What’s happening with ISO 9001
ISO 9001:2026 (the sixth edition of the standard) will be launched on 16 Sep 2026.
This revision will replace ISO 9001:2015 (the fifth edition of the standard).
Accreditation Bodies, Certification Bodies and Certified Organizations will all be given a period of time to transition to the new standard. This will be decided by Global ACI along with other transition requirements, but is currently anticipated to be 3 years. TTBS will advise its clients as soon as these transition requirements become available.
The QMS model is being refined, not replaced.
The process approach, customer focus, PDCA, evidence-based decisions and continual improvement remain central.
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Diagram of the structure of ISO 9001:2026 is mapped against the PDCA cycle [Ref: ISO/FDIS 9001]
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Key changes in ISO 9001:2026
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1 Context of the Organization
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- Needs and Expectations of Interested Parties now includes a specific requirement to determine which requirements will be addressed through the QMS.
- Climate change requirements from ISO 9001:2015/Amd 1:2024 are now incorporated into the body of the main standard.
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2 Leadership
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- Quality culture, ethical behaviour and opportunity-based thinking to be promoted by Leadership.
- Support expanded from management to all relevant roles.
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3 Planning
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- QMS changes expanded to consider the availability of information, communication, monitoring and evaluation, and how results will be reviewed.
- Risks and opportunities have been separated and must now be considered independently. In addition to being determined, they must also be analyzed and evaluated.
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4 Support
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- Organizational knowledge expanded to require that it be retained, applied and shared to achieve QMS results.
- Awareness expanded to include organizational quality culture and ethical behaviour.
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5 Operation
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- Customer communication expanded to include information on contingency actions and disruptions to production or service provision.
- Communication of changes to product and service requirements expanded to include relevant interested parties, in addition to customers.
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Design and Development
- Planning to include other relevant interested parties, in addition to customers and users;
- Outputs expanded to include essential product and service information, in addition to product or service characteristics.
- Externally provided products and services expanded to cover controls where products and services are provided directly to the customer.
- Control of Production and Service Provision expanded to include the use, in addition to the availability of documented information, for product and service characteristics, activities and results to be achieved.
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6 Performance Evaluation
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- Internal audit objectives must now be defined for each audit.
- Management review must now include changes in relevant interested-party needs and expectations.
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7 Annexes
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- Annex A – Clarification of structure, terminology and clauses expanded to provide clause-by-clause clarification of terminology and intent. Please note that, as an informative annex, these are not requirements, but are invaluable in understanding the requirements.
- Annex B – Other International Standards on quality management and quality management systems developed by ISO/TC 176 has been removed.
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Building a strong quality culture
Quality culture is the shared pattern of values, decisions and everyday behaviours that determines how seriously quality is treated; especially when pressure, uncertainty or mistakes arise.
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What a strong culture looks like
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What leaders can do
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Evidence auditors may examine
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- People understand how their work affects customers and QMS results.
- Quality objectives influence operational decisions and priorities.
- Teams learn from complaints.
- Problems are reported early rather than hidden or passed downstream.
- Improvement belongs to everyone, not only the quality department.
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- Set consistent examples when cost, speed and quality compete.
- Provide resources, competence and time for effective controls.
- Respond constructively when people raise concerns.
- Align targets, outcomes and incentives.
- Use management review to address behaviour as well as metrics.
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- Leadership decisions related to quality.
- Employee interviews and awareness of objectives and escalation routes.
- Complaint, nonconformity and corrective-action handling.
- Training, recognition, rewards and performance management practices.
- Patterns in internal audits, repeat issues and improvement activity.
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In a QMS, ethical behaviour concerns the integrity of decisions, records, reporting and commitments.
It is most visible when people face pressure to meet targets, release work quickly or avoid uncomfortable findings.
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Safe escalation |
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Responsible incentives and relationships |
- Quality data and records should be complete, accurate and not manipulated.
- Nonconformities, complaints and test results should be reported honestly.
- Customer, regulatory and contractual requirements should be honoured.
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- People should know where and how to raise a concern.
- Managers should protect staff from retaliation for good-faith reporting.
- Serious issues should be escalated promptly and investigated fairly.
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- Targets should not encourage concealment, shortcuts or premature release.
- Supplier and partner expectations should include integrity and traceability.
- Conflicts of interest and improper influence should be identified and controlled.
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Practical actions for organizations
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Protect data integrity.
Use access controls, approvals, change history and retention arrangements to ensure that the integrity of data is preserved. |
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Make it safe to raise concerns.
Ensure staff have a process and know how to raise concerns. |
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Test ethical expectations through audits and reviews.
Use internal audits, management review and supplier evaluations to confirm that ethical expectations are applied in practice. |
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Review performance targets.
Look for incentives that could promote under-reporting, data manipulation or rushed release. |
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Use realistic scenarios in training.
Discuss dilemmas involving defects, customer pressure, supplier failures and schedule commitments. |
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Align the QMS and Code of Conduct / Ethics.
Make accurate monitoring, measurement and reporting a part of the Code of Conduct / Ethics. |
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How to prepare for the new standard
Actions to take now
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Actions after the standard is published
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Avoid three common mistakes
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- ☑ Appoint a transition owner
- ☑ Brief top management on the upcoming change
- ☑ Assess culture and ethics
- ☑ Separate risks and opportunities
- ☑ Review management of change
- ☑ Monitor TTBS updates on the transition
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- ☑ Obtain the new standardContact the TTBS Standard Information Centre.
- ☑ Complete a gap analysis
- ☑ Build a transition plan
- ☑ Update processes and documented information
- ☑ Perform training on the new standard
- ☑ Conduct an Internal Audit of the revised arrangements
- ☑ Conduct management review
- ☑ Schedule the transition audit with TTBS
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- ☒ Do not rewrite everythingStart with evidence and gaps; preserve processes that already work.
- ☒ Do not reduce ethics and culture to a written policyTest behaviour, incentives, reporting and leadership response.
- ☒ Do not wait until the deadlinePlan early. TTBS will inform its clients of the transition deadlines.
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How the transition is expected to work
Expected transition pathway
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What is confirmed and what is still pending
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Confirmed
•ISO 9001:2026 to replace ISO 9001:2015 on 16 Sep 2026.
•Organizations already certified to the 2015 edition will receive a transition period.
•Existing certificates will not become invalid until the end of the transition period.
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Pending official transition requirements
•Final transition deadline and requirements from Global ACI. The transition period is anticipated to be 3 years.
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What happens to ISO 9001:2015 certificates?
Existing certificates will remain valid until the end of the transition period.
This is anticipated to be 3 years.
TTBS will inform its clients once Global ACI releases the official requirements for transition to ISO 9001:2026.
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Existing certificate
Continue to maintain conformity and complete surveillance activities. Plan a transition audit before the official deadline.
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Surveillance audit due
Ask whether the next audit can include transition.
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Recertification due soon
Confirm which edition can be audited and the cut-off for accepting recertification audits to ISO 9001:2015. If you are recertified to ISO 9001:2015, a later transition will be necessary.
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New certification applicant
Confirm which edition can be audited and the cut-off for accepting new applications for ISO 9001:2015. If you are certified to ISO 9001:2015, a later transition will be necessary.
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Contact the TTBS Certification Division Team
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Our ISO 9001 Certification Team
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RR
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Rodney Ramnath
Manager, Certification
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CP
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Cecil Pope
Standards Officer II
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KM
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Kim Mora
Standards Officer I
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KS
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Karren Seedial
Operations Officer
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AJ
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Annmarie Jennings
Clerk Stenographer II
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Contact Us
Contact us for:
- ✓ ISO 9001 certifications
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- ✓ Training
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TTBS Certification Division
Telephone:
(868) 662-8827 ext. 2221
Address:
1–2 Century Drive
Trincity Industrial Estate
Macoya, Tunapuna
Trinidad and Tobago
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