Where we work · Poland
ISO and GRC certification consulting in Poland
Achieve ISO and GRC certification in Poland with Sterling: 8,100+ client engagements in 60+ countries, 20+ years.
- 22 standards, one team
- Accredited certification route
- Frankfurt office team
- Effivity and Academy included
Sectors that ask for certification in Poland
Clients include
ISO and GRC certification in Poland at a glance
Poland's demand for ISO and GRC certification is driven by statute, public-sector rules and the supply chains of its manufacturers. The President of the Personal Data Protection Office (UODO) supervises the GDPR under the Act of 10 May 2018, and the Act of 23 January 2026 amending the National Cybersecurity System Act brings NIS2-derived duties to key and important entities under sector ministers, with the Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego responsible for banking. Public bodies work under the Krajowe Ramy Interoperacyjności regulation, which treats an information security system built on PN-ISO/IEC 27001 as meeting its requirements, and contracting authorities may ask bidders for certificates from accredited bodies under the Prawo zamówień publicznych. Demand is strongest among automotive and component manufacturers, business services and shared-service centres, IT and cloud providers, banks and fintechs, food producers, energy and public bodies, medical-device firms and logistics operators. Management-system certificates come from certification bodies accredited by the Polish Centre for Accreditation (PCA); Sterling does not certify. Clients in Poland are served from Sterling's Frankfurt office, drawing on 20+ years and 8,100+ client engagements in 60+ countries, with Effivity and Sterling Academy included in the engagement.
ISO and GRC standards Sterling delivers in Poland
Each page covers who needs the standard in Poland, its requirements, how to get it, what sets the time and cost, and the local laws behind it.
Quality & operational excellence
Information security, cyber & cloud
Privacy & data protection
AI governance & digital trust
Environment, energy & climate
Health & safety
Governance, risk & resilience
Financial services, payments & AML
Food safety & agriculture
Healthcare, medical devices & life sciences
Laboratories, inspection & accreditation
Automotive, aerospace, rail & defence
Construction, energy, oil & gas
Regulators and laws that drive certification in Poland (12)
| Law or regulator | What it asks for | Standards it cites |
|---|---|---|
| EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR; RODO in Polish) and the Polish Act on the Protection of Personal Data Prezes Urzędu Ochrony Danych Osobowych (President of the Personal Data Protection Office, UODO) | Art. 34 of the Act states that the President of the Office is the authority competent for personal data protection and is the supervisory authority within the meaning of Regulation 2016/679. The President is appointed and dismissed by the Sejm with the consent of the Senate. Proceedings before the President follow the Code of Administrative Procedure where the Act is silent. | |
| Data protection officer rules in the Polish Act Prezes Urzędu Ochrony Danych Osobowych | A controller and a processor must designate a data protection officer in the cases and on the terms of Art. 37 of Regulation 2016/679. The Act defines the public bodies that must do so as public finance sector units, research institutes and the Narodowy Bank Polski. An entity that designates an officer notifies the President of the Office, naming the officer and contact details. | |
| GDPR certification and its accreditation in Poland Prezes Urzędu Ochrony Danych Osobowych; Polskie Centrum Akredytacji (PCA) for accreditation of certifying bodies | Certification under Art. 42 of the GDPR is carried out by the President of the Office or by a certifying body, on application by a controller, processor, producer or the entity placing a service or product on the market. Accreditation of bodies seeking the right to certify data protection is granted by the Polish Centre for Accreditation. This is a GDPR-specific certification route, separate from ISO management-system certificates. | |
| Sector competent authorities named in Art. 41 of the National Cybersecurity System Act: the ministers responsible for energy, transport, water, health, digital affairs, economy, agriculture, climate and other sectors; the Prezes Urzędu Komunikacji Elektronicznej for electronic communications and postal services; the Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego for banking and financial market infrastructure; the Minister of National Defence for entities listed in the Act Key and important entities under the national cybersecurity system (NIS2 transposition) | Ustawa z dnia 5 lipca 2018 r. o krajowym systemie cyberbezpieczeństwa as amended by the Ustawa z dnia 23 stycznia 2026 r. o zmianie ustawy o krajowym systemie cyberbezpieczeństwa oraz niektórych innych ustaw (Dz. U. 2026 poz. 252), which states that it implements Directive (EU) 2022/2555 (NIS 2). Art. 8 as amended requires a key or important entity to implement an information security management system covering risk assessment and listed technical and organisational measures; the Act does not name ISO/IEC 27001. | |
| Komisja Nadzoru Finansowego (KNF) Banking and financial market infrastructure | Art. 41 point 4 of the National Cybersecurity System Act names the KNF as the cybersecurity competent authority for the banking sector and financial market infrastructure; the amending Act of 23 January 2026 provides that the authority performs its tasks taking into account the scope of the Act for financial entities and cross-refers to Regulation (EU) 2022/2554 (DORA). | |
| Rada Ministrów (Council of Ministers), by regulation Public bodies and other entities performing public tasks | Rozporządzenie Rady Ministrów z dnia 21 maja 2024 r. w sprawie Krajowych Ram Interoperacyjności, minimalnych wymagań dla rejestrów publicznych i wymiany informacji w postaci elektronicznej oraz minimalnych wymagań dla systemów teleinformatycznych (Dz. U. 2024 poz. 773). Section 19 requires an information security management system; paragraph 3 deems the requirements met where the system is developed on the basis of Polish Standard PN-ISO/IEC 27001, with PN-ISO/IEC 27002 for controls and PN-ISO/IEC 27005 for risk. Section 15 deems IT service management requirements met where PN-ISO/IEC 20000-1 and PN-ISO/IEC 20000-2 are taken into account. | ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 20000-1 |
| Prezes Urzędu Rejestracji Produktów Leczniczych, Wyrobów Medycznych i Produktów Biobójczych (URPL) Medical devices and in-vitro diagnostics | Ustawa z dnia 7 kwietnia 2022 r. o wyrobach medycznych (consolidated text: Dz. U. 2024 poz. 1620): the President of the Office designates notified bodies for Regulations (EU) 2017/745 and 2017/746. The Act does not name ISO 13485. | |
| Komisja Rozwoju i Bezpieczeństwa Sztucznej Inteligencji (Commission for the Development and Safety of Artificial Intelligence) Artificial intelligence systems | Ustawa z dnia 3 lipca 2026 r. o systemach sztucznej inteligencji (Dz. U. 2026 poz. 1003): the Commission is the market surveillance authority and single point of contact under Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, and the Act gives the Polskie Centrum Akredytacji a role in accrediting conformity assessment bodies for the notification process. The Act does not name ISO/IEC 42001. | |
| Statutory duty under the Energy Efficiency Act (no separate regulator named here) Large enterprises (energy efficiency) | Ustawa o efektywności energetycznej (consolidated text: Dz. U. 2025 poz. 711), Art. 36: an enterprise other than a micro, small or medium-sized enterprise carries out a periodic enterprise energy audit, but the duty does not apply to an enterprise holding an energy management system defined in the Polish Standard on energy management systems, or an EMAS environmental management system, where an enterprise energy audit was carried out within it. The Act does not print the ISO 50001 number. | |
| Państwowa Inspekcja Sanitarna, headed by the Główny Inspektor Sanitarny (State Sanitary Inspection; Chief Sanitary Inspectorate) Food business operators | The Chief Sanitary Inspectorate states that under Art. 5 of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 food business operators must develop and implement a procedure based on HACCP principles, applied flexibly so that it works in small businesses, and publishes a list of guides to good hygiene and manufacturing practice and HACCP that it has opined on. | HACCP |
| Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich (Commissioner for Human Rights) and public authorities receiving external reports Employers and other legal entities (whistleblower protection) | Ustawa z dnia 14 czerwca 2024 r. o ochronie sygnalistów (Dz. U. 2024 poz. 928): a legal entity sets an internal reporting procedure for breaches of law and follow-up action, after consultation with employee representatives where they exist. The Act lists corruption among the areas covered and does not name ISO 37002. | |
| Courts, under the Act on the liability of collective entities Companies and other collective entities (criminal liability) | Ustawa o odpowiedzialności podmiotów zbiorowych za czyny zabronione pod groźbą kary (consolidated text: Dz. U. 2024 poz. 1822), Art. 5: a collective entity is liable where an offence results from at least a lack of due care in selecting or supervising a person acting for it, or from an organisation of its activity that did not prevent the offence although due care could have done so. Art. 16 lists the offences, including bribery. The Act does not name ISO 37001 or ISO 37301. |
Accreditation and recognition
- Polskie Centrum Akredytacji (PCA, Polish Centre for Accreditation): National accreditation body for Poland, appointed by government in line with Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) 765/2008; accredits organisations providing certification, testing, inspection, calibration, verification and validation services; supervised by the minister in charge of economy.
Look for a certification body whose accreditation scope covers your standard and sector, from a national accreditation body recognised under the international arrangements of Global ACI (Global Accreditation Cooperation Incorporated, formerly the IAF MLA). Sterling does not certify.
Tenders and procurement
- Prawo zamówień publicznych (Public Procurement Law) — certificates as evidence, Art. 105 (Sejm (statute); applied by all contracting authorities): Consolidated text Dz. U. 2026 poz. 793. A contracting authority may ask bidders for a certificate issued by a conformity assessment body, defined as a body accredited under Regulation (EC) No 765/2008, to confirm that the works, supplies or services meet the requirements in the description of the contract. Where certificates from a specified conformity assessment body are required, certificates from other equivalent bodies must also be accepted, and other suitable evidence must be accepted where the bidder had no access to the certificates and the lack of access is not its fault. The Law does not make a certificate mandatory.
- Prawo zamówień publicznych — quality and environmental management standards, Art. 116 (Sejm (statute); applied by all contracting authorities): In relation to technical or professional capacity, a contracting authority may set conditions on education, qualifications, experience and technical potential and, in particular, may require bidders to meet the requirements of quality management standards, and of environmental management systems or standards, that it indicates in the contract notice or contract documents. Each tender sets its own criteria.
Economic zones
- Special economic zones (specjalne strefy ekonomiczne): economic activity on uninhabited land designated as a zone, development of defined fields of business activity, export development
- Support for new investments (Ustawa o wspieraniu nowych inwestycji): new plants, increased production capacity, diversified production, fundamental change to a production process
Sterling in Poland
Sterling delivers in Poland from its Frankfurt office: one team from scoping to certificate, with Effivity ISO & GRC software and Sterling Academy access included. Sterling does not certify; certification decisions stay with independent bodies.
What the standards require, clause by clause
Before you start in Poland, read what each clause and subclause requires of you, how to implement it, the evidence auditors look for and the mistakes to avoid.
- ISO 9001:2026 requirements95 clause guides
- ISO/IEC 27001:2022 requirements143 clause guides
- ISO 14001:2026 requirements53 clause guides
- ISO 45001:2018 requirements60 clause guides
- ISO 22000:2018 requirements95 clause guides
- ISO/IEC 17025:2017 requirements68 clause guides
- ISO/IEC 42001:2023 requirements97 clause guides
Questions Polish clients ask
Are certification audits in Poland conducted in Polish or English?
Both are workable, and the choice is agreed rather than imposed. Polish is the official language; English is common in shared-service centres, international groups and technology firms. Settle the language of the audit and of controlled documents with the certification body at application, and honour any language clause in a customer contract or tender. Dealings with the UODO, the KNF and ministries are conducted in Polish.
Which accreditation body should our certification body hold in Poland?
Look for accreditation by the Polskie Centrum Akredytacji (PCA), Poland's national accreditation body, appointed by government under Regulation (EC) 765/2008. PCA says it is a full signatory to the EA multilateral agreement and the Global ACI arrangement, which covers management-system certification bodies. Accreditation is scoped, so confirm that the body's PCA scope includes your standard and sector before you engage it.
Do Polish public tenders require ISO certificates?
Not as a blanket rule. The Prawo zamówień publicznych lets an authority ask for a certificate from an accredited conformity assessment body, and lets it require quality or environmental management standards as part of technical capacity, but only if it says so in the notice or documents. Equivalent certificates from other bodies must be accepted. Read each tender's wording closely.
Which authority supervises personal data protection in Poland?
One body: the Prezes Urzędu Ochrony Danych Osobowych, who heads the Personal Data Protection Office (UODO). The Polish Act of 10 May 2018 designates the President as the national supervisory authority for the GDPR, and the Sejm appoints the holder with the Senate's consent. Your counsel or the UODO can confirm how that applies to your processing.
Is ISO 27001 expected of Polish public bodies?
Public bodies must run an information security management system under section 19 of the Krajowe Ramy Interoperacyjności regulation, and that duty is deemed met where the system is developed on the basis of Polish Standard PN-ISO/IEC 27001, with PN-ISO/IEC 27002 for controls and PN-ISO/IEC 27005 for risk. Certification is not what the regulation requires. Confirm the position for your entity with counsel.
Start with a free discovery call
A Sterling consultant goes through your entities, your regulators and your target date with you. No proposal until the scope is agreed.
Sources
- EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR; RODO in Polish) and the Polish Act on the Protection of Personal Data — api.sejm.gov.pl; isap.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Data protection officer rules in the Polish Act — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- GDPR certification and its accreditation in Poland — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Ustawa z dnia 5 lipca 2018 r. o krajowym systemie cyberbezpieczeństwa as amended by the Ustawa z dnia 23 stycznia 2026 r. o zmianie ustawy o krajowym systemie cyberbezpieczeństwa oraz niektórych innych ustaw (Dz. U. 2026 poz. 252), which states that it implements Directive (EU) 2022/2555 (NIS 2). Art. 8 as amended requires a key or important entity to implement an information security management system covering risk assessment and listed technical and organisational measures; the Act does not name ISO/IEC 27001. — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Art. 41 point 4 of the National Cybersecurity System Act names the KNF as the cybersecurity competent authority for the banking sector and financial market infrastructure; the amending Act of 23 January 2026 provides that the authority performs its tasks taking into account the scope of the Act for financial entities and cross-refers to Regulation (EU) 2022/2554 (DORA). — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Rozporządzenie Rady Ministrów z dnia 21 maja 2024 r. w sprawie Krajowych Ram Interoperacyjności, minimalnych wymagań dla rejestrów publicznych i wymiany informacji w postaci elektronicznej oraz minimalnych wymagań dla systemów teleinformatycznych (Dz. U. 2024 poz. 773). Section 19 requires an information security management system; paragraph 3 deems the requirements met where the system is developed on the basis of Polish Standard PN-ISO/IEC 27001, with PN-ISO/IEC 27002 for controls and PN-ISO/IEC 27005 for risk. Section 15 deems IT service management requirements met where PN-ISO/IEC 20000-1 and PN-ISO/IEC 20000-2 are taken into account. — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Ustawa z dnia 7 kwietnia 2022 r. o wyrobach medycznych (consolidated text: Dz. U. 2024 poz. 1620): the President of the Office designates notified bodies for Regulations (EU) 2017/745 and 2017/746. The Act does not name ISO 13485. — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Ustawa z dnia 3 lipca 2026 r. o systemach sztucznej inteligencji (Dz. U. 2026 poz. 1003): the Commission is the market surveillance authority and single point of contact under Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, and the Act gives the Polskie Centrum Akredytacji a role in accrediting conformity assessment bodies for the notification process. The Act does not name ISO/IEC 42001. — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Ustawa o efektywności energetycznej (consolidated text: Dz. U. 2025 poz. 711), Art. 36: an enterprise other than a micro, small or medium-sized enterprise carries out a periodic enterprise energy audit, but the duty does not apply to an enterprise holding an energy management system defined in the Polish Standard on energy management systems, or an EMAS environmental management system, where an enterprise energy audit was carried out within it. The Act does not print the ISO 50001 number. — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- The Chief Sanitary Inspectorate states that under Art. 5 of Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 food business operators must develop and implement a procedure based on HACCP principles, applied flexibly so that it works in small businesses, and publishes a list of guides to good hygiene and manufacturing practice and HACCP that it has opined on. — gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Ustawa z dnia 14 czerwca 2024 r. o ochronie sygnalistów (Dz. U. 2024 poz. 928): a legal entity sets an internal reporting procedure for breaches of law and follow-up action, after consultation with employee representatives where they exist. The Act lists corruption among the areas covered and does not name ISO 37002. — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Ustawa o odpowiedzialności podmiotów zbiorowych za czyny zabronione pod groźbą kary (consolidated text: Dz. U. 2024 poz. 1822), Art. 5: a collective entity is liable where an offence results from at least a lack of due care in selecting or supervising a person acting for it, or from an organisation of its activity that did not prevent the offence although due care could have done so. Art. 16 lists the offences, including bribery. The Act does not name ISO 37001 or ISO 37301. — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Polskie Centrum Akredytacji (PCA, Polish Centre for Accreditation) — pca.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Prawo zamówień publicznych (Public Procurement Law) — certificates as evidence, Art. 105 — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Prawo zamówień publicznych — quality and environmental management standards, Art. 116 — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Special economic zones (specjalne strefy ekonomiczne) — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Support for new investments (Ustawa o wspieraniu nowych inwestycji) — api.sejm.gov.pl (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
Talk to a consultant
Plan your certification with the Frankfurt team.
Tell us your goals, locations and target date. We’ll help you define the scope, timeline and next steps.
germany@sterling-grc.com+1 201 263 4443 (global headquarters) · your nearest office and its number are at the top of this page
What would you like to achieve?
Choose a starting point. The enquiry form takes about a minute.
Book my free discovery callContinue to the enquiry form to share your details. Please do not include passwords, sensitive personal information or confidential files. A Sterling consultant replies within one working day. Privacy notice