ISO 9001 & ISO 14001: what the 2026 revisions mean for your business.
ISO 14001:2026 is already published. ISO 9001:2026 is expected to follow later this year. Here's what's confirmed, what's still provisional, and what it means if you hold — or are working toward — either certificate.
ISO 14001:2026 is now in effect.
ISO 14001:2026 was published on 15 April 2026, replacing ISO 14001:2015 as the current version of the international standard for environmental management systems. If your organisation is starting a new environmental management system project now, it's this revision you'll be certifying against.
Organisations already certified to ISO 14001:2015 have a three-year transition window, expected to run to around April/May 2029, to move their environmental management system across to the new revision.
Existing ISO 14001:2015 certificates remain valid during this window — nothing about your current certification changes until you're required to transition.
ISO 9001:2026 hasn't been published yet.
As things stand, ISO 9001:2026 has not been published. The Final Draft International Standard (FDIS) — the last stage before formal publication — has been issued, and publication is expected late 2026. Sources differ on the exact month, so we're deliberately not committing to one here.
Once published, ISO 9001 is expected to follow the same pattern as other recent revisions, including ISO 14001:2026: a three-year transition period for organisations already certified to ISO 9001:2015.
Nothing changes for existing ISO 9001:2015 certificate holders in the meantime. The current standard remains valid, and there's no need to act until the new revision is published and a transition path is confirmed.
Evolutionary, not a rebuild.
Industry commentary on both revisions describes them as evolutionary refinements of the existing structure — clearer language, updated emphasis in places like risk-based thinking and environmental context, and alignment with the common high-level structure shared across ISO management system standards — rather than a fundamental overhaul of what a certified system has to do.
Existing certificates remain valid throughout. You won't need to rebuild a management system from scratch to transition — but it's worth reviewing what's changed against your specific system once the detail is confirmed, rather than assuming nothing applies to you.
Frequently asked.
- When was ISO 14001:2026 published?
- ISO 14001:2026 was published on 15 April 2026, replacing ISO 14001:2015 as the current version of the environmental management standard.
- What is the ISO 14001 transition period?
- Organisations certified to ISO 14001:2015 have a three-year transition window, expected to run to around April/May 2029, to move to ISO 14001:2026.
- When will ISO 9001:2026 be published?
- ISO 9001:2026 has not been published yet. The Final Draft International Standard (FDIS) has been issued, and publication is expected late 2026 — sources vary on the exact month, so we're not committing to one.
- What will the ISO 9001 transition period be?
- Not yet confirmed, since the standard isn't published. Based on the pattern of recent revisions, including ISO 14001:2026, a three-year transition period is expected to follow publication.
- Is my current ISO 9001:2015 or ISO 14001:2015 certificate still valid?
- Yes. Existing certificates remain valid — nothing changes until you're required to transition, and certification bodies will confirm transition arrangements as each revision moves through publication.
Not sure what this means for your system?
If you're certified — or working toward certification — to a management system standard such as ISO 9001 or ISO 14001, we can review what a revision like this means for your existing or planned system.