ISO 9001 certification in Georgia: steps and documents

ISO 9001 is the quality management standard most often requested in Georgian tenders and by foreign buyers. This guide sets out the steps from first decision to certificate, and the documents an auditor will expect to see.

Which edition you will be certified to

ISO 9001:2026 was published on 16 September 2026 and replaces ISO 9001:2015. Organisations certified to the 2015 edition will move to the new one within a transition period set through their certification body. If you are starting now, build your system against the 2026 text and confirm with the certification body which edition your initial audit will use. The core logic of the standard has not changed: understand your context, plan, operate, check and improve.

Step 1. Decide why you need it and what goes in scope

A construction company bidding in state procurement, a food producer exporting to the EU under the DCFTA and a logistics firm serving international clients all need ISO 9001 for different reasons. The reason shapes the scope. Write down the legal entity, the products or services covered, the sites (for example a head office in Tbilisi and a plant in Kutaisi or Batumi) and any requirement of the standard you consider not applicable, with a justification.

Step 2. Gap assessment

Compare what you already do with each clause of the standard. Most Georgian companies already have parts of a quality system: job descriptions, supplier contracts, complaint handling, inspection records. The gap assessment shows what can be reused and what is missing, and gives a realistic work plan. BALTUM usually starts here, because it is the only reliable basis for estimating effort and duration.

Step 3. Context, risks and objectives

The standard asks you to identify internal and external issues and the needs of interested parties: customers, regulators, procurement authorities, distributors, owners. From this you derive risks and opportunities, a quality policy and measurable quality objectives. Keep it specific. "Increase customer satisfaction" is weak; "reduce late deliveries to EU customers below an agreed level, measured monthly" can be audited.

Step 4. Documented information

ISO 9001 does not require a thick manual. It requires certain documented information to be maintained or retained. In most systems this covers:

• the scope of the quality management system;
• the quality policy and quality objectives;
• process descriptions to the extent needed for them to run as planned;
• evidence of competence of staff (training records, qualifications);
• evidence that monitoring and measuring equipment is fit for purpose, including calibration where relevant;
• records of customer requirements review, design and development where applicable, and release of products and services;
• evaluation and monitoring of external providers;
• records of nonconforming outputs and corrective actions;
• the internal audit programme and audit results;
• management review results.

Some clause numbers and wording changed in the 2026 edition, so map your documents to the edition you will be audited against. Documents can be in Georgian, English or both, as long as the people who use them understand them and the auditor can review them.

Step 5. Run the system and keep records

The certification auditor needs evidence that the system works, not only that it is written. That means a period of operation in which you record supplier evaluations, handle complaints, measure objectives and close corrective actions. How long this takes depends on your processes and the volume of activity, which is why we do not quote a fixed timeline before the gap assessment.

Step 6. Internal audit and management review

Before the certification audit you must complete at least one internal audit covering the scope, and a management review by top management. The internal auditor must not audit their own work. Our article on preparing for the certification audit covers both in detail, including the nonconformities auditors find most often.

Step 7. Certification audit

1. Stage 1. The certification body reviews your documentation, scope and readiness, and plans stage 2.
2. Stage 2. Auditors check implementation on site or partly remotely, interview staff and sample records.
3. Certificate. Issued once any major nonconformities are closed and the certification body has approved the decision.
4. Surveillance. Annual audits in years two and three, then recertification.

Choose a certification body accredited by a signatory of the IAF MLA for ISO 9001, so the certificate can be verified in IAF CertSearch and is accepted by procurement authorities and foreign buyers.

What BALTUM does

We run the gap assessment, help you define scope and processes, prepare documents with your team rather than for it, train staff and internal auditors, carry out the internal audit and support you through stage 1 and stage 2 with an accredited certification body. More on the standard is on our ISO 9001 page. If you also need environmental or safety systems, an integrated approach with ISO 14001 saves duplicate documents.

To plan your ISO 9001 project, send a short description of your company and scope through the form on this site or to info@baltum.org.

Frequently asked questions

Do we need a quality manual for ISO 9001?

No. The standard does not require a quality manual. Many companies keep a short system overview because it helps auditors and new staff, but it is optional.

Should a new project use ISO 9001:2015 or ISO 9001:2026?

ISO 9001:2026 was published in September 2026. Build to the new edition and confirm with your certification body which edition it will use for your initial audit during the transition period.

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