A registrar is a certification body (CB) accredited to audit ISO 9001:2015 and issue a certificate. In the United States the usual accreditation is ANAB, under ISO/IEC 17021-1, inside the IAF MLA. A consultant is not a registrar. A documentation vendor is not a registrar. Six to nine months is typical for a first certification; the CB you pick sets the audit calendar inside that window.
The certification-process article covers registrar selection as Step 6 among eight steps. This page is the buying guide: how CBs differ from consultants, what ANAB accreditation means, how to request quotes against IAF MD 5, and which offers to walk away from.
Pick the CB before the binder looks finished. Lead times of four to eight weeks are common. A free auditor near your plant next month is a different project than a fly-in next quarter.
Certification body vs consultant
A certification body audits your management system and, if it meets ISO 9001:2015 and matches what you run, issues a certificate. Accreditation under ISO/IEC 17021-1 requires impartiality. The CB cannot write your procedures and then audit those same procedures. If a firm offers to “build your QMS and certify you,” it is not acting as an accredited CB. That offer is a red flag.
A consultant (or a documentation vendor) helps you prepare: gap assessment, writing, training, internal audit coaching. You still need a separate CB for Stage 1 and Stage 2. Paying one company for both roles is how impartiality breaks. Keep the invoices separate even if a consultant introduces a CB they have seen work well.
| Role | What they may do | What they must not do |
|---|---|---|
| Certification body (registrar) | Quote audit days, run Stage 1 and Stage 2, issue and surveil the certificate | Write your QMS, run your internal audits as your only auditor, or treat Stage 2 as a formality |
| Consultant or documentation vendor | Help you write, train, and prepare; coach an internal audit | Issue an ISO 9001 certificate or claim registrar acceptance in advance |
What ANAB is — and what IAF MLA means
ANAB (ANSI National Accreditation Board) accredits certification bodies. It does not audit your shop. Your certificate will name the CB. The CB’s accreditation should be visible for ISO 9001 / ISO/IEC 17021-1. ANAB is a signatory to the International Accreditation Forum Multilateral Recognition Arrangement (IAF MLA). Peer signatories include UKAS (UK), DAkkS (Germany), and JAB (Japan). A customer in another country will often accept an IAF MLA certificate; some purchase orders still name ANAB specifically. Read the PO.
Unaccredited “certificates” and self-issued marks are marketing. They will not satisfy a buyer who asked for an accredited ISO 9001 certificate. If you cannot find the CB on ANAB’s directory (or on another IAF MLA signatory’s directory), do not pay a deposit.
How to request quotes
Ask three CBs for the same scope. Give them: legal name, site address, headcount by function (include part-time and regular contractors the way IAF MD 5 counts effective personnel), shifts, whether you design product, and the exact wording of the certificate you want. Audit days are not a sales negotiation. IAF MD 5 publishes duration tables from effective headcount; CBs adjust for complexity, extra sites, and risk. They cannot honestly promise a one-day Stage 1 plus Stage 2 for a 40-person plant if the tables say otherwise.
- Stage 1 and Stage 2 as separate line items, with estimated days each.
- Surveillance in years two and three, and recertification in year three.
- Travel, certificate fees, and extra days if findings require a follow-up visit.
- Whether Stage 1 can be remote for your risk class.
- Which accreditation body (ANAB or other IAF MLA signatory) covers the proposed certificate.
Compare total three-year cost, not the Stage 2 day rate. A cheap Stage 2 with expensive surveillance is not cheap. A distant auditor with high travel can erase a lower day rate. Ask who would walk your floor, not only who signed the quote.
What to compare besides price
- Industry familiarity. A CB that audits machine shops every week will spend less time learning your process language.
- Auditor location. Local auditors cut travel and scheduling risk.
- Tone. You want a CB that writes findings against the standard and your documents, not one that sells “easy certs.” Easy is how you fail the customer’s next source inspection.
- Transfer policy. If you later change CBs, you want a body that accepts a valid IAF MLA certificate without restarting Stage 1 from zero without cause.
- The certificate cycle. Surveillance is not optional. Missing it can suspend the certificate.
What Step 6 covers — and what this guide adds
In the eight-step process, Step 6 is “select a registrar” after you have a gap list, a scope, documents, and a record clock underway. That sequence is right. This guide is the shopping list inside Step 6: accreditation, impartiality, MD 5 quotes, and red flags. It does not replace Stage 1 versus Stage 2, and it does not replace the first-time path of documents then records then CB.
Book while the record file is still filling. CBs need notice. Waiting until management review minutes exist can push Stage 2 past the customer’s date even if the documents were done in weeks.
Red flags
- “We will write the system and certify you.” Impartiality failure.
- A promise that Stage 2 is a formality, or a certificate on a 30-day calendar. Stage 2 samples records. Six to nine months is typical for a first certification.
- No named accreditation body, or a mark that is not on an IAF MLA directory.
- A quote with no headcount basis and no mention of IAF MD 5.
- Pressure to skip Stage 1, skip internal audit, or skip management review.
- A price that assumes fewer audit days than the MD 5 table for your effective headcount, with no written justification.
Sources
- ANAB — management systems accreditation — ANSI National Accreditation Board directory and program information for ISO/IEC 17021-1 certification bodies.
- IAF MD 5 — Determination of Audit Time of Quality, Environmental, and Occupational Health & Safety Management Systems.
Frequently asked questions
Is ANAB the only acceptable accreditation?
For many US buyers, ANAB is the named body. Other IAF MLA signatories (UKAS, DAkkS, JAB) are peer-recognized. Read the purchase order. If it says ANAB, do not substitute without written buyer agreement.
Can my registrar also be my consultant?
No. ISO/IEC 17021-1 impartiality rules bar a CB from building the system it will audit. Keep documentation and certification as separate firms.
How many quotes do I need?
Three, against the same scope and headcount. Prices vary for the same audit days, and travel is a real line. Do not pick on Stage 2 day rate alone.
When should I book Stage 1?
Once scope is stable, documents describe the system you run, and internal audit plus management review are on the calendar. Do not wait for a perfect file. Do not book before you can show those two processes will have records.