All about the ISO 14001 standard

Oct 18, 2023Audit / Sustainability

ISO 14001 standard explained

When an organization develops an environmental policy, the ISO 14001 standard plays an important role. This is because the international standard ISO 14001 defines requirements for an environmental management system. In this blog, you will find more information about the content and origins of the ISO 14001 standard. Furthermore, you can read which points of attention are part of the ISO 14001 standard.

Content of the ISO 14001 standard

The ISO 14001 certification helps organizations develop a suitable environmental policy and assure its implementation. The content of the ISO 14001 standard can be roughly divided into three categories: 

Context of the organization
Leadership
Planning

The context of the organization involves identifying all internal and external factors that can influence the environmental management system. This includes activities, company size and location. ‘Leadership’ involves the appointment of the persons responsible for implementing the environmental management system and the way in which they carry out their tasks. ‘Planning’ involves the correct documentation and a good planning of the environmental policy. The basic principle here is that organizations develop systematically in the area of the environment. Certification against the ISO 14001 standard means that organizations continue to improve with regard to their environmental policy, and thus also on sustainability.

History of the ISO 14001 standard

The ISO 14001 standard was first issued in 1996. After this, the ISO 14001 standard was revised twice. The first revision took place in 2004. The main reason for this revision was to align ISO 14001 standard with ISO 9001:2000. Another revision followed in 2015, this time to bring the structure more in line with the other ISO standards.

More environmental standards

ISO 14001 standard is part of the ISO 14000 series, a collection of voluntary standards concerning environmental management for organizations. Each standard within the ISO 14000 series describes the requirements for a particular aspect of the environmental management. The standards that fall under ISO 14000 have been developed to help organizations create environmental management systems and to measure the effectiveness of these systems.

Certification against the ISO 14001 standard

Do you want to certify your organization against the ISO 14001 standard? You should then ensure that your organization sets up an environmental management system in accordance with the ISO 14001 standard after which the audit takes place. The auditor checks whether your company meets all the requirements in the standard ISO 14001. After a successful audit you will receive the ISO 14001 certificate from the certifying body. This certificate proves that your organization meets the ISO 14001 standard requirements. DEKRA has specialised auditors who work according to the People Based Auditing principle, whereby we always focus on the human factor in operational processes.

A lightbulb planted in the ground with a little plant inside it

ISO 14001 certification

Interested in the ISO 14001 certification process? Find out how DEKRA can help you. Our experienced experts offer you the best support with the certification of your environmental management system.

ISO 14001 revision: stay up to date

ISO 14001:2026 is set to be published in March 2026. To keep you informed, we’re sharing updates via email and hosting a free webinar. Want to stay in the loop?

Do you have any further questions?