IEEE National Standard Adoption Program FAQs

The National Standard Adoption Program allows entities that are responsible for National Standards in a country to adopt IEEE standards as their National Standards. It also permits those entities to adopt IEEE standards after they have been translated into a local language. View additional information here.

Any entity that develops standards for the purpose of creating a National Standard in the country where the entity is domiciled. National Standards Bodies and Regional Standards Bodies that develop standards for adoption by National Standards Bodies are eligible. Organizations that directly channel standards into National Standards Bodies may also be eligible. IEEE reserves the right to determine whether an entity is eligible.

1. An IEEE standard can be adopted “as is” without country-specific changes.

   The IEEE standard document remains unchanged. A National Standard cover can be added on to the original IEEE standard document (this includes the entire IEEE standard, including the IEEE cover, front matter, and back matter). Any IEEE standard may be adopted in this manner.

2. Some IEEE standards can be adopted with country-specific changes indicated in-line.

   In order to have in-line changes, the National Body Adoption Agreement has to be executed. Only standards in the National Standard Adoption Subscription are eligible for this type of adoption. Translation of the National Standards is also permitted with the National Body Adoption Agreement.

3. Some IEEE standards can be adopted with country-specific changes in front matter text or appendices.

   The IEEE standard document remains unchanged (this includes the entire IEEE standard, including the IEEE cover, front matter, and back matter). However, country-specific changes can be indicated in the National Standard front matter or appendices. IEEE reserves the right to decide whether to license the IEEE standard with the country-specific changes after the requested changes are submitted to IEEE.

Usually an IEEE standard can be adopted as a National Standard. This can be done through an Adoption Agreement. However, there may be a few instances when IEEE adopts another organization’s standard, and IEEE may need to obtain additional permission prior to allowing the adoption as a National Standard.

No.

Yes.

The National Body Adoption Agreement is unilateral (i.e., no changes are permitted), and this agreement is only applicable to IEEE standards in the National Standard Adoption Subscription. Standards in this Subscription can be adopted “as is” or with in-line country-specific changes, or with changes in front matter and appendices.

The National Standard Adoption Agreement has terms that are negotiable, and can be used for adoption “as is” or with country-specific changes in front matter and appendices. In this instance, IEEE reserves the right to decide whether it will permit any country-specific changes requested for the National Adoption.

The National Standard Adoption Program allows entities that are responsible for National Standards in a country to adopt IEEE standards as their National Standards. It also permits National Standards to be translated into a local language.

Any entity that develops standards for the purpose of creating a National Standard in the country where the entity is domiciled. National Standards Bodies and Regional Standards Bodies that develop standards for adoption by National Standards Bodies are eligible. Organizations that directly channel standards into National Standards Bodies may also be eligible. IEEE reserves the right to determine whether an entity is eligible.

Usually an IEEE standard can be adopted as a National Standard. This can be done through an Adoption Agreement. However, there may be a few instances when IEEE adopts another organization’s standard, and IEEE may need to obtain additional permission prior to allowing the adoption as a National Standard.

Yes.

The National Body Adoption Agreement is unilateral (i.e., no changes are permitted), and this agreement is only applicable to IEEE standards in the National Standard Adoption Subscription. Standards in this Subscription can be adopted “as is” or with in-line country-specific changes, or with changes in front matter and appendices. The National Standard Adoption Agreement has terms that are negotiable, and can be used for adoption “as is” or with country-specific changes in front matter and appendices. In this instance, IEEE reserves the right to decide whether it will permit any country-specific changes requested for the National Adoption.

IEEE has had agreements with National Standards Bodies for adoption of IEEE standards for many years and continues to have this process, see Clause 5.6 of the IEEE SA Standards Board Operations Manual. The streamlined process that has been implemented was launched in 2020, and involves a unilateral agreement (i.e., no changes are permitted) for the National Standards Bodies to sign, and applies only to standards in the National Standard Adoption Subscription.

IEEE Standards Committees make recommendations as to which standards they oversee should be eligible for adoption with country-specific changes. Standards in the National Standard Adoption Subscription are in technology areas where it is expected that country-specific changes may be needed, and where such changes are not expected to be detrimental to global implementation (changes would not conflict with the standard’s purpose with respect to interoperability, security, safety, etc.).

No. There will be a number of reasons why National Standards Bodies may need to make modifications (differences in metrification, frequency, environmental requirements, etc.). Each country will need to judge what changes are appropriate. This is consistent with the policy of other international standards developers.

National Standards Bodies are discouraged from using the same numbering as the IEEE if country-specific changes are made, however the numbering is ultimately determined by the National Standards Body. There may be reasons why a new numbering is required, such as to fit into a specific numbering scheme. Also, a language change may make a designation change desirable. The National Standards Body will be creating a National Standard, and its numbering practices will apply.

That will be up to the National Standards Body.

The National Standards Body that created the National Standard is responsible for verifying the text and ensuring that country-specific changes are highlighted.

The National Standard will only be valid for the country that adopted it. It will be up to the National Standards Body to address these concerns.

IEEE SA does not intend to get involved in technical decisions by the National Standards Body. The result of the adoption is a National Standard, and the National Standards Body is the best authority to determine what changes are required to make the document applicable to the particular country’s needs.

If the IEEE standard is in the National Standard Adoption Subscription, then the Standards Committee and Working Groups are not expected to have any roles in reviewing the National Standard or answering questions. If the IEEE standard is not in the Subscription, the Standards Committee and Working Group will be given an opportunity to provide feedback to the National Standards Body if they wish to do so.

The agreement between IEEE and the National Standards Body permits IEEE to use any country-specific changes in revisions to the IEEE standard. Those changes can be provided to the Working Groups upon request by contacting [email protected].

Yes. For example, both IEC and ISO allow countries to make country-specific changes to their standards when adopted by National Standards Bodies.

IEEE standards are voluntary. It is up to the National Standards Body to determine the content of the National Standard, and whether it may or may not remain consistent with the IEEE standard. Note: if the National Standard could affect interoperability (such as a protocol) it should not be offered for the National Standard Adoption Subscription. As the resulting National Standard is only valid for that country and does not affect the IEEE standard, the integrity of the IEEE standard should not be affected. However, if the Standards Committee is concerned that adoption with country-specific changes is not optimal, the IEEE standard can be withheld from the Subscription, and in-line country-specific changes would not be permitted.

The committee name will remain in the source document, which will provide recognition and promotion in the adopting countries. However, the committee will bear no responsibility for the country-specific changes, which will be clearly marked in the document.

The National Standard will state that it was adopted from the IEEE standard on the cover and in disclaimers.

There are many changes that a country may wish to make so that the standard is relevant to their country, including but not limited to:

• Terminology (earthing vs grounding)
• Spelling (labour vs labor)
• Commercial conventions (conductor size, fastener size, bolt circles)
• Technical differences (50 Hz vs 60 Hz)
• Environmental differences (temperature ranges, seismic activity ranges, wind velocities)
• Language (national language vs English)
• Local regulations, laws and governmental agencies (e.g., regulatory bodies of the country)

There will be no requirement for a Standards Committee to consider country-specific changes for the IEEE standard. However, IEEE will have rights to these changes, and the Standards Committee can review/use these changes if it so desires. Contact [email protected] to request a copy of the country-specific changes.

Whether or not standards are legally binding in the country of adoption is a matter for the country to decide. They will generally have the status of National Standard, with the accompanying aspects that may include presumption of conformity with local regulations or requirements, or other benefits.

No. Standards Committees decide which standards will be included in the streamlined process (i.e., added to the National Standard Adoption Subscription). Standards Committees may consider issues such as world-wide interoperability, protocol-related issues, and safety in making their decisions whether to include a specific IEEE standard in the Subscription.

Standards Committees will make this decision by informing their IEEE SA Program Manager or by indicating that the standard should be included in the Subscription on the RevCom questionnaire when they submit the project to RevCom.

No. The decision as to which standards are available for adoption in the streamlined process can be made on a standard-by-standard basis.

A subscription has been established that will contain all standards that are candidates for adoption with country-specific changes in-line. National Standards Bodies that have signed the streamlined adoption agreement will be given access to the subscription. Note that National Standards Bodies can adopt any IEEE standard without modifications.

IEEE SA staff will track which standards have been adopted and by which country. This information will be made available to the Standards Committees, upon request. A copy of the adopted standard, with any modifications highlighted, is also available to the Standards Committee, upon request. Contact [email protected] with any requests.

IEEE SA Staff has developed publication requirements that must be followed while allowing National Standards Bodies to publish documents that align with their guidelines.

The adoption will provide exposure for standards developed by the Standards Committee to National Standards Bodies around the world. It is expected that this exposure may generate interest in participation in the Standards Committee or in IEEE standards development activities.

The National Standards Body will be provided access to any IEEE SA Standards Board actions each year, including any maintenance activities. It will be the National Standards Body’s decision as to whether their National Standard should undergo maintenance activity as a result.