Switzerland · Certification
ISO 22301 certification in Switzerland
Achieve ISO 22301 certification in Switzerland with Sterling: 8,100+ client engagements in 60+ countries, 20+ years.
- Accredited certification
- Frankfurt office team
- Effivity software included
- Academy training included
Who asks for ISO 22301 in Switzerland
Clients include
ISO 22301 certification in Switzerland at a glance
Two Swiss instruments bear on ISO 22301. Not one of them names it. So why do buyers in Switzerland keep asking for the certificate?
When a Swiss bank cannot process payments or a hospital loses its clinical systems, the question regulators and customers ask is how quickly critical services come back. FINMA Circular 2023/1, in force for banks from 1 January 2024, covers business continuity management together with ICT and cyber risk and operational resilience, without naming ISO 22301. The Information Security Act adds a duty for insurers, financial market infrastructures, hospitals, licensed laboratories, energy, rail and aviation operators and others to see that cyberattacks on their IT are reported to the Federal Office for Cybersecurity. An ISO 22301 certificate is voluntary and is issued by a certification body, preferably one accredited by the Swiss Accreditation Service, after audit of the continuity management system. Sterling's Frankfurt office helps Swiss organisations with business impact analysis, recovery strategies, plans and exercises, using 20+ years of experience, with Effivity software and Sterling Academy training included with the engagement.
Who needs ISO 22301 in Switzerland, and what happens without it
In Switzerland 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.
- Banks and securities firmsFINMA Circular 2023/1 covers business continuity management alongside ICT and cyber risk and the resilience of critical processes.
- Insurers and financial market infrastructuresThey are on the Information Security Act's list of organisations that must see that cyberattacks on their IT are reported, which puts incident handling and recovery on the board's agenda.
- Hospitals and licensed medical laboratoriesHospitals on cantonal lists and licensed laboratories are covered by the same reporting duty, and their services cannot pause.
- Energy, water, rail and aviation operatorsThese operators are listed among the organisations covered by the cyberattack reporting duty.
- Outsourcing providers to regulated firmsRegulated customers pass continuity expectations down to their providers through contracts.
Not sure which of these applies to you?Answer a short set of questions and your readiness report arrives by e-mail.
Take the ISO 22301 readiness checkISO 22301 requirements in Switzerland
Strip away the vocabulary and ISO 22301 requires a company to prove six things about how it keeps operating when something goes wrong.
In Switzerland 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: ISO 22301 explained →
How to get ISO 22301 certified in Switzerland
One team from the Frankfurt office carries the work from scoping to certificate. Clients across Switzerland are served from Sterling's Frankfurt office, on-site where the work needs it and remotely otherwise.
- Discovery call and scopeEntities, locations, regulators and target date, agreed before any proposal.
- Gap assessment against ISO 22301 and the Swiss requirements that apply to youControls you already run for your regulators and customers are reused, not rebuilt.
- Your system built with your team in EffivityRisks, controls, evidence, incidents and reviews in one live system the auditor can see.
- Internal audit, management review and corrective actionsYour internal auditors trained by Sterling; the evidence proven before the certification body arrives.
- Certification body stage 1 and stage 2, then surveillanceAn accredited body audits and decides. Sterling supports the audits and the three-year cycle.
- End to end, from one team
- Effivity ISO & GRC software
- Preferential Sterling Academy access, with complimentary awareness training for your people
- Internal auditor training for your audit team, as applicable to your standard
- Vulnerability assessment on ISMS engagements
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 ISO 22301 certification take in Switzerland?
There is no standard duration: it depends on your scope and on how much of the system already runs. In Switzerland these are the factors that set the timeline.
- Number of critical services, sites and suppliers in scope
- State of the business impact analysis and recovery plans
- Exercise and test evidence already available
- Overlap with FINMA or reporting-duty preparations
Sterling agrees a dated plan with you on the discovery call, once the scope is known.
How much does ISO 22301 certification cost in Switzerland?
The cost has two parts: the consulting work to build and prove the system, and the certification body’s audit fees, which are quoted separately. In Switzerland these factors move both.
- Number of sites and critical processes
- Depth of supplier and cloud dependencies
- Certification body fees quoted separately from consulting
- Testing exercises and integration with ISO/IEC 27001
Sterling gives one customised, all-inclusive proposal after the discovery call, never before the scope is agreed.
ISO 22301 consultants and certification bodies in Switzerland
Two different organisations are involved. A consultant helps you build the system and prove it works; an accredited certification body 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 ISO 22301 and your sector, and that its certificates can be verified online.
- Ask the consultant how the local requirements in Switzerland 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.
Laws and regulations that drive ISO 22301 in Switzerland (3)
| Instrument | How it treats the standard |
|---|---|
| FINMA Circular 2023/1 'Operational risks and resilience – banks' | Does not name ISO 22301 Covers business continuity management and operational resilience of critical processes for banks, in force from 1 January 2024. |
| Information Security Act (ISG), SR 128 | Does not name the standard Cyberattack reporting duty for listed critical-infrastructure organisations, in force since 1 April 2025. |
| Federal Act on Data Protection | Does not name the standard Requires data security appropriate to the risk and notification of qualifying breaches to the FDPIC. |
Accreditation, audit language and remote audits in Switzerland
Use a certification body accredited for this standard by the Swiss Accreditation Service (SAS) or by an accreditation body within the international mutual recognition arrangements (Global ACI — Global Accreditation Cooperation Incorporated, formerly the IAF MLA); check that the accreditation scope covers the standard and your sector. No body is named here unless its accreditation scope has been verified. Edition and transition details: ISO 22301 hub →
Audit language
German, French, Italian and English are all used in Swiss business; agree the audit language and the language of controlled documents with the certification body at application, and follow any language requirement in a tender, a regulator's correspondence or a customer contract.
Remote and on-site
Business impact analysis and plan reviews can run remotely at the certification body's discretion; recovery sites and operations centres in scope are normally visited, and an exercise may be observed.
ISO 22301 in Switzerland: questions clients ask
Is ISO 22301 required for Swiss banks?
Not by name. FINMA Circular 2023/1 deals with operational risks and resilience, including business continuity management, but it does not name ISO 22301. A bank may use the standard as a structure for its programme. What FINMA expects of a particular institution is a supervisory question, so raise it with FINMA or your external adviser.
Does the Information Security Act require a continuity plan?
The Act's provisions concern notification. It requires listed organisations to see that cyberattacks on their IT are reported to the BACS, and it entitles them to the BACS's support in handling the incident. A tested continuity plan is practical support for that duty rather than a stated legal requirement.
Can ISO 22301 certification help a Swiss hospital?
It can give a structure for recovering services, and hospitals on cantonal lists are among those the Information Security Act covers for cyberattack reporting. The certificate comes from an accredited certification body, and it does not replace legal duties. Choose a body with ISO 22301 in its SAS or equivalent scope.
How do I choose between ISO 22301 and ISO 27001 in Switzerland?
They answer different questions. ISO 22301 manages continuity of critical services, while ISO/IEC 27001 manages information security risk, which the FADP's data security duty also addresses. Many Swiss organisations run both on one management-system backbone. Decide from your customers' and regulator's expectations, and ask counsel where a statute is involved.
More on ISO 22301 for Swiss organisations
Other standards Swiss businesses ask Sterling for
Organisations in Switzerland often combine ISO 22301 with one of these, under one management system where the scopes allow.
Start with a free discovery call from the Frankfurt office
A Sterling consultant goes through your entities, your regulators and your target date with you. No proposal until the scope is agreed.
Sources
- FINMA Circular 2023/1 'Operational risks and resilience – banks' — finma.ch (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Information Security Act (ISG), SR 128 — fedlex.admin.ch (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Federal Act on Data Protection — fedlex.admin.ch (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
- Swiss Accreditation Service (SAS, Schweizerische Akkreditierungsstelle), part of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) — seco.admin.ch; sas.admin.ch (accessed 7 Oct 2026)
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