The Austrian Forest Certification Scheme was first endorsed in July 2000 and has been re-endorsed a further three times. The last system endorsement was in 2017/18.

2017 system documentation

2017/18 system assessment

• Status: Assessment finished, system re-endorsed
• Type: Revised system
• Assessor: Andreas Knoell Consulting  
• System submitted for assessment: 30 May 2017
• Consultation: 8 June - 7 August 2017

Endorsement milestones

To maintain its PEFC endorsement, the system must meet specific endorsement milestones. The first milestone is the start of the periodic review within five years of the national approval of the sustainable forest management standard.

• National approval date: 29 May 2017
• Review date: 29 May 2022

System history

• Latest revised system endorsed: 29 March 2018
• Revised system endorsed: 19 October 2006 and 3 November 2011
• System endorsed: 27 July 2000
• Joined PEFC: 30 June 1999

PEFC Austria

History before PEFC

PEFC Austria was founded in 1999 in response to the specific requirements of small- and family forest owners as a national organization providing independent assessment, endorsement and recognition of national forest certification systems. 

PEFC Austria was one of the 12 founding members of PEFC International – next to Norway, Sweden, Finland, Germany, Belgium, France, Spain, Ireland, Portugal, Switzerland and Denmark.

What are the benefits of being part of the PEFC alliance?

We benefit from the expertise of 49 other PEFC members – their approaches, operations, experiences, successes and above all the forest and CoC-certifications-schemes of each member. We cooperate closely with the other German speaking countries and benefit from each other. PEFC Germany supports us with translations, content or organizational and marketing matters, while PEFC International creates marketing activities which can easily be adjusted and used by every member.

We are very glad to have specific working groups where each member can learn and benefit from the others.