Accreditation

FSC does not issue certificates itself. Independent certification bodies carry out the forest management and chain of custody assessments that lead to FSC certification. FSC sets the standards for forest management and chain of custody certification, and defines the procedures that certification bodies should follow in their certification assessments.

Accreditation process

Certification bodies are accredited by an independent accreditation body. FSC’s accreditation body is Assurance Services International (ASI). The accreditation process follows the steps described below.

Submit an accreditation application and enter into a contractual accreditation agreement

You can submit an online application on ASI’s website and refer to a fee schedule for an estimate of costs. Upon approval of the application you are invited to enter into a contractual accreditation agreement with ASI. Access ASI's website here.

Ensure that an appropriate certification management system is in place

Ensure that you meet FSC’s assurance requirements of standard FSC-STD-20-001. Depending on their scope of accreditation, additional requirements may be necessary for forest management accreditation and chain of custody accreditation. ASI may also have additional requirements. Please check FSC's document center for the latest version of standards to view our requirements.

Undergo on-site audits by ASI

ASI will carry out initial assessments of the applicant certification body to assess compliance with relevant assurance requirements.

Become accredited

You will be granted FSC accreditation upon a positive accreditation decision by ASI.

Accreditation

Are you ready to become an accredited certification body? Start the process today!

Become Accredited

You also may be interested in

Become Certified

Certification Body Accreditation