As of January 1, 2023, A2LA will no longer maintain its recognition with the Inter-American Accreditation Cooperation (IAAC). A2LA became a member of both the IAAC and APLAC (now identified as APAC) to offer leadership and support to aid in the development of the regions. However, maintaining involvement in both regions has been a substantial investment for A2LA, both financially and in terms of resources.
A2LA evaluated the value of maintaining signatory status in multiple regions and made the determination that maintaining recognition with both was no longer necessary. Both organizations are on a solid foundation and have the necessary resources and leadership to function effectively.
A2LA would like to thank the IAAC and its founding members for an excellent working relationship over the years. Your commitment and dedication to quality and conformity is considerable.
A2LA will, however, continue to attend and participate in the IAAC Annual Technical Meetings and General Assembly. A2LA Vice President, Accreditation Services, Trace McInturff, in his capacity as APAC MRA Council Chair is the designated APAC Representative of IAAC and will continue to represent APAC at the IAAC table.
Although A2LA has withdrawn from the IAAC MRA, there is no change in A2LA’s ILAC/IAF recognition. Accreditation bodies are only required to maintain recognition with a single accreditation group to be globally recognized by ILAC and IAF. A2LA continues its mutual recognition agreements with ILAC and IAF via APAC.
Will I still receive ILAC/IAF acceptance?
Yes! ILAC and IAF are global organizations each recognizing the 5 regional accreditation groups: APAC, IAAC, EA, ARAC and AFRAC. An accreditation body, such as A2LA, only needs recognition from a single region to gain acceptance and recognition from ILAC and IAF. A2LA will continue to have acceptance and recognition from both ILAC and IAF as we did when we were IAAC MLA signatories, so there is no change to your accreditation.
What does this mean for my CAB?
Nothing will change. Your A2LA accreditation still carries international acceptance and recognition. A2LA continues to be fully recognized by both ILAC and IAF for the full scopes of recognition through our APAC recognition.
If you have any additional questions, please send them to info@A2LA.org.