Can I ship my product while the certification is in process?
Some countries allow the import (only) of a product while a certification is in process as long as the product will stay in a local storage and not be offered for sale until the certification is completed. Your project manager will be able to tell you if this situation applies to your product/country of interest.
Can the certification process be expedited?
There are very few countries that have the option of expedited or VIP certifications. In most cases, it is not possible to get a project expedited and the standard lead times must be observed. Rest assured, though, that our projects managers will always direct all efforts to obtain the certification in the least time possible.
Will I get an original copy of the Certificate?
It depends on the country and your preferences. Some countries do not send originals of their certifications. For the ones that do, we offer the service of keeping them at our offices for easy tracking and use when a renewal is necessary. We can ship the originals at the client’s request at any time.
What is an LoA?
LoA or PoA is a letter signed by the manufacturer in order to authorize iCertifi to act on their behalf for the certification of their product. This letter is a requirement in many countries.
How can I know if there are any labeling requirements for my products?
Your project managers will inform you of labeling requirements depending on the type of product and country we are certifying. When you receive a certificate, We will provide a summary of what will be required for compliance.
How do you calculate the lead times for a certificate? How accurate are they?
iCertifi is constantly reviewing the lead times for certification for each country. We obtain this numbers by a combination of the official Lead Times communicated by an authority and an average of the actual time it tooks us to receive a certificate from said authority. We also take into account local holidays for each country and other events that would affect the lead time.
We strive for accurate estimations for your certificate delivery, though there are times that unexpected thigs may affect the lead times on a specific country (natural disasters, political issues, etc). iCertifi will always inform you on this possible delays as soon as possible.
Do you offer IoR services?
We do not offer importation services, only compliance.
Will I be alerted before a certification expires?
Yes. Your account manager will notify you of an expiration and offer a quote for renewal 3 months before the expiry date of your certificate.
Once I start a certification process, how will I know what to expect?
When a project starts, you will receive a Project Start document from your dedicated Project Manager. This documents will list all the requirements to obtain the certification. I addition, you will receive a Status Report every week indicating the stage of the approval and/or if there are any missing documents/samples to move forward. For more information, see our Program Management services.
We have FCC and CE certification on our products. Isn’t this enough to sell into other countries?
No, this is not enough. These certifications are often the first step that manufacturers will take for quick entry to the United States and European Union markets. However, each country has a regulating body which manufacturers must comply with in order to legally sell your products. Many countries standards may use the FCC and CE test reports and grants as the basis of the application. However, country has different rules that manufacturers must comply with. This may involve a simple paperwork process or, in some situations, require testing in the country to ensure compliance with the countries specific regulations. Do not assume that if you have FCC and CE then you can sell globally.
How do I know if my product requires any certification?
Your dedicated sales manager will request specific technical information about the product you wish to certify. Upon analysis of the product, its power supply and country(ies) of interest, you will receive information about the type of certificate(s) needed per country. For complete design-for-compliance support, we offer Type Approval Consulting Services.
How much of the type approval process does iCertifi handle for me?
At iCertifi, our goal is to be as helpful to our clients and potential clients as possible; however, this is an extremely timely request. If you have an active project that requires a quote, we encourage you to follow the protocol for obtaining quotes (see ‘How does the quote process work?’). If you are looking for general information, based on the depth of the request, we will charge a consulting fee for research services.
How do I track renewals of certificates that expire?
With iCertifi, you don’t need to track expiration dates of certificates; we will track them for you! 90 days prior to certificate expiration, we will notify you with the upcoming expiration, giving you and your team time to determine if a renewal should be made in a given region. You will receive additional notifications by your Sales Representative as the date draws nearer.
Where are you located?
Our main administrative office is located in Bend, Oregon. We also have offices in The Netherlands, UK, Brazil and Mexico staffed with engineers and project managers who can oversee your project with hands-on customer service.
Are you a test lab?
iCertifi is not a test lab; we are a compliance agency. We use the results provided by the test lab that issued the FCC/CE/IC reports and grants for applying for compliance certification into specific countries. Some countries require additional in-country testing, but most present certification based on test reports, grants, and other forms of documentation that prove your product falls in the spectrum requested for use.
Are you affiliated with Americas Compliance Consulting?
We started out as Americas Compliance Consulting in 2010, with a special focus on Central/Latin America and the Caribbean regions. With offices in Brazil and Mexico, we gained a very strong reputation in CALA. As time has gone on, and our company has grown, our requests for certification expanded globally. Once we started obtaining as many, if not more, certificates for regions of the world outside CALA, we realized our brand identity needed to reflect our global services. What was once Americas Compliance Consulting is now iCertifi. You will continue to get the communication and friendly service you have grown accustomed to, but with a broader reach.