Philippine Accreditation Bureau – Management System Accreditation Division personnel with Director James E. Empeño and Assistant Director Ernani M. Dionisio

The Philippine Accreditation Bureau (PAB) has achieved another significant milestone in its continuing commitment to excellence and international alignment. The Asia Pacific Accreditation Cooperation Mutual Recognition Arrangement (APAC MRA) and the International Accreditation Forum Multilateral Recognition Arrangement (IAF MLA) have officially recognized PAB for its extended sub-scope in Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSMS) Certification Scheme.

On April 24, 2025, the APAC MRA Management Committee confirmed the approval of PAB’s application for the extension of the APAC MRA sub-scope to include OHSMS. This approval enables PAB to utilize the APAC MRA certificate for broader regional recognition. Subsequently, on May 15, 2025, PAB received confirmation of its recognition under the IAF MLA for both Level 4 (ISO/IEC TS 17021-10:2018) and Level 5 (ISO 45001:2018) sub-scopes, effective May 14, 2025. This updated recognition has been reflected on the PAB page on the IAF website and incorporated into the MLA member list. The upcoming 2025 IAF General Assembly Resolutions which will be issued in October 2025 will further affirm PAB’s international recognition of its OHSMS CB accreditation.

This development reflects PAB’s goal of extending its accreditation services and enter into mutual and multilateral recognition arrangement/agreements to further serve its stakeholders and users of accredited conformity assessment activities.

The OHSMS Accreditation Scheme, aimed at Management System Certification Bodies (MSCBs) operating certifications based on ISO 45001:2018, was officially launched following the issuance of DTI Department Order No. 23-45, Series of 2023. The scheme supports organizations in establishing and maintaining robust occupational health and safety management systems.

[on the left] PAB with CIPI Team; [on the right] PAB with SOCOTEC Team (photo taken during WAD Celebration June 13, 2024)

As of this writing, Certification International Philippines, Inc. (CIPI) and SOCOTEC Certification Philippines, Inc. were among those PAB-accredited Management System Certification Bodies, that are accredited for their OHSMS Certification. Thus, PAB invites all eligible certification bodies to apply their OHSMS certification services for PAB’s accreditation. This accreditation not only enhances credibility and market access but also aligns organizations with globally recognized best practices in occupational health and safety management implementation.

PAB’s other accreditation services which are included in the APAC MRA and IAF MLA are the accreditation of Certification Bodies (CBs) that certify organizations to ISO 9001:2015, (Quality Management System), ISO 14001:2015 (Environmental Management System) and ISO 22001:2018 (Food Safety Management System).

Release Date: 22 May 2025.

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