as evidence of sustained conformity. A body that has operated for four years gives ASCB more to assess than a first-time applicant does, and re-accreditation is built to use that.
When to start the process
Start preparing well ahead of your accreditation's expiry date, not in the weeks immediately before it. ASCB will confirm the exact timeline that applies to your body as your cycle approaches, but the process itself, from initial scheduling through to the assessment and any resulting decision, takes meaningfully longer than a single surveillance visit, so leaving it until close to expiry narrows your margin for resolving anything the assessment raises before the deadline. Treat the approach of your fourth year as the trigger to contact ASCB and confirm your re-accreditation timeline, rather than waiting for a reminder.
What happens if it isn't completed before expiry
Accreditation that reaches the end of its four-year cycle without a completed re-accreditation assessment does not continue automatically. Starting the process late, or leaving insufficient time to resolve findings from the assessment, creates real risk to the continuity of your accredited status. If you are approaching the end of your cycle and are uncertain where your body stands in the re-accreditation timeline, contact ASCB directly rather than assuming there is time in hand.
Common questions
How often does re-accreditation happen?
On a four-year cycle, with routine surveillance assessments in between.
How is re-accreditation different from surveillance?
Surveillance samples specific areas of your operation; re-accreditation reassesses your conformity assessment body against the full requirements of the standard.
When should you start preparing?
Early enough that the process completes before your current accreditation lapses; reaching the end of the cycle without a completed re-accreditation puts your accreditation status at risk.