SA8000
SA8000 Standard
A social certification for a workplace, covering child labour, forced labour, health and safety, freedom of association, discrimination, disciplinary practices, working hours, remuneration and the management system that holds them together. Verified by audit of the site.
- Number
- SA8000
- Edition
- SA8000:2026 (published 1 January 2026, replacing SA8000:2014)
- Status
- active
What this standard is for
Where it is used
One of the longest-established social certifications and widely named in garment supply chain requirements, often alongside or instead of a buyer's own audit programme.
Why it matters
Both editions are legitimately in force as this is written, which is unusual and consequential. SA8000:2026 replaced SA8000:2014 on 1 January 2026, but audits against it became available only as each certification body was approved through 2026; all bodies are expected to offer them from 1 November 2026, and from 1 January 2027 every new certification and recertification must use it. An organisation whose body is approved may choose. So a current SA8000 certificate may legitimately name either version, and a 2014 certificate seen this year is not evidence of a lapsed programme.
What to watch for
The binding constraint is the audit schedule, not the calendar. An organisation can only move to the 2026 edition at a recertification audit, and some must bring that audit forward - earlier than the normal three-year cycle - to transition in time. A factory reading "2027" as its deadline and waiting can miss it.
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Metadata only — purchase the standard from the issuing body.
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