Do we need to take a SA for a standard that is going to be obsolete?

[Deepu]

My company is certified in the BS 25999 standard for Business Continuity. ISO has published the ISO 22301 standard which will replace the above mentioned British Standard. Communication is that BSI will stop supporting the BS 25999 standard in Nov 2012. Incidentally our surveillance audit is due in November 2012. We are planning to upgrade to the new ISO 22301 std soon.

Given this context, does it really make sense to take the surveillance audit for a standard that is almost obsolete? Wouldn't it be better to just go for the new standard though it may take another 6 months? The only risk I see is that we may be without a certificate for a period, but does it make any difference holding a certificate for a standard that is not supported?

I am sure some of you would have faced similar situations when other BSI standards were adapted by ISO. Please give your valuable inputs on what I should do.

Thanks in advance for your response.

 

[AndyN]

Deepu:

Typically there's a change over period to allow organizations like your to make the changes, while keeping registered. The fact that BSI 'don't support" BS 25999 may be true, but they will have to support certification for a period to allow you to change. Typically, this can be 18 months. You may wish to check again.

 

[Sidney Vianna]

Given this context, does it really make sense to take the surveillance audit for a standard that is almost obsolete? Wouldn't it be better to just go for the new standard though it may take another 6 months? The only risk I see is that we may be without a certificate for a period, but does it make any difference holding a certificate for a standard that is not supported?

From BSi bsi:

I?m certified to the standard BS 25999-2. How quickly do I need to change from BS 25999-2 to the new ISO 22301?

ISO 22301 isn't going to be considered a new scheme, but rather it will be considered a transition. Clients with BS 25999 certification with BSI can undertake a transfer assessment aligned to their current planned surveillance visits. These will be of the same duration, and the process will start soon after publication of the standard.

While I?m making the move from BS 25999-2 to ISO 22301, is my BS 25999-2 certificate still valid?

Yes, certificates issued to BS 25999-2 will remain valid during the transitional period. No further certification or renewals will be issued to BS 25999-2 after May 2014 (to be confirmed)