This document specifies the requirements and guidance for the accreditation of Standards Development Organizations (SDOs). For the purposes of expediency, the acronym R&G – SDO will be used.

The SDO accreditation requirements are in line with accepted international standards best practices derived from Annex 3 provisions of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Agreement, ISO/IEC Guide 59 ISO and IEC recommended practices for standardization by national bodies, and the following Canadian principles: consensus; equal access and effective participation by concerned interests; respect for diverse interests and identification of those who should be afforded access to provide the needed balance of interests; mechanism for duplication resolution; openness and transparency; open access by interested parties to the procedures guiding the standards development process; clarity with respect to the processes; safeguarding Canadian interest as the basis for the development of standards by SDOs; avoiding duplication of standards or overlap with the work of other SDOs or with the work of relevant international or regional SDOs; and collaboration within the development process and its participants.

SCC accreditation of an SDO grants the responsibility for the development, publication, and maintenance of National Standards of Canada and adoptions in compliance with SCC’s R&G – SDO.

Section 8 of this document specifies the additional Canadian requirements and guidance to adopt International Standards, regional standards, and other international/regional deliverables. This aligns with ISO/IEC Guide 21-1:2005, Regional or national adoption of International Standards and other International Deliverables – Part 1: Adoption of International Standards; and ISO/IEC Guide 21-2:2005, Regional or national adoption of International Standards and other International Deliverables – Part 2: Adoption of International Deliverable other than International Standards.

Note that Consensus SDO Standards published by SDOs which are compliant to SCC requirements are expected to be transitioned under the NSC branding utilizing their established maintenance cycles.

This document was prepared for, and approved by, the Governing Council of the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) on 2025-03-06. It replaces the 2019 edition of the Requirements & Guidance – Accreditation of Standards Development Organizations and the 2017 edition of the Requirements and Guidance National Adoptions of International/Regional Standards and Other Deliverables.