Standard status
- Current published edition
- ISO/IEC 17029:2019 (first edition, published October 2019)
- Scheme type
- Validation and verification bodies
ISO/IEC 17029 is the umbrella standard for bodies that carry out validation and verification, often shortened to V&V. A body accredited to it is a validation and verification body, or VVB. The standard sets the general principles and requirements a VVB works to, and it is applied alongside sector or scheme-specific programs, notably ISO 14064 and ISO 14065 in the greenhouse gas and environmental field. ASCB offers accreditation to ISO/IEC 17029.
What is the difference between validation and verification?
Validation and verification are often used interchangeably, but they are distinct conformity assessment activities, and the difference matters. Verification confirms that a claim about information that already exists is truthful. Validation confirms that a claim about an intended future outcome is plausible. Both are defined in ISO/IEC 17000:2020. The practical difference is one of time: verification looks at what is or has been the case, while validation looks at what is intended or projected. A VVB can be accredited for verification, for validation, or for both.
What ISO/IEC 17029 requires
Principles
The standard rests on principles for the process (evidence-based decision making, documentation and fair presentation) and for the body (impartiality, competence, confidentiality, openness, responsibility, responsiveness to complaints, and a risk-based approach).
Impartiality and independence
The VVB must identify and manage threats to its impartiality on an ongoing basis and safeguard the objectivity of its validation and verification statements.
Legal status and liability
The body must be a legal entity, take responsibility for the statements it issues, and have arrangements that cover its liabilities.
Structure and resources
A defined organizational structure and effective operational control of validation and verification activities; the people and resources the work requires; and a defined process to determine, develop and maintain the competence of personnel, with outsourcing controlled.
Program and process
A defined validation and verification program, and a controlled process running from pre-engagement and engagement through planning, execution, review, the decision, and the issue of the validation or verification statement, with handling of appeals, complaints and records.
Information and management system
Publicly available information, rules on how the body references its accreditation and uses marks, and confidentiality; and a management system supporting consistent operation, with management review, internal audit, corrective action, and attention to risks and opportunities.
Validation and verification programs
ASCB offers accreditation across the ISO validation and verification programs. The most widely used among ASCB-accredited bodies is ISO 14064, the greenhouse gas quantification and reporting program. ISO 14065 sets the requirements for the bodies that validate and verify those reports, applying ISO/IEC 17029 in the environmental and greenhouse gas field. Independent validation and verification of this kind is of growing relevance to sustainability and climate-related reporting, where the value of a claim depends on the independence of the body assessing it.
Why seek ASCB accreditation against ISO/IEC 17029
ASCB assesses a validation and verification body against the requirements of ISO/IEC 17029 on a periodic, risk-based basis. For the body and the users of its statements, that means independent third-party assessment against the international standard for VVBs, applied on its own terms; a clear signal to clients, regulators and report users that the body works to the same international requirements as the wider V&V field; public verifiability on the ASCB register, so a client or report user can confirm an accreditation and its scope; standing in the growing market for greenhouse gas, environmental and sustainability verification, where the value of a verified claim rests on the independence of the verifier; and delivery by an established international accreditation body operating to ISO/IEC 17011 for more than 30 years; organizations certified by ASCB-accredited bodies operate in 140+ countries.
Where ISO/IEC 17029 sits among the standards
ISO/IEC 17029 is one of a family of conformity assessment standards. The most closely related are:
• ISO/IEC 17000: the conformity assessment vocabulary and principles; it defines validation and verification.
• ISO 14064 series: greenhouse gas quantification, reporting and verification; the most used program among ASCB clients, and what gets verified.
• ISO 14065: requirements for bodies verifying environmental and greenhouse gas information; it applies ISO/IEC 17029 in the environmental field.
• ISO/IEC 17021-1: management system certification bodies; a related standard for a different activity.
• ISO/IEC 17065: product, process and service certification; a related standard for a different activity.
• ISO/IEC 17011: requirements for accreditation bodies; the standard ASCB works to when it accredits a validation and verification body.
How to apply
How to apply for ISO/IEC 17029 accreditation, including the process, the fees and the application documents, is set out on Become Accredited.