Clarification on the recognition of NAAU at the European level

In connection with the receipt by the National Accreditation Agency of Ukraine (hereinafter - NAAU) of numerous requests for recognition of the NAAU accreditation system at the European level and the need to clarify these issues, we bring to your attention the following information.

In accordance with Part 6 of Article 14 and Paragraph 23 of the Preamble to the Regulation of the European Union (hereinafter - the EU) №765 / 2008 of 09.07.2008, the European Co-operation for Accreditation (hereinafter - the EA) is designated as the body managing the peer review system. accreditation of Member States and other European countries. The EA has a Multilateral Agreement (hereinafter referred to as the EA MLA), the signatories of which, the national accreditation bodies, recognize each other's accreditation systems as equivalent.

Thus, according to Part 2 of EA-1/06 A AB: 2013, the EA MLA is a multilateral agreement between full members of the EA, the signatories of which recognize the equivalence of each other's accreditation systems.

In accordance with paragraph A of Part 1 of Article 5 of the Agreement on Amendments to the EA Statute, only national accreditation bodies legally appointed in accordance with EU Regulation №765 / 2008 in the EU Member State, members of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) or in a country that is formally identified by the EU or the EFTA as a candidate country for EU or EFTA membership.

Thus, there is currently no legal basis for NAAU to sign the EA MLA, as NAAU does not have the opportunity to become a full member of the EA.

We also draw your attention to the fact that, in accordance with paragraphs. 2 clause 4 part 3 of document EA-0/00: 2011, associate members of the EA have the right to join the EA MLA through the mechanisms of signing the EA Bilateral Agreement (hereinafter - EA BLA), which provides identical rights and obligations. In other words, EA MLA and EA BLA are completely equivalent in the field of technical regulation. This is confirmed, in particular, by the letter of the EA Chairman Thomas Faklam to NAAU dated November 7, 2013 regarding the difference between the EA MLA and the EA BLA.

In particular, NAAU has used the above mechanism and is currently an associate member of the EA on the basis of the Agreement on Associate Membership of NAAU in the EA dated 23.11.2009. In addition, NAAU joined the EA MLA in relevant areas of accreditation by concluding bilateral agreements - EA BLA - with EA MLA signatories in 2009 and 2012, which recognized the equivalence of NAAU accreditation systems and EA MLA signatories in the areas of personnel certification, calibration, calibration laboratories and testing laboratories, certification of management systems.