Global Registrar of Systems (GRS) declares that it will comply with the requirements of impartiality within all its certification activities. The confidentiality, objectivity, and impartiality of the certification activities by and on behalf of GRS, shall not be affected by the activities of its certified clients.

In addition to the commencement of GRS management, an Impartiality Committee is appointed to ensure that the policies, practices, and operations are in accordance with ISO17021-1:2015 and the guidance is issued in relation to this standard.

To show effective Implementation of the policy, GRS guarantees the following:

• GRS shall not certify another certification body for its activities related to management systems certification.
• GRS shall not certify own group companies (if there are such companies) or organisations that GRS is a part of or a member.
• GRS or any part of GRS and any entity under the organisational control, shall not offer or provide management system consultancy services for realisation, continuity, and sustenance of certification.
• GRS shall not allow any consultancy organisation to market or offer the activities of GRS.
• Personnel, who have provided consultancy, within two years to the organisation seeking certification, are not allowed to take part in audit or other certification activities.
• GRS shall not provide internal audits for its certified clients, and shall not certify a management system for which it has conducted internal audits within two years following the end of internal audits.
• GRS shall not state or imply that certification would be simpler, easier, faster, or less expensive if a specific consultancy organisation was used.
• GRS shall not provide services or specific and detailed advice or training on design, implementation, and maintenance of management systems subject to certification.
• GRS or its employees shall not participate in decision process of management system issues subject to certification.
• GRS and its employees shall not participate in preparation and procurement of manuals, guides, and procedures subject to certification.
• GRS shall not outsource audits to a management system consultancy organisation as this poses an unacceptable threat to the impartiality of the certification body though this does not apply to individuals contracted as auditors or technical experts.
• GRS shall not provide certification services to a client when relations between the consultancy company and GRS could lead to impartiality threat.
• GRS shall not allow any kind of pressures (commercial, financial, trade, administrative, moral, or other) over GRS and the personnel (to compromise impartiality) regarding the execution of their obligations as a Management Systems Certification Body according to ISO/IEC 17021-1:2015.
• GRS does not receive any financial support different from the invested in it and the fees of its services, also does not pay any commissions to consultants, therefore there can be no undue influence exercised on GRS by consultants.
• GRS shall not allow any pressures from other certification bodies to influence the certification process in the organisation. If other certification body declines to provide services for a client and the client requests the same service from GRS, then GRS shall investigate the reasons for declining before performing any other certification activities for the respective client.
• GRS shall not allow any undue influence from any employees and/or related persons/clients and/or consultancy organisations. If there is any such pressure, then GRS will apply requirements of ISO/IEC 17021-1:2015 and internal procedures in order to stop such practices.

Further, GRS identifies, analyses, and documents all possibilities for conflict of interests that emerge from certification processes including any conflicts that emerge from its relations. Presence of relations does not necessarily position GRS in a situation of conflict of interests. If some relations create impartiality threats, GRS documents and eliminates or decreases such threats. When potential impartiality threat arises, GRS eliminates it or decreases it. It is necessary to cover all possible sources of conflicts of interest that are identified regardless of their origin. This will promptly be presented to the GRS Board of Directors, and the process shall be controlled by the Impartiality Committee.

GRS requires from all employees, internal and external, to comply with impartiality rules as well as to reveal any situation known to them that may present them or GRS with a conflict of interests. GRS shall use this information as inputs in identifying threats to impartiality raised by the activities of such personnel or by the organisation that employs them. Such personnel, internal or external shall not be used unless they demonstrate that there is no conflict of interest. GRS shall not undertake any actions that threaten the impartiality and/or are potential conflicts of interest. When certain relations create unacceptable impartiality threats, then the certification shall not be conducted.

All employees are obliged to work in compliance with the requirements of ISO/IEC17021-1:2015 as well as of GRS contracts.

The top management is committed to a full compliance with this declaration.