The ISO 9001 Revision Is Coming. Here Is What You Need to Know Right Now
ISO 9001 is the world's most widely adopted quality management standard, with over one million certified organisations globally. So when ISO announces a revision, it sends ripples through every industry, every supply chain, and every compliance team. The ISO 9001:2026 update is currently progressing through the development pipeline, and while the final standard has not yet been published, there is already enough information available to start preparing intelligently.
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This article pulls together everything we know so far about ISO 9001:2026, explains what is likely to change, what is unlikely to change, and gives you a clear, practical roadmap for getting your organisation ready without wasting time or money on premature overhauls.
If you want a broader overview of where this revision came from, our earlier article on the ISO 9001 update under review covers the background in detail. This article builds on that and focuses specifically on what businesses should be doing right now.
Where the Revision Currently Stands
ISO standards follow a structured development process managed by ISO Technical Committee 176 (ISO/TC 176), which is responsible for quality management and quality assurance standards. The revision of ISO 9001:2015 has been progressing through the standard stages, from preliminary work and committee drafts through to the draft international standard and final stages.
As of 2026, the revision is expected to result in a published standard under the ISO 9001:2026 designation, though ISO's publication timelines can shift. The committee has been working to address known gaps in the 2015 version while keeping the core structure and intent of the standard intact.
What makes this revision different from the 2008 to 2015 transition is that the changes are expected to be evolutionary rather than revolutionary. The 2015 version introduced significant structural changes through the adoption of the High Level Structure (now called the Harmonised Structure). This time around, the committee is refining and strengthening existing requirements rather than rebuilding the framework.
For a solid grounding in the current standard before exploring what is changing, our beginner's guide to ISO 9001:2015 is worth reading first.
What Is Expected to Change in ISO 9001:2026
Based on publicly available committee documents, ISO/TC 176 communications, and industry consultations, several areas of the standard are expected to see meaningful updates. Here is what the evidence points to.
Climate Change Considerations
One of the most discussed additions is a specific reference to climate change. ISO has already added climate change language to several other management system standards, and ISO 9001:2026 is expected to follow suit. This does not mean ISO 9001 is becoming an environmental standard. What it means is that organisations will need to consider whether climate change is a relevant factor when determining the context of their organisation under Clause 4.
In practical terms, this could mean asking whether changing weather patterns affect your supply chain, whether your customers are facing climate-related pressures, or whether regulatory changes driven by climate policy affect your operations. We have already written about how to implement climate change considerations into your QMS, and that guidance will become even more relevant once the new version is published.
Strengthened Risk and Opportunity Language
Risk-based thinking has been a cornerstone of ISO 9001 since the 2015 revision, but feedback from auditors and organisations has consistently pointed to inconsistent application. Some organisations treat it as a box-ticking exercise rather than a genuine management tool. The 2026 revision is expected to sharpen the language around risk and opportunity, making it clearer what is actually required and reducing the room for superficial compliance.
This is good news for organisations that have genuinely embedded risk thinking into their operations. For those that have been treating risk registers as a document to show auditors rather than a tool for running the business, this revision will require a more substantive approach.
Alignment with the Harmonised Structure Updates
ISO has been updating its Harmonised Structure (HS), which is the common framework used across all management system standards. ISO 9001:2026 is expected to align with the latest version of the HS, which introduces some refined language and additional guidance on topics like knowledge management, organisational resilience, and the integration of management systems.
For organisations that already hold multiple ISO certifications, this alignment is actually helpful. It means the structure of ISO 9001 will sit more comfortably alongside standards like ISO 14001, ISO 45001, and ISO 27001, making integrated management systems easier to maintain and audit.
Clearer Requirements Around Knowledge Management
Clause 7.1.6 of the current standard deals with organisational knowledge, but many organisations and auditors have found the requirements vague. The revision is expected to provide clearer expectations around how organisations identify, maintain, and protect the knowledge they need to operate their quality management system effectively.
This is particularly relevant for small and medium businesses where critical knowledge often sits with one or two key people. If that person leaves, so does a significant chunk of operational know-how. The revised standard is likely to push organisations to think more deliberately about knowledge capture and transfer.
Possible Updates to Documented Information Requirements
The documentation requirements in the current standard have been a source of confusion since 2015, when ISO replaced the old concepts of documents and records with the single term “documented information.” The revision may provide additional clarity on what documented information is actually required versus what is optional, helping organisations avoid both over-documentation and under-documentation.
What Is Not Expected to Change
It is equally important to understand what the revision is not going to do. Based on everything available from the committee process, the following are expected to remain stable.
The Core Quality Management Principles
The seven quality management principles that underpin ISO 9001, including customer focus, leadership, engagement of people, process approach, improvement, evidence-based decision making, and relationship management, are not changing. These principles have stood the test of time and remain the philosophical foundation of the standard.
The Ten-Clause Harmonised Structure
The ten-clause structure introduced in 2015 is staying. Clauses 1 through 10 will remain, which means your existing management system documentation, process maps, and audit programs will not need to be restructured from the ground up. This is a significant relief for organisations that invested heavily in the 2015 transition.
The Certification Process Itself
How you get certified is not changing. You will still work through a Stage 1 and Stage 2 audit with an accredited certification body, followed by annual surveillance audits and a three-year recertification cycle. The process for transitioning your certificate when a new version is published follows a standard pattern that ISO and the accreditation bodies manage in an orderly way.
What the Transition Will Look Like
When ISO 9001:2026 is formally published, there will be a transition period during which certified organisations can migrate from the 2015 version to the 2026 version. Based on how previous transitions have been handled, this period is typically three years from the publication date of the new standard.
During this window, your certification body will offer transition audits, which assess whether your management system has been updated to meet the new requirements. These are usually conducted alongside your scheduled surveillance or recertification audits, so the additional burden is manageable if you have prepared in advance.
The organisations that struggle with transitions are those that wait until the last year of the transition period and then scramble to update everything at once. The ones that handle it smoothly are those that start preparing early, make incremental updates, and use the transition as an opportunity to genuinely improve their system rather than just relabelling existing documents.
How to Prepare Your Organisation Right Now
You do not need to wait for the final published standard to start preparing. There are concrete steps you can take today that will reduce the effort required when the standard drops and position your organisation for a smooth transition.
Step 1: Review Your Context of the Organisation
Clause 4 is expected to be one of the most affected areas of the revision. Start by reviewing how your organisation currently documents its context, including internal and external issues, interested parties, and the scope of your QMS. Ask yourself honestly whether climate change, digital disruption, or supply chain fragility are relevant external issues for your business. If they are, and they are not currently reflected in your context analysis, now is the time to add them.
Our guides on Clause 4.1 and Clause 4.2 provide practical examples of how to do this well.
Step 2: Audit Your Risk Management Approach
Pull out your risk register and ask a hard question: is this document actually used to make decisions, or does it only come out when an auditor visits? If it is the latter, you have work to do regardless of what the revised standard says.
A genuinely useful risk register is reviewed regularly, updated when circumstances change, and linked directly to the actions your organisation takes. If your risk and opportunity management is currently more ceremonial than functional, the 2026 revision gives you a good reason to fix that now.
Step 3: Assess Your Knowledge Management Practices
Map out where critical operational knowledge lives in your organisation. Is it in people's heads, in documented procedures, in informal spreadsheets, or in a formal knowledge management system? Identify the gaps and start closing them. This does not need to be a massive project. Even simple measures like documented work instructions, recorded training sessions, or structured handover processes can significantly improve your knowledge resilience.
Step 4: Talk to Your Certification Body
Your certification body will be receiving guidance from the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) on how the transition will be managed. Ask them directly what their transition audit process will look like, whether they plan to combine transition assessments with your existing audit schedule, and what they are seeing from other clients in terms of preparation. A good certification body will be proactive about communicating this. If yours is not, that is worth noting.
Step 5: Review Your Internal Audit Programme
Internal audits are one of the most powerful tools you have for identifying gaps before an external auditor does. If your internal audit programme has become routine and predictable, it is probably not finding real problems. Use the upcoming revision as a trigger to refresh your audit focus areas, update your audit checklists to reflect the expected changes, and make sure your internal auditors are genuinely looking for improvement opportunities rather than just confirming compliance.
Our guide on how to run internal audits that actually find problems is a practical resource for this.
Step 6: Plan for Staff Awareness and Training
When the new standard is published, your team will need to understand what has changed and why. Start building awareness now by communicating that a revision is coming, explaining the general direction of the changes, and identifying who in your organisation will need specific training. Quality managers and internal auditors will need the most detailed understanding, but senior leadership also needs to be aware of the strategic implications.
Should You Delay Certification Until 2026 Is Published?
This is a question that comes up a lot, particularly from businesses that are new to ISO 9001 and wondering whether to certify now or wait. The honest answer is: do not wait.
Certifying to ISO 9001:2015 now is not a waste of effort. The transition period after publication gives you time to update your system, and the core requirements are not changing dramatically. Getting certified sooner means you start benefiting from the discipline, customer confidence, and competitive advantage that certification brings. Waiting means you delay all of those benefits and then face the same transition work anyway.
The transition from 2015 to 2026 will be far less disruptive than the transition from 2008 to 2015 was. Organisations that are well-established in their 2015 system will find the upgrade relatively straightforward.
Choosing the Right Support for the Transition
Whether you are preparing for your first certification or planning a transition from the 2015 version, having the right consultant and certification body makes a significant difference. A consultant who understands the direction of the revision can help you build a system that is already positioned for the 2026 requirements, rather than one that needs a significant overhaul in a couple of years.
The challenge is that the quality of ISO consultants varies enormously. Some are genuinely experienced practitioners who will help you build a system that works for your business. Others will hand you a folder of templates and disappear. Knowing how to tell the difference before you engage anyone is important, and our article on how to spot a bad ISO consultant covers the warning signs in detail.
If you are looking for verified consultants or accredited certification bodies who are already across the ISO 9001:2026 developments, CertBetter connects you with up to three vetted providers at no cost. You submit one form, receive competing quotes, and can compare them on their merits. It is a straightforward way to find the right support without spending weeks on research.
