All organisations must complete an online application form and pay the access fee prior to entry into the programme.

Organisations will receive their critical path (including survey dates), access to the self-assessment tool (SAT) and the resource documents within the online survey management tool ISQua EEA Collaborate. We strongly recommend that organisations spend a minimum of 10 months completing the SAT and the critical path will reflect this

The completed self-assessment tool, the standards (if applicable) and supporting evidence are submitted by the organisation for technical review 8 weeks prior to the agreed survey start date. All documents must be in English. The aim of the technical review is to ensure that the self-assessment tool has been completed in accordance with ISQua EEA requirements and that all criteria and principles/standards are rated. A technical review report is sent to the organisation commenting on any areas which need to be addressed. No comment is made on compliance.

The completed self-assessment tool and the supporting evidence must be submitted to ISQua EEA 4 weeks prior to the agreed survey start date. No further changes are accepted after this date.

For the assessment of standards or surveyor training programmes, the SAT and supporting evidence will be assessed by a team of international peer review surveyors as a desktop/remote exercise. This survey takes place over a 2-week period.

For the assessment of organisations, the SAT and supporting evidence will be assessed by a team of three international peer review surveyors who will travel to the organisation for a 5-day on-site survey. The survey team submits the survey report and award recommendation to ISQua EEA within one week of the survey end date. The report is then reviewed by one of our ISQua EEA Accreditation Managers to ensure that all ratings are in accordance with the ISQua EEA guidelines.

The organisation will be given the opportunity to undertake a factual review of the draft survey report to ensure that the surveyors have not misinterpreted evidence or missed information. The feedback will be shared with the survey team who will review it and, if appropriate, amend the survey report accordingly.

The survey report is sent to one of our senior surveyors or a member of the ISQua EEA Accreditation Council for a 2-week validation review. The ISQua EEA Validation Reviewer is responsible for reviewing the survey report to ensure that the ratings reflect the findings and the survey report supports the survey team’s award recommendation.

The award recommendations from the survey team and the ISQua EEA validation reviewer are sent to the External Evaluation Accreditation Committee (EEAC). The EEAC governs the International Accreditation Programme on behalf of the ISQua EEA Board and is responsible for making the final award decision. The Accreditation Award is valid for a period of 4 years. Accredited organisations receive an Accreditation Certificate and can use the ‘ISQua EEA Accredited’ logo. The use of these are subject to ISQua EEA's terms & conditions.

Continuing accreditation status is subject to the completion and submission of progress reports. Organisations are required to submit a progress report 12 months post-award, outlining how and when the survey report recommendations will be addressed or how they have already been addressed. A second progress report identifying any further changes and/or updates in relation to outstanding actions is required 30 months post-award. Organisations may also be required to provide evidence as part of this process. Failure to provide progress reports and/or requested supporting evidence will result in an organisation being in breach of their accreditation status and accreditation may be revoked.

Organisations will be contacted 9 months prior to their accreditation expiry date to schedule the re-accreditation of their standards/surveyor training programme/organisation. Re-accreditation surveys take place at least 3 months before the end of the accreditation cycle to prevent any lapses in accreditation.