What are Local Representative Services?
iCertifi has a global network of Local Representatives which can act as your point of contact within the desired country.
Many manufacturers choose to expand their products to additional countries due to increasing sales opportunities. After distribution negotiation is finalized and the certification process is under review, manufacturers learn that some country agencies require the type approval certificate to be in the name of a local applicant (or local representative). The reason for a local applicant requirement is to ensure there will be a single point of contact within the country if the regulatory body must contact the manufacturer. It is much easier for communication to occur between a local company and the regulator, in which the local applicant will have the burden of facilitating communication between the parties involved.
Very rarely do manufacturers have local offices in the countries in which they intend to sell their products. One alternative is utilizing an importer or distributor to act as the local representative. This is often a simple solution to comply with the local applicant requirements. However, what happens when a manufacturer decides to change distributor(s)? What are the ramifications of a manufacturer wanting to add additional importers?
If the certificate is in the name of the original importer, the certificate is owned by that local applicant. Quite often, an importer will not allow additional importers to use the existing certificate. This will cost time and expenses as the new importer and manufacturer will be required to obtain additional certificates. This is where iCertifi can assist.
iCertifi has a global network of Local Representatives which can act as your point of contact within the desired country. These entities will have the certificate issued in their name, which avoids the need to get importers involved in the certification process. Since we are “importer/distributor” agnostic, we will authorize any importer or distributor the rights to use the certificate held by our network of providers. Essentially, (for most countries) this allows the manufacturer to have control of the certificates and not rely on an importer for this service.
Knowing that your certificates are managed by iCertifi will give you the peace of mind that will allow you to focus on your other daily responsibilities.