Annex 3

GUIDELINES ON THE COMPLIANCE WITH, AND VALIDATION OF, ISO

QUALITY MANAGEMENT (QMS) CERTIFICATION/RECERTIFICATION

This annex shall serve as guidelines for agencies wherein the ISO QMS certification/
recertification is the ultimate requirement, and for agencies wherein the ISO QMS
certification/recertification could serve as evidence, for the Process Results criterion.

1.0 GUIDELINES IN DETERMINING COMPLIANCE WITH THE ISO QMS

CERTIFICATION/RECERTIFICATION

1.1 Only a valid ISO 9001:2015 QMS certification/recertification or

the latest version of the ISO 9001 certification is considered as
compliance with the subject requirement.

Should a new version of the ISO 9001 be available during the year,
agencies are encouraged to endeavor in migrating to said latest version as
soon as possible.

The certifications/recertifications must be valid as of December

31, 2022, i.e., effectivity date indicated in the certificate. Accordingly,
certifications/recertifications with an effectivity date starting January 1,
2023 onwards shall not be considered as compliance with said
requirement.

Agencies are reminded that they must pursue continued certification,

i.e., ensure that there is no gap or minimal gap in terms of the expiration
of its previous certification and the effectivity date of its existing
certification, except with justifiable reasons, e.g., change of certification
body (CB) which may cause gap in the certification.

1.2 The scope of the QMS indicated in the agency's ISO QMS certification
shall be as follows:

a. For departments/agencies and state colleges and universities (SUCs), it

shall include two (2) critical services consisting of one (1)
external core service and one (1) internal service.

The definition of the external and internal services, as well as the

parameters in identifying critical services, are enumerated under items
4.2.1 and 4.2.2 of AO 25 Memorandum Circular (MC) No. 2022-1,
respectively.

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 b. For government-owned or-controlled corporations (GOCCs) under
Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG) and local water districts
(LWDs) under Category A and B, the scope of their certification shall
be based on the guidelines to be issued by the GCG and Local Water
Utilities Administration (LWUA), respectively.

1.3 The ISO QMS certifications must be issued by any of the CBs accredited
by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) member.

However, the CBs which are duly accredited by the Department of

Trade and Industry - Philippine Accreditation Bureau (DTI-PAB) 1
to certify the agencies’ ISO QMS shall be preferred for the latter’s
provision of certain degree of control over CBs engaged by government
agencies on their ISO QMS certification. This will better address the
challenges in the validation process on acquiring information from CBs,
among others. The DTI-PAB, aside from being an IAF member, is the
recognized national accreditation body in the Philippines pursuant to
Executive Order No. 802, s. 20092.

Beginning FY 2023, government agencies which are still in its certification

journey or those which have expiring/expired contract, shall endeavor to
obtain their certification/recertification from CBs accredited by the DTI-
PAB.

1.4 The CBs contracted shall have been accredited to audit and certify QMS
for the specified scopes which are deemed relevant to the nature and
functions of the agency e.g., accreditation under ISO 9001 QMS for IAF 36
(Public Administration), IAF 37 (Education), and/or IAF 38 (Health and
Social Work).

1.5 Letters of attestation or similar documents issued by CBs

indicating that certification/recertification audits have been completed but
still subject to approval of their Certificate Decision Maker3 will not be
considered as compliance to the ISO QMS certification requirement.

1
The list of the CBs accredited by DTI-PAB could be accessed at the DTI webpage
(http://pabaccreditation.dti.gov.ph/public/public_mscb.php).
2
Strengthening and Recognizing the Philippine Accreditation Office Attached to the Department of Trade and Industry as the
National Accreditation Body dated May 18, 2009
3
As provided under Clause 9.5 Certification Decision of ISO/IEC 17021-1:2015 (Conformity assessment – Requirements for
bodies providing audit and certification of management systems) , the CB shall ensure that the persons or committees that make the
decisions for granting or refusing certification, expanding or reducing the scope of certification, suspending or restoring certification,
withdrawing certification or renewing certification are different from those who carried out the audits. Moreover, the Certificate
Decision Maker may seek additional information or clarification from the audit team or other sources during its technical review with
respect to, among others, the certification requirements, scope of certification, and the client’s corrections and corrective actions for
nonconformities, if any.

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 1.6 As an alternative, ISO QMS-equivalent certifications are considered as
compliance with the subject requirement. The following
certifications/awards are considered equivalent to ISO 9001 certification
inasmuch as they similarly ensure consistency of quality of products and
services through quality processes enabling the provision of better service
delivery and thereby enhancement of public sector performance:

 Philippine Quality Award (PQA)/Recognition (for specific office

concerned)
 ISO/IEC 17025 or 17020 Accreditation
 Accrediting Agency of Chartered Colleges and Universities in the
Philippines, Inc. (AACCUP)'s Institutional Accreditation (for SUCs)
 Accreditation Canada International’s Qmentum International Gold
Award (for hospitals)
 Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI) Performance Measurement
Framework (PMF) of the International Organization of SAIs (for the
Commission on Audit)
 Universal Postal Union’s Quality Management Certification (for
Philippine Postal Corporation)

1.7 On the other hand, certifications not included in the list will not be
accepted as equivalent to ISO 9001 certification and could not serve as
compliance/evidence to the Process Results criterion.

1.8 Nonetheless, for departments/agencies and SUCs, they may opt to use
other forms of evidence for the Process Results criterion as enumerated
under item 4.2.3 of AO 25 MC No. 2022-1.

2.0 RESPONSIBILITIES OF PARTICIPATING AGENCIES

2.1 These responsibilities shall apply to agencies which will use the ISO QMS
as a requirement/evidence for the Process Results criterion.

2.2 As stated in the notes of Modified Form A (columns 8 and 9) referred as

Annex 2 of AO 25 MC No. 2022-1, the agencies concerned must indicate
the details of the certification with justifications, e.g., the ISO QMS
certification covers (i) internal service only, (ii) external service only,
(iii) external but non-priority core service and internal service, and/or
(iv) priority external core service and internal service.

Additional sheet/s may be provided for supporting information that would

serve as justification.

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 2.3 To reiterate the required submissions, for the departments/agencies and
SUCs, the deadline of submission of the Modified Form A, together with
the copy of said ISO certification/recertification and other pertinent
documents as necessary, to the AO 25 Secretariat for the Process
Results criterion shall not be later than February 28, 2023,
consistent with item 8.2 of AO 25 MC No. 2022-1.

For GOCCs covered by the GCG and LWDs, the deadline of the submission
of forms and/or posting of the ISO QMS certification/recertification in their
respective websites, as applicable, shall be based on the guidelines to be
issued by the GCG and LWUA, respectively.

2.4 In order to facilitate the conduct of the final validation of the submitted
ISO certification/recertification with the CBs, agencies shall:

 Include a provision in the contract with the winning CB that

they shall accommodate requests of Government Quality
Management Committee (GQMC)-DBM Secretariat, i.e., Systems
and Productivity Improvement Bureau (SPIB) and/or other
oversight4/validating agencies for information or documents relative
to their ISO QMS certification/recertification; or
 Submit an authorization and consent to the CBs, attached as
Annex 3.1 to provide information/documentation to the GQMC-
DBM Secretariat and/or oversight/validating agencies relative to
their ISO QMS certification/recertification.

Copy of the contract or authorization and consent form, shall be submitted

to their respective CBs, copy furnished the DBM-SPIB at dbm-
[email protected] on or before 31 January 2023 or within fifteen
(15) working days from the issuance of the Notice to Proceed by
the agency to the CB, whichever comes earlier.

Said authorization and consent form should be updated every time there
will be a change in the head of the agency or authorized representative.

3.0 VALIDATING AGENCIES

3.1 The following oversight agencies shall conduct the corresponding

validation of the compliance with the ISO QMS certification as
evidence/requirement of their respective agency coverages:

 Commission on Higher Education for SUCs;

4
AO 25 Secretariat

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  GCG for GOCCs under its coverage; and
 LWUA for LWDs.

For departments/agencies, the validation of their compliance shall be

conducted by the AO 25 Composite Teams5.

3.2 These agencies and AO 25 Composite Teams responsible for the validation
of the ISO QMS certification compliance may hereinafter referred to as the
“validating agencies”.

4.0 VALIDATION PERIOD

4.1 The validating agencies shall conduct the validation on agency compliance
with the ISO QMS certification requirement from March 1, 2023 until
April 21, 2023.

On the other hand, the AO 25 Composite Teams, as the validating entity

for the departments/agencies, shall determine the ratings of agencies
during the Composite Team Reviews within the same period.

5.0 RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE VALIDATING AGENCIES

5.1 Upon receipt of the agency submissions, the validating agency6 shall
proceed with the validation of the submissions of agencies within
their respective coverages. The results of such validation shall be reported
using the template herein attached as Annex 3.2. The Annex 3.2 shall
include detailed information on the agency submission, and the
compliance status and equivalent rating, as applicable, of the agency as to
the ISO QMS certification as evidence/requirement:

 For departments/agencies and SUCs, the validating agency shall

indicate the corresponding rating, in accordance with item 4.2 of
AO 25 MC No. 2022-1.

 For LWDs and GOCCs covered by the GCG, the determination of

compliance status of the agencies shall be based on the guidelines
to be issued by the LWUA and GCG, respectively.

5
Created by the AO 25 Technical Working Group to evaluate the agency submissions on the PBB streamlining and process
improvements, and citizen/client satisfaction results requirement of the PBB. Each composite team include member/s from the
following agencies: DBM, Office of the President, Presidential Management Staff, Department of Finance, National Economic
Development Authority, Civil Service Commission, Commission on Audit, Presidential Communications Operations Office,
Development Academy of the Philippines, Anti-Red Tape Authority and DTI.
6
For departments/agencies, constitutional offices, other executive offices, and GOCCs under DBM, the AO 25 Secretariat shall
accomplish the same.

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 The reason for non-compliance shall also be indicated in column [8] using
the following codes:

Code Description
N No submitted ISO 9001 certification or equivalent
certification/accreditation, nor any ISO QMS-related
documents
Q Submitted QMS Documents only (Quality Manual, Internal
Quality Audit Certification and/or Management Review
minutes)
E ISO 9001 certification or equivalent certification/accreditation
is invalid or has expired
A Submitted Attestation/Confirmation Letter/Audit
Report from CB only
U Submitted documents are unnecessary which are not only
not required under the guidelines but also not considered as
QMS documents (e.g., office orders, memorandum of
agreement with Development Academy of the Philippines,
Human Resources manual/handbook, program-based AACCUP
accreditation, certification from the agency head/QMS
consultant on the agency's QMS efforts)
B Validity of the ISO 9001 certification or equivalent
certification/accreditation commences beyond the
December 31, 2022 deadline
C Scope covered by the ISO QMS certification or equivalent
certification/accreditation is not based on the requirement
(only applicable to agencies which the ISO QMS
certification/recertification is the ultimate requirement)

5.2 Said annexes shall be duly signed by the authorized personnel of the
validating agency.

5.3 The CHED, GCG and LWUA shall submit to the AO 25 IATF at
[email protected], copy furnish the GQMC-DBM Secretariat at
[email protected], on or before ten (10) working days after the
validation period i.e., on or before May 8, 2023, the accomplished
Annex 3.2 with the ISO QMS certification as evidence/requirement and
Modified Form A, as applicable, for processing/information, whichever is
applicable.

6.0 RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE GQMC-DBM SECRETARIAT

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 6.1 Upon receipt of the initial reports from oversight agencies, the GQMC-DBM
Secretariat shall consolidate the same for confirmation by the
CBs/Accrediting Agencies.

6.2 Accordingly, the GQMC-DBM Secretariat shall provide the final reports on
the validation, or in case of no changes, confirmation of the initial reports
of the validating agencies, to the AO 25 IATF on or before twenty (20)
working days after the submission of the initial findings, i.e., on or
before June 5, 2023.

6.3 In case of changes in the ratings or compliance status of the agencies,

specifically the GOCCs under GCG and LWDs, after the submission of the
final report to the AO 25 IATF, the GQMC-DBM Secretariat shall submit a
revised report on the summary of findings on the agencies’ compliance to
the AO 25 IATF, as it deems necessary e.g., if the rating or status of fifty
percent (50%) of the agencies has been changed. Such changes could be
as follows:

a. the request for reconsideration/exemption of an agency has been

granted; and
b. the status of the ISO QMS certification of the agency was confirmed
only after the validation period/submission of final report to the AO 25
IATF.

The Annex 3.2 shall be updated to reflect the changes in the rating or
compliance of the agencies concerned, and shall be submitted together
with the revised report on the summary of findings.

However, if there is only less than fifty percent (50%) change in the
rating or compliance status of aforesaid agencies, the GQMC-DBM
Secretariat shall inform the AO 25 Secretariat on said changes but the
revision of the reports need not be made.

7.0 RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE CBs

7.1 The CBs shall provide necessary information and/or clarifications to the
GQMC-DBM Secretariat in relation to the submitted ISO QMS
certification/recertification by the participating agencies.

7.2 To facilitate the conduct of verification by the GQMC-DBM Secretariat

(SPIB) from the CBs, the latter are encouraged to provide their respective
contact persons and contact information by sending an e-mail to dbm-
[email protected] on or before December 31, 2022.

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8.0 REQUESTS FOR RECONSIDERATION AND EXEMPTION

8.1 For departments/agencies and SUCs, as the ISO QMS

certification/recertification only serves as one of the possible pieces of
proof or evidence for Process Results criterion, instead of requesting
reconsideration, they may resort to presenting other pieces of evidence
for the Process Results criterion other than ISO QMS
certification/recertification.

8.2 An agency subject for compliance with the ISO QMS certification
requirement that is deemed non-compliant may request for the
following, within thirty (30) calendar days from the posting of the
result of validation for the ISO QMS certification as a requirement or
evidence in the Results-Based Performance Management System website
(https://rbpms.dap.edu.ph/)

 A reconsideration based on justifiable reasons and factors that are

considered beyond the control of the agency e.g., errors in the validity
period of the certification as prepared by the CB/accrediting agency;
or

 An exemption in view of circumstances which make it impossible for

agencies to comply with the ISO QMS requirements such as an
ongoing agency restructuring, functional and organizational
modifications and other related circumstances which may result in the
agency’s failure to effectively implement key activities of its
documented QMS, thereby hindering its attainment of an ISO QMS
certification or could constitute as a ground for
suspension/cancellation/withdrawal of its existing ISO QMS
certification.

8.3 The foregoing requests for reconsideration and exemption shall be

addressed to the DBM Organization and Systems Improvement Functional
Group Head, thru the DBM-GQMC Secretariat (SPIB) and submit via email
at [email protected] for proper evaluation. After finalization of the
evaluation, the GQMC shall inform the agency concerned of the action to
said request/s copy furnish the validating agency concerned and AO 25
Secretariat.

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-end-

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