Validity, follow-up and renewal
A qualification isn’t granted for all time.
A qualification is granted for a period of 4 years and is subject to 3 annual checks.
A trial qualification is granted for a period of one year and may be renewed not more than twice.
Annual follow-up procedure
A follow-up is conducted every year, based on an inspection procedure, to confirm that qualified companies still meet the "identification" and "resources" qualification criteria.
On this occasion, a qualified structure can apply for new qualifications or for the conversion of trial qualifications to full qualifications.
Following the annual inspection :
- a contractor may be fully or partially disqualified by the OPQIBI, if the qualification criteria are no longer met.
- an updated certificate is issued covering a period of one year.
Renewal procedure
When the qualification expiry date is reached (every 4 years), a qualified structure is invited to submit a renewal application to the OPQIBI. The renewal procedure is
then conducted in the same way as the initial qualification procedure, except for the "reference" part, where only one certified customer reference is required to
substantiate each qualification being renewed (instead of 3 initially).
When renewing, a qualified structure :
- an also apply for new qualifications.
- may be fully or partially disqualified by the OPQIBI, if the qualification criteria are no longer met.