TISAX assessment in South Korea

TISAX assessment in South Korea at a glance

Automotive suppliers that handle a partner's design data, production information or prototypes are increasingly asked for a TISAX label instead of answering each customer's own security audit. The scheme is governed by the ENX Association, which approves the audit providers, and it assesses a company against the Information Security Assessment catalogue published by the VDA; the VDA released ISA2027 on 1 July 2026. Results are issued as TISAX labels that reflect the chosen assessment objectives, such as information security, data protection or prototype protection, and are shared only with selected partners through the ENX Portal. ENX describes the scheme as strengthening supply-chain resilience in Germany, Europe and worldwide, so suppliers outside Europe, including in South Korea, can be asked for it by partners in those chains. TISAX is an assessment, not an accredited certification. Sterling's Tokyo office prepares the scope, controls and evidence, with Effivity and Sterling Academy included with the engagement.

Who needs TISAX in South Korea, and what happens without it

In South Korea the question rarely comes from a law. It comes from the buyer, the regulator or the partner that wants proof before it signs. These are the organisations that get asked.

• Automotive parts and component makers exchanging design data with partnersENX names design data, production information, customer information, prototypes and intellectual property as the information the scheme exists to protect.
• Engineering, software and development service providersThey receive design data and intellectual property from automotive partners, which is what a TISAX assessment scope describes.
• Logistics, IT and facility partners of automotive companiesENX says all companies that exchange information with each other in TISAX are participants, so any partner handling classified information can register.
• Prototype and test-vehicle handlersPrototype protection is one of the assessment objectives that TISAX labels reflect.
• Organisations already running an information security management systemThe assessment starts with a self-assessment against the ISA catalogue, so existing ISMS evidence supports it.

TISAX requirements in South Korea

Strip away the vocabulary and TISAX asks an automotive supplier to be assessed on six things about protecting its customers' information.

In South Korea these six sit alongside the local laws and regulations listed under drivers below; one system can evidence both. The detail is on the global hub: TISAX explained →

How to get a TISAX assessment in South Korea

One team from the Tokyo office carries the work from scoping to assessment result. Clients across South Korea are served from Sterling's Tokyo office, on-site where the work needs it and remotely otherwise.

1. Discovery call and scopeEntities, locations, regulators and target date, agreed before any proposal.
2. Gap assessment against TISAX and the South Korean requirements that apply to youControls you already run for your regulators and customers are reused, not rebuilt.
3. Your system built with your team in EffivityRisks, controls, evidence, incidents and reviews in one live system the auditor can see.
4. Internal audit, management review and corrective actionsYour internal auditors trained by Sterling; the evidence proven before any external review.
5. The assessment by an approved audit providerAn approved audit provider assesses and records the result. Sterling supports the assessment.

The Sterling Promise: 100% on-time completion, 100% success, 8,100+ client engagements.Sterling does not certify. Certification decisions stay with independent bodies.

How long does TISAX assessment take in South Korea?

There is no standard duration: it depends on your scope and on how much of the system already runs. In South Korea these are the factors that set the timeline.

• Assessment objectives chosen, such as information security, data protection or prototype protection
• Number of locations in the assessment scope
• Existing ISMS evidence available for the self-assessment
• Audit provider availability

Sterling agrees a dated plan with you on the discovery call, once the scope is known.

• Scope and timeline estimator

How much does TISAX assessment cost in South Korea?

The cost has two parts: the consulting work to build and prove the system, and the audit provider’s fees, which are quoted separately. In South Korea these factors move both.

• Assessment level and number of objectives
• Number of locations in scope
• Audit provider fees and ENX registration fees quoted separately from consulting
• Physical security work for prototype protection

Sterling gives one customised, all-inclusive proposal after the discovery call, never before the scope is agreed.

TISAX consultants and assessors in South Korea

Two different organisations are involved. A consultant helps you build the system and prove it works; an approved audit provider then audits or assesses it and decides. Keeping the two separate is what makes the result credible to buyers and regulators.

• Check that the body’s accreditation or approval covers TISAX and your sector, and that its certificates can be verified online.
• Ask the consultant how the local requirements in South Korea are mapped into the same system, so nothing runs twice.
• Ask for client references in your sector; Sterling’s client letters are available on request.
• Agree who owns the evidence and the tool after the engagement; with Sterling the system stays yours, in Effivity.

TISAX in South Korea: questions clients ask

More on TISAX for South Korean organisations

• TISAX: the complete guide
• Watch: How to get TISAX labels
• TISAX assessment in South Korea and every other standard Sterling delivers there

Other standards South Korean businesses ask Sterling for

Organisations in South Korea often combine TISAX with one of these, under one management system where the scopes allow.

All 22 standards Sterling delivers in South Korea →