The INGITE (National Institute of Graduate and Technical Engineers in Spain) certification body has recently been granted the first accreditation to certify professional profiles of "technical land registry, real estate and valuation specialists", according to the ISO 17024 standard for certification of persons.

The scheme, which will certify these professionals, has been developed and set up by the Official College of Geomatic and Topographic Engineering (COIGT), part of INGITE, and inspects competence in professional activity areas by an exam made up of six tests, with questions relating to geomatics, instrumentation, legislation, appraisal and mediation.

Certification of persons accredited in the real estate sector helps the provided services to be more reliable, according to María Ángeles de Blas (Secretary General of INGITE): "in addition, it makes cross-border movement of professionals easier which is highly valued in the engineering field".

For Ricardo Rodríguez, Secretary General of COIGT, being granted this accreditation makes real estate and all officers involved in this sector safer: “Today, there is no college degree to back up the qualified technician in the land registry, real estate and valuation field. So, this certification means that our professional school can ensure that a technician has the minimum requirements to carry out guaranteed work by contributing technical safety to the system which otherwise would be very difficult to obtain and by ensuring that literal land descriptions match with the reality on the ground”.

About certification of persons

Certification of persons, accredited according to the international UNE-EN ISO 17024 standard, is a flexible, market-oriented and internationally-recognised tool adjustable to each case. It enables professionals to demonstrate that they have the knowledge, competence, experience and skills found in their professional profile and that their aptitude has been inspected by an independent body with technical competence. It has the support and confidence from the fact that the certification bodies which issued certificates are supervised and controlled by the national accreditation body.

Improving certification of persons schemes therefore becomes an effective means to respond to the emergence of new employment niches requiring specific skills not met by traditional formal training. It completes the information lacking in the professional service market. This gives customers an informed choice based on competition which increases competitiveness. It is also a self-regulation tool for non-regulated professions as it increases the level of demand preventing "intrusion" and fraud.

These certification schemes can be developed by any organization (professional associations, public or private companies, professional associations, certification bodies, etc.) that apply the competency inspection process to certain persons for certain activities (health workers, welders, financial advisers, auditors, hazardous material workers, engineers, installers, appraisers or railway staff, are some examples).

If you are interested in developing a certification of persons scheme and need technical support or have any questions, please contact ENAC via e-mail.