TS EN ISO/IEC 17007

TS EN ISO/IEC 17007 provides principles and guidance for preparing normative documents intended for use in conformity assessment. It focuses on how documents that support a claim of conformity for a product, process, service, system, person, or body should be structured so that their requirements, methods, and rules are clear and usable in assessment practice. In other words, it helps make the technical content of a normative document easier to apply consistently.

How normative documents are organised

In conformity assessment, a normative document commonly brings together three distinct elements: specified requirements for the object, specific methods and procedures for a particular assessment activity, and rules and methodology for conformity assessment within a scheme. These are not interchangeable. Requirements define what is expected; methods and procedures define how it is checked; scheme rules define how the overall assessment activity is governed. Keeping those layers separate is a key part of making a document fit for conformity assessment use.

Who benefits from this guidance

• Standards developers and regulatory authorities can use it as a framework when drafting assessment-oriented documents.
• Conformity assessment scheme owners, conformity assessment bodies, and accreditation bodies can use it to support consistent methodology.
• Purchasers, consumers, industry associations, and other interested parties can better understand whether a document is suitable for evaluation purposes.

In general technical terms, conformity assessment includes activities such as testing, inspection, certification, and verification to demonstrate that an object meets specified requirements. TS EN ISO/IEC 17007 does not replace those activities; it addresses the drafting of the normative documents that make such activities workable and coherent. That makes it especially relevant wherever precise terminology, defined procedures, and a clear separation between technical requirements and assessment rules are important.