Accreditation requirements

According to Art. 4 of the Law on Accreditation and Notification, accreditations can be granted as calibration body, testing body, inspection body as well as certification body (quality assurance systems / personnel / products / environment). The requirements for accreditation are derived from Art. 5 of the Law. They are, among others, the following:

• The bodies to be accredited must be natural persons or legal entities registered in the Trade Register with residence or registered office in Liechtenstein.
• They must have a suitable operating structure and be financially independent.
• The employees must have the necessary professional competence.
• The facilities and equipment must meet the requirements.
• They must have established a suitable Q-system.

The bodies must provide evidence to calibrate, test, inspect or certify according to international requirements. The requirements arise in particular from the relevant standards.

The assessment and verification shall be carried out by an accreditation body in accordance with the relevant standards. The accreditation body must also operate in accordance with international standards.

If the applicant wants to be accredited by procedures regulated by state treaties (e.g., directives of the EU), laws or regulations, it must meet the requirements contained therein and additional requirements. (Example: A laboratory for food control must meet the requirements of the Food Act.)

Rights and obligations of accredited bodies

According to Art. 25 of the Ordinance on Accreditation and Notification, the accredited body is entitled to use the accreditation mark in business transactions.

The accredited body is obliged to notify the LAS (Liechtenstein Accreditation Service) of changes that are essential for accreditation. These are: Legal relationships, premises, facilities, operational structure, working methods, and area of expertise.

If an accredited body assigns subcontracts in the field of accreditation to a third party, this third party must also be accredited by the LAS or have an equivalent qualification.