Glossary · ISO and management systems
ISO/IEC 42006 is written for the auditor, and it protects the buyer.
The ISO/IEC standard that sets out what a certification body must meet before it audits and certifies AI management systems against ISO/IEC 42001, on top of the general certifier rules.
Back to the glossary01 · In plain words
In plain words
The ISO/IEC standard that sets out what a certification body must meet before it audits and certifies AI management systems against ISO/IEC 42001, on top of the general certifier rules.
You never implement ISO/IEC 42006 yourself. It is aimed at certification bodies: it sets out what they must have in place, including auditor competence in AI, before they certify an AI management system. It adds AI-specific rules to the general standard for certification bodies, ISO/IEC 17021-1.
02 · Why it matters
Why it matters
Who cares about this, and what depends on it.
An ISO/IEC 42001 certificate means little if the auditor did not understand AI. ISO/IEC 42006 raises the floor: it expects certification bodies to have competent auditors and sound methods for judging AI governance. Accreditation bodies use it when deciding which certifiers to accredit for ISO/IEC 42001. For a company seeking certification, the practical question becomes whether your chosen certifier is accredited in line with it, because that affects how buyers will weigh the certificate.
03 · Where you meet it
Where you will meet it
The documents, meetings and reports where it appears.
- Certification body accreditation scopes
- Accreditation for ISO/IEC 42001 is assessed with reference to this standard.
- Certifier selection
- A question to put to every shortlisted certification body for an AIMS audit.
- Audit team composition
- Shapes the competence the audit team must bring, including AI knowledge.
- Buyer due diligence
- Sophisticated buyers ask whether a 42001 certificate was issued under accredited certification.
04 · An example
A worked example
An illustration, not a real client.
Illustrative: a healthtech scale-up shortlisting AI certifiers
A Delhi healthtech company that builds a symptom-checking chatbot is ready for an ISO/IEC 42001 audit. Three certifiers bid. The compliance lead asks each one whether it is accredited for ISO/IEC 42001, which accreditation body granted it, and how its audit team's AI competence is demonstrated. One cannot answer the accreditation question. The lead drops that bid, knowing the hospital groups she sells to will look for an accredited certificate.
05 · Easy to mix up
Easy to mix up with
Neighbouring terms that mean something different.
- ISO/IEC 42001
- The standard your organization meets. ISO/IEC 42006 is the standard your auditor meets.
- ISO/IEC 17021-1
- The general requirements for all management system certification bodies. ISO/IEC 42006 adds the AI-specific layer.
06 · What to do
What to do with it
Practical steps, and the guides that go deeper.
- Ask each certifier whether it holds accreditation for ISO/IEC 42001 and from which body.
- Ask how the audit team's AI competence is assessed and who will attend your audit.
- Check that the certificate will carry an accreditation mark your buyers recognise.
- GuideAccredited certification & ISO 42006Why the certifier matters, and five checks for any certificate.
- GuideISO 42001 certification guideSix steps, Stage 1 and Stage 2, and where first audits go wrong.
Sources: public ISO summaries of ISO/IEC 42006 and ISO/IEC 42001:2023; ISO/IEC 17021-1; IAF material on accredited certification.
Questions about ISO/IEC 42006
Does my company need to comply with ISO/IEC 42006?
No, your certification body does.
It places requirements on certification bodies, not on the organizations they audit. Your interest is in choosing a certifier that meets it.
Can an unaccredited body issue an ISO/IEC 42001 certificate?
It can, but buyers may not accept it.
Nothing stops an unaccredited firm from issuing a document. Its weight depends on whether buyers trust it. An accredited certificate is the safer choice when customers will rely on it.
Want this applied to your own systems?
Our team can walk through where this term touches your scope, your contracts and your evidence.