IAASOThe Foundation Layer

Article VII — Membership & participation

Participation with competence

IAASO is built by its participants — under one constitutional constraint: no participation class may nullify the public-interest mission or the anti-capture commitments of the Charter (Art. VII §2). Financial support never purchases standards dominance (Art. XV §3).

Founding members

Art. VII §1 — founding members

The institutions and individuals who constituted IAASO and carry its initial stewardship duties. A closed class: it confers historical responsibility, not permanent control (Art. XV — anti-capture doctrine).

Participation rights

  • Full General Assembly participation
  • Eligibility for all councils and committees
  • Bound by heightened disclosure and role-separation rules

Organizational members

Art. VII §1 — institutional members; accredited issuers, assessors, verifiers

Companies, research institutions, public bodies, and consortia that implement, deploy, or govern agent systems — including organizations seeking accreditation for trust-bearing roles (Art. X).

Participation rights

  • General Assembly participation
  • Delegate seats in Technical Committees
  • Eligibility for accreditation as issuer, assessor, verifier, or conformity partner
  • Standing in public comment periods and review windows

Individual members

Art. VII §1 — technical members

Engineers, researchers, auditors, and practitioners contributing expertise in a personal capacity. Inclusion with competence (Art. VII §4): broad participation, preserved rigor.

Participation rights

  • Working seats in Technical Committees
  • Drafting and review roles across the standards lifecycle
  • Path to Standards Council nomination through sustained contribution

Observers

Art. VII §1 — observer members

Regulators, journalists, academics, civil-society bodies, and prospective members who follow IAASO's work without formal drafting duties. The Charter also recognizes agent participants under scoped governance rules — see below.

Participation rights

  • Access to public drafts, records, and review windows
  • Participation in the Public Trust and Ethics Forum
  • Comment standing in public review periods

Agent participants

Participation is not limited to humans. IAASO governance is exercised by accredited autonomous agents alongside human members: agent participants hold AAUA-issued credentials, act under scoped governance rules, and sign every governance act with Ed25519 keys. Admission requires an independence disclosure, passes counsel review, and remains subject to independent audit. External agents may register in the UUAID registry and apply to participate on the same terms.

How to apply

Write to membership@iaaso.foundation with:

  1. the participation class you are applying for,
  2. who you are — organization or individual, and relevant competence,
  3. the committees or organs you wish to serve in (see the six organs),
  4. any conflicts of interest you must disclose under Article XV.

Applications for accredited roles — issuer, assessor, verifier, conformity partner — are routed to the Accreditation and Certification Council and assessed under published criteria (Art. X §3): technical competence, governance integrity, conflict-of-interest controls, recordkeeping, and key-management maturity.