Italian Council of State judgment: the validity of UKAS certificates also confirmed in the context of public procurement and not only in the private sector

The Council of State recently re-examined the issue of the validity and usability of certificates provided by bodies accredited by UKAS (United Kingdom Accreditation Service).

In a previous judgment last April (No. 4089/2023), the Fifth Chamber had declared that such certificates were no longer valid in Member States’ tender procedures.

However, in a new and very recent judgment (No. 9628/2023) dated 09/11/2023, the same Fifth Chamber confirmed the full validity and expendability of certificates issued with UKAS accreditation.

Also in the context of public procurement and not only in the private sector, the judgment emphasises that:

– The UK’s withdrawal from the European Union does not affect the validity of certificates issued by Conformity Assessment Bodies (CABs) accredited by UKAS. The equivalence of the characteristics and qualities with respect to the national bodies of the Member States remains unchanged. In particular, quality certificates issued by foreign bodies accredited by UKAS are affirmed as equivalent to those of the bodies accredited by the National Accreditation Bodies of EU Member States, in accordance with the EA MLA;

– The certifications issued by CABs accredited by UKAS maintain their validity and expendability also in the context of the Italian public procurement, being considered equivalent to those issued by the National Accreditation Bodies of EU Member States;

– The Council of State, in the same judgment, decided not to remit the case to ECJ, pointing out that the interpretation of the EU regulations is so clear that no reasonable doubts arise.