Development ISO 45001
On this page you will find up to date information about the development of ISO 45001, the new standard on occupational health and safety (OH&S).
Current situation
ISO 45001 will replace the OHSAS 18001 standard. Development of the ISO 45001 standard began in 2013. The development of an ISO standard has a number of steps:
- Committee Draft (CD version)
- Draft International Standard (DIS version)
- Final Draft International Standard (FDIS version)
After every step there is a vote, on the basis of which it is determined if the next step in the development can be taken. The final draft international standard (FDIS) ballot for ISO 45001 closed on January 25, 2018. The FDIS ballot was successful and ISO 45001 has been published on 12 March 2018.
Transition to ISO 45001
The ISO 45001’s long development period has several consequences:
- Organizations considering implementing a system based on OHSAS 18001 should wait to implement the new standard.
- Some of the organizations certified for both ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 are intending to combine the transition to ISO 14001:2015 with the transition to ISO 45001. Since the transition to ISO 14001:2015 must be made before September 2018, this combination will now be more difficult.
SCCM recommends that organizations intending to implement an OH&S management system, or to make the transition from OHSAS 18001 to ISO 45001, should start implementation now based on the ISO/FDIS 45001 and not to wait for the publication of the definitive version of ISO 45001. In the meantime, organizations may still be certified on the basis of OHSAS 18001. Furthermore, certification audits may be done on the basis of the FDIS version. The certificate cannot be awarded until the standard has been published.
SCCM has published an information booklet on the implementation of ISO 45001 and combination with other management systems (in Dutch).
Transition period
BSI (British Standards Institute) has announced that the OHSAS 18001 standard will be withdrawn on publication of ISO 45001 and organizations currently certified to OHSAS 18001 will have a three-year period to migrate to ISO 45001. Because of COVID-19 the transition period is extended until 30 September 2021.