Certificate Term, Cancellation and Revocation Policy

• To state the conditions under which an FVR certificate remains in force, is suspended, or is withdrawn — and what the holder is entitled to before that happens.

• Applies to both service lines; the applicable conditions differ and are set out in §§3 and 4. This public policy is implemented through FVR_RD-PR-04 for organizations and FVR_RD-PR-04 §15 for persons.
• Operational responsibilities and records follow FVR_RD-PR-04 §15 and FVR_RD-PR-06-17024.

• The validity model is ACTIVE SUBSCRIPTION. The certificate is valid for as long as the plan that enabled the assessment is paid. To remain in force, the certified person must: maintain an active subscription for a minimum of twelve months · comply with the Code of Ethics for the Certified Professional · not misuse the certification mark (FVR_GD-POL-07) · sustain the sampling verification when selected (§3.1) · and maintain the certified competence each year (§3.2).
• Minimum permanence: twelve months. Keeping the certificate in force requires the certified person to maintain their subscription for at least twelve calendar months, counted from the date of the certification decision — the one the certificate itself carries. Cancelling before completing them puts the certificate on the same route as any other lapse: thirty days of grace with the certificate SUSPENDED, and withdrawal after that. This is a minimum permanence requirement, not a maximum validity period: once the twelve months are completed the subscription requirement does not end — the validity model remains active subscription.
• After cancellation or non-payment, FVR grants a grace period of 30 calendar days, during which the certificate is SUSPENDED. Once that period passes without reactivation, formal withdrawal begins.
• Other grounds for suspension: misuse of the certification mark · documented unethical conduct · substantial changes to the standard without reassessment within the established period.
• The certificate carries no expiry date (`DP-01`). FVR does not adopt a maximum period after which the person reassesses without cause: the validity of the certificate goes hand in hand with the standard and its changes of edition. When the reference standard changes edition the certificate moves to «in transition» — which counts as valid — and the person sustains the transition assessment; the detail is in FVR_GD-DI-01 §9.6. These conditions therefore govern continuity without establishing a maximum calendar-based expiry date.
• The platform does not change a certificate’s status solely because subscription data are absent. Potential cases are reviewed by the Technical Reviewer, and any suspension requires an authorised, traceable decision. Missing subscription data are not treated by themselves as non-compliance.

• FVR verifies the continuing validity of each certificate. FVR maintains the validity of what a certificate states throughout its life, and withdraws it when that statement stops being true. To that end, during the validity of their certificate any certified person may be selected to verify the authorship and understanding of their examination answers, through an interview.
• The states of a person’s certificate. In force · suspended · withdrawn · in transition. Each certificate has exactly one current state, recorded in its lifecycle.
• What interrupts validity. A certificate is suspended when the person does not sustain the authorship or understanding of their answers in a verification; when a breach of the Code of Ethics is established (FVR_GD-POL-09-17024); when the person fails to attend two (2) consecutive verification summons without justified cause; however, the attendance record and status control needed to apply this ground are not yet operating; when false information provided during certification is detected; or for misuse of the certification mark (FVR_GD-POL-07). These grounds add to those of §3 — they do not replace them.
• Three commitments FVR makes, and they are the substance of this chapter. (1) Being selected is not a finding: a certificate under verification does not change what third parties see, because treating selection as a finding would penalise people at random. (2) Suspension is a protective measure, not a sanction: it is applied while the matter is resolved, and it is reversible. (3) While an appeal is pending, the certificate remains suspended and must not be withdrawn; withdrawal may occur only after the appeal is resolved.
• Separation of functions. The evaluator issues a recommended verdict; the determination on the certificate is resolved by a different authority — the Technical Director or, in the Technical Director's place, an Administration account competent for the standard and without conflict. Evaluation and certification decision are never exercised by the same person.
• The interview may be conducted and rated by FVR's AI, and a person always verifies. Where the interview guide has been validated and approved by the CTC, the AI issues the verdict with a public rule that is the same for everyone, and nothing affects a certificate without the verification of the Technical Director, who confirms or objects and never re-rates. The person is told in advance, acknowledges the notice, and may always choose an FVR evaluator instead, without it counting against them; an appeal against a verdict of the AI is resolved by a full human evaluation made by people who took no part (FVR_IM-PR-03-17024).
• The certificate holder is entitled to remediation. A person whose verification is not sustained retakes the course or module indicated and attends a second interview; if they sustain it, the certificate returns to being in force, keeping its original validity — no new certificate is issued and no period is extended.
• How it is executed — coverage and sampling rate, summons periods, evaluator impartiality rules, determination and appeal deadlines — is developed in FVR_RD-PR-06-17024 §6.1, FVR_RD-PR-06-17024 §6.2 and FVR_RD-PR-06-17024 §6.3. The detailed figures are maintained only in the procedure to preserve a single controlled source.

• Annual period and alternatives. For each certificate, Certification Administration identifies the holder, folio and twelve-month period counted from the certification decision anniversary. The person meets annual maintenance by either route A or B. These alternatives supplement the other conditions of FVR_GD-POL-08 §3; the original award is not evidence of a later annual period.
• A — Another FVR certification. The person completes and passes the assessment for another FVR certification within the annual period. Administration verifies the identity, scheme, level, assessment outcome and certification decision in the platform and records the supporting folio in the annual file. Enrolment, payment or attendance alone does not qualify. For example, an ISO 9001:2015 certification may be followed by an ISO 14001 certification in the following twelve months; acceptance under route A remains subject to technical review of its relevance, because a different standard is not automatically equivalent.
• B — Application in an audit. The person demonstrates at least eight hours of their own participation in one audit, as lead auditor or audit team member, during the period. The eight hours are the person’s audit work, not the total team duration, travel or training. The audit must show application of the certified skills; observer attendance alone does not qualify.
• FVR has defined the annual evidence-file control and its two routes. The ERP opens the annual cycle at each anniversary of the certification and sends the holder a personal link to the registered email; the holder submits the evidence for either route through that link, and the Technical Reviewer validates it in the same file or returns it for resubmission, as set out in FVR_RD-PR-06-17024 §6.4. For the audit route, both the plan and report are required.
• Anyone whose anniversary falls within ninety days following publication of this condition has those ninety days to comply. Corrections may be submitted within the applicable annual or remediation window. Failure is handled under FVR_RD-PR-06-17024 §6.3, with notice and the right to appeal.

• The management system certificate remains valid for the validity period (3 years), provided the organization complies with: scheduled annual surveillance audits · payment of the corresponding fees · continued conformity with the certified standard.
• Missing a surveillance audit, or non-payment, initiates suspension and eventually withdrawal.

• Organizations (ISO/IEC 17021-1): where prior response is required, notice provides 15 calendar days to submit a defence. Administrative withdrawals and causes of immediate withdrawal follow the exceptions defined in FVR_RD-PR-04.
• Persons (ISO/IEC 17024): when a subscription lapses, FVR notifies the suspension and grants the 30-day grace period in §3. For the other grounds in FVR_RD-PR-04 §15.3, FVR gives 15 calendar days to submit a defence before deciding.
• In both cases the holder has the right to file an appeal through FVR_QA-PR-01, which applies to both lines.

• The current status of the certificate is recorded and publicly consultable in the FVR verifier through the certificate QR code or folio, for both management-system certificates and person certificates.
• The person or organization must immediately cease use of the mark and any claim or reference to the withdrawn certification. The physical or digital certificate ceases to be valid for verification purposes.

• Persons: after withdrawal, the person may apply for a new certification after 12 calendar months and must complete the full assessment again; the withdrawn certificate is not reinstated.
• Organizations: after withdrawal, the organization follows the applicable new-certification route, without reductions based on the previous certification and with at least a complete stage 2 audit.

• FVR: retains responsibility and authority for certification decisions. Systems line (ISO/IEC 17021-1): Technical Management approves the independent technical review recorded in FVR_RD-FO-04, and authorised personnel execute the approved status change as a separate act. Persons line (ISO/IEC 17024): an authorised decision-maker decides suspension and withdrawal under the applicable procedure; Technical Management controls any internal delegation. General Director: ratifies withdrawal when it derives from ethical conduct or mark misuse. Certificate holder: maintains the conditions of §3 or §4 and ceases certification claims and mark use upon suspension or withdrawal.

• Related registered risks in FVR_GD-MZ-04: R-11 — litigation with a client over withdrawal or suspension of a certificate; and R-13 — misuse of the certification mark by a client in the Systems line.

• An FVR certificate remains in force only while the applicable certification conditions continue to be met. FVR makes the conditions for each service line publicly available before requiring compliance.
• The conditions are not the same in both lines, and this policy does not pretend they are: for persons the model is an active subscription with a 30-day grace period, and for organizations it is a three-year cycle sustained by scheduled surveillance. Each is set out in its own chapter.
• FVR communicates the ground and applicable effect to the holder and, where the procedure requires prior response, grants the corresponding period before deciding. The holder may appeal through the documented channel. Suspension is a reversible state and says so; withdrawal is not.
• FVR keeps certification status records current. The status of management-system certificates and of person certificates is publicly consultable in the FVR verifier by folio or QR code.

• FVR undertakes to:
• 1. State the grounds in writing and notify the holder; where prior response is required, provide that notice before deciding.
• 2. Respect the response or remediation period applicable to each cause before converting a suspension into withdrawal.
• 3. Admit an appeal against any suspension or withdrawal, decided by someone independent of whoever took the original decision.
• 4. Keep certificate status records current and publicly consultable through the FVR verifier, so that third parties are not misled.
• 5. Restore the certificate when the ground that motivated the suspension is resolved within the period, without demanding a new assessment that the standard does not require.
• 6. Not use suspension or withdrawal as a means of commercial pressure: the grounds are those declared in this policy and no others.

• It is forbidden at FVR to:
• 1. Suspend or withdraw a certificate on a ground not declared in this policy or in the procedure it refers to.
• 2. Convert a suspension into withdrawal without first granting the applicable response or remediation period.
• 3. Keep a withdrawn certificate recorded as in force, or delay updating its recorded status.
• 4. Deny or hinder the appeal of a holder against a suspension or a withdrawal.
• 5. Have the appeal decided by whoever took the original decision.
• 6. Condition the restoration of a certificate on a payment or an arrangement beyond what the declared ground requires.

Approvals / Aprobaciones