Overview
The Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control is considered one of the oldest organizations in the country. It was established in 1979 under Law No. 54 issued on 4/6/1979, and contains the following departments:
- The Standardization Department.
- Quality control circuit.
- Technical and Administrative Services Department
The procedures for approving and monitoring the implementation
of the provisions of the National System of Quality Control (1988)
are among the most important exclusive competencies of the Central
Organization for Standardization and Quality Control under the
provisions of Article 3 / second, third of Law 54 of 1979 as
amended, and these procedures aim to ensure the protection of the
consumer, public health and the environment through evaluation
mechanisms Conformity of goods and products (local or imported) to
the approved Iraqi specifications that are directly related to the
consumer.
The Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control
has sought, since 2011, and based on the provisions of Article 3/8
of its applicable law, and in implementation of the general
government policy and in cooperation and coordination with all
concerned parties to follow the international contexts in
authorizing global, impartial inspection bodies accredited in
accordance with the highest international specifications and
standards and has the experience and competence to implement Pre
Shipment Inspection program (PSI) through official government
contracts that lasted for the period 2011-2019. This program
included more than 930 different industrial commodities (food,
engineering, chemical, construction, textile) directly related to
the consumer and doesn't include the imports of specialized public
sector entities not related to the consumer.
Today, the Agency presents the new phase of the program for the
period 2020-2022 after completing the pre-qualification process for
companies wishing to obtain a pre-supply inspection license and
issue a certificate of conformity in accordance with the directives
of the Economic Affairs Committee / Council of Ministers, where
three contracts were signed to grant a license with three qualified
international companies and a full development The legal and
supervisory framework for the work of licensed companies by issuing
a guide to granting a license (1/2019) and in conjunction with the
resumption of monitoring, auditing and verification procedures to
ensure and enhance the efficiency of the pre-supply inspection
program by the employees of the device at the border crossings and
over the hours and working days of the ports.
Pre-Shipment Inspection Programme (PSI)
The Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control started to engage in Pre-Shipment Inspection program (at the country of origin) which is considered as one of the methods for quality assurance that have been recognized in the field of international trade by carrying out inspection through third party (an internationally accredited neutral entity). The inspection company grants the manufacturer or supplier a Certificate of Conformity (CoC) for the goods or products prior to shipping. On May 15, 2019, the Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control announced a public / international invitation (1/2019) for contracting and conducting Pre-Shipment Inspection and to issuing a Certificate of Conformity at the country of origin. The outcome of the invite resulted in contracting with the following companies to be licensed and accepted by FI for issuing CoC:
- Intertek International Limited / UK (The only company operating in KRI at Ibrahim Khalil Border Crossing). Kurdistan Products
- HQTS-Helmsan & Quality & Technology Services.
- Geo-chem / Middle East U.A.E.
Programme Mechanism
Steps | Description |
---|---|
|
The importer or exporter applies for verification of conformity to one of the licensed companies (Intertek, HQTS, Geo-chem.) This application should include the following:
|
2. Documentary Verification | The inspection company reviews the provided information and conducts sample taking for laboratory testing/analysis. |
3. Physical Inspection | After document’s verification, physical and laboratory inspections are carried out to check conformity. |
4. Certificate of Conformity | The inspecting company verifies the robustness and accuracy of the data collected during the conformity verification process and physical and laboratory inspection. Accordingly, the CoC is issued stating whether the item(s) is complying with the specification or not. |
5. Verification at the Iraqi Border Crossings |
Authorities at the entry points verify documents of the incoming shipments, including CoC by checking:
|
Random Check: The Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control has the right to request the customs authorities not to deliver any shipment until after re-examining and conducting random inspection.
For more information about:
- Profile of the examiner companies and their contact addresses.
- Addresses of corporate offices around the world.
- List of imported goods subject to inspection.
Please see the attached file below in the Arabic version.
For contact information, please see the following link: 4.1 Iraq Government Contact List and 4.3 Iraq Laboratory and Quality Testing Companies Contact List.