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ISO 45001:2018

ISO 45001 certification for occupational health and safety

Independent certification that your organisation identifies hazards, controls risk and involves workers in keeping people safe.

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Valid for
3 years
Surveillance
Years 1 and 2
Verification
Public register

Accredited and empanelled

What is ISO 45001?

ISO 45001 sets out requirements for an occupational health and safety management system. Its purpose is to prevent work-related injury and ill health and to provide safe and healthy workplaces, through hazard identification, risk assessment and the hierarchy of controls.

ISO 45001:2018 replaced OHSAS 18001 and follows the harmonised structure. Compared with its predecessor it places more weight on leadership, consultation and participation of workers, and control of contractors and procurement. The 2024 amendment added the requirement to consider climate change as part of the organisation's context.

Principal contractors, industrial clients and public authorities regularly ask for ISO 45001 at pre-qualification. Our auditors spend most of their time where work happens, on sites, shop floors and in vehicles, so the certificate reflects practice as well as documents.

Who it is for

  • Construction, EPC and civil engineering contractors
  • Manufacturers and process plants
  • Facilities, cleaning and security service providers
  • Warehousing and transport operators
  • Maintenance contractors working on client premises

What sets audit time and cost

Application to certification decision typically takes eight to fourteen weeks; organisations with many active project sites should allow time to schedule the Stage 2 site sample.

  • Number of workers, including contractors under your control
  • OH&S risk category of your activities under IAF MD 5
  • Number of permanent and temporary sites
  • Shift patterns and night work
  • Integration with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001

Why it matters

What ISO 45001 gives you

  1. 01

    Accepted at pre-qualification

    Many client and public sector pre-qualification forms accept an accredited ISO 45001 certificate in place of lengthy safety questionnaires.

  2. 02

    Fewer incidents

    Systematic hazard identification, controls chosen by the hierarchy and incident investigation reduce injuries and lost time.

  3. 03

    Workers have a voice

    Formal consultation and participation give workers a channel to report hazards and shape controls.

  4. 04

    Contractors under control

    Clear requirements for contractors and procurement keep hazards brought onto your sites within the system.

The audit

What our auditors examine

  1. 01

    Hazard identification

    How hazards are identified for routine and non-routine work, including human factors, and how assessments are kept current.

  2. 02

    Hierarchy of controls

    Whether elimination and substitution are considered before engineering controls, administrative measures and personal protective equipment.

  3. 03

    Consultation and participation

    Evidence that non-managerial workers are consulted and take part in decisions, which auditors test by talking to them.

  4. 04

    Legal requirements

    Identification of applicable health and safety law and other requirements, and evaluation of compliance.

  5. 05

    Contractors and change

    Selection and control of contractors, procurement of equipment and services, and management of change before it introduces new hazards.

  6. 06

    Incidents and corrective action

    Reporting and investigation of incidents and near misses, with root cause analysis and actions that are followed through.

How certification works

Every accredited certificate follows the same three-year cycle, with each step recorded and the result published in our register.

  1. 01

    Application and quote

    Tell us your scope, sites and headcount. We calculate audit time under the accreditation rules and send a fixed quote and audit plan.

  2. 02

    Stage 1 audit

    We review your documented management system, scope and readiness, and agree the Stage 2 plan. Any gaps are reported so you can close them first.

  3. 03

    Stage 2 audit

    Auditors check that the system works in practice: interviews, records and observation across the scope. Nonconformities are raised in writing.

  4. 04

    Certification decision

    Once corrective actions are accepted, a reviewer who did not take part in the audit makes the decision. Your certificate is issued and listed in the public register.

  5. 05

    Surveillance audits

    Shorter audits in the first and second years after certification confirm the system is maintained and improving. The register shows your current status throughout.

  6. 06

    Recertification

    Before the three-year certificate expires, a recertification audit reviews the whole system and renews the certificate for another cycle.

Related standards and audits

Often certified or audited alongside this one, sometimes in a single combined audit.

Industries we audit for

Guides

ISO 45001 questions

We audit; we do not consult.

To keep certification independent, we never design, build or fix the systems we audit, and decisions are made by people who did not take part in the audit. Read our impartiality policy.

Plan your ISO 45001 certification

Tell us your scope, sites and timeline. We reply with an audit plan and a fixed quote.

Request a quoteTalk to our team