1. Publisher and legal identity
This website is published and operated by the International Council for Education Quality Certification (ICEQC), a Swiss association (Verein) registered under Swiss UID CHE-196.137.617. Its registered office is Quai de l’Ile 13, 1204 Geneva, Switzerland. General correspondence may be sent to contact@iceqc.org.
ICEQC is an independent, nonprofit and nongovernmental international education quality certification organisation. It publishes its own education quality standards and administers voluntary third-party certification against the applicable published ICEQC requirements. Registration of the association in Switzerland does not confer governmental, intergovernmental or statutory regulatory status.
2. Official domains and fraud prevention
The official public domain is iceqc.org. Account, application and payment-entry services are provided through portal.iceqc.org. A user must verify the exact domain and a valid secure connection before entering credentials, submitting evidence or initiating payment. A similar name, copied page, search advertisement, social-media account or third-party directory is not an ICEQC service merely because it refers to ICEQC.
ICEQC does not authorise third parties to collect application evidence or card security codes by ordinary email. Suspected impersonation, certificate misuse or a false payment request should be reported through the official contact or reporting channel before any further action is taken.
3. Scope and acceptance of these Terms
These Legal Notice and Website Terms govern access to and use of iceqc.org, portal.iceqc.org and online functions that expressly incorporate them. By accessing or using those services, the user agrees to comply with the provisions that are capable of applying to that use. If the user acts for an organisation, the user confirms that the organisation has authorised the relevant actions and that the user may bind it where a binding acceptance is requested.
A person who does not accept these Terms must not create an account or use a restricted service. The person may still consult public information to the extent that consultation does not require acceptance, subject to applicable law and the provisions governing intellectual property, system security and prohibited conduct.
These Terms do not themselves grant certification, create applicant status, oblige ICEQC to accept an application or replace a certification agreement. A separate express acceptance is required where ICEQC forms an applicant, certification, payment or other service contract.
4. Contracting party, authority and account responsibility
Only a person with legal capacity and the necessary organisational authority may create an account, submit an application, accept a quotation or agreement, instruct payment, request a scope change or take another action with legal or financial effect. ICEQC may require evidence of identity, authority, legal existence or continued mandate before relying on an instruction.
Account credentials are personal to the authorised user and must not be shared. The account holder is responsible for keeping access information secure, maintaining accurate contact details, reviewing material notices and reporting suspected compromise without undue delay. An organisation is responsible for promptly revoking or changing access when a representative’s authority ends.
ICEQC may rely on an authenticated instruction that appears regular until it receives and has a reasonable opportunity to act on notice of compromise or loss of authority. This does not permit ICEQC to disregard clear evidence of fraud, error or unauthorised conduct.
5. Order of precedence and controlled instruments
The applicable certification relationship is governed by a hierarchy of controlled instruments. A signed or expressly accepted certification agreement and its confirmed scope govern the specific engagement. The agreement incorporates the applicable certification scheme, certification requirements, standards and procedures identified there. A current quotation or invoice governs the stated fee and payment event. These Website Terms govern the online channel unless a specific instrument expressly provides otherwise.
If two provisions conflict, the more specific provision governing the matter prevails, subject to mandatory law. A later controlled edition does not retrospectively alter a completed decision unless its transition provision, the agreement or law expressly gives it that effect. Marketing material, informal correspondence, a copied webpage or an unauthorised statement cannot vary a controlled requirement or agreement.
6. Authority of the Standards Register
The Standards Register identifies each controlled ICEQC document, its document number, title, edition, authoritative language, publication status, effective date and version history. The edition and status shown in the Register determine whether a document is current, superseded or withdrawn. A downloaded or printed copy must be checked against the Register before it is relied upon.
A summary, frequently asked question, training material, news article, search result, machine-generated extract or translation is explanatory unless the relevant record gives it controlled status. Explanatory material does not add, waive, reduce or replace a certification requirement.
7. Authority of the Public Certificate Register
The Public Certificate Register is the authoritative source for the current and historical status of an ICEQC certificate. The Register identifies the legal holder, certification object and scope, applicable documents and editions, certificate number, relevant dates and status recorded by ICEQC. The Register prevails over a paper or electronic certificate, logo display, announcement, email, third-party database or cached copy.
A certificate is valid only while, and only to the extent that, the Register records a current status for the relevant holder and scope. Suspension, withdrawal, expiry, scope reduction or correction takes effect according to the governing instrument and official record even if an older certificate file remains in circulation.
8. Nature and limits of ICEQC certification
ICEQC certification is a voluntary, private third-party conformity determination against specified ICEQC requirements. It confirms conformity only for the legal holder, certification object, scope, sites or services, document editions, dates and status stated in the Public Certificate Register. It does not certify an affiliated entity, partner, subcontractor, course, jurisdiction, location or activity outside that recorded scope.
Certification is not governmental approval, public-law accreditation, a licence to operate, authorisation to award a qualification, degree recognition, academic equivalency, credit transfer, immigration approval, professional registration, financial assurance, legal compliance certification or a ranking. ICEQC does not confer powers reserved to a state, regulator, recognised qualifications authority, professional body, court or other competent institution.
A certified holder remains solely responsible for its services, legal obligations, representations, learner and customer relationships, safeguarding, personnel, financial position and conduct. Certification does not transfer that responsibility to ICEQC and does not guarantee that a regulator, institution, employer, funder or other third party will accept the holder, service, product or qualification for a particular purpose.
9. No guarantee of eligibility, decision or continued status
Publication of requirements, provision of guidance, creation of an account, an eligibility discussion, acceptance of a fee or commencement of review does not guarantee that an application is complete, eligible or conforming. Certification is granted only through the applicable assessment, review and decision process when every requirement applicable to the confirmed scope is satisfied.
Timeframes are estimates or service commitments only where the controlling document expressly says so. They may be affected by applicant readiness, evidence quality, response time, due diligence, remediation, complexity, conflicts, third-party verification, security events or circumstances beyond reasonable control. ICEQC does not guarantee continued certification; status remains subject to surveillance, material changes, compliance with use-of-mark rules, payment and the applicable enforcement process.
10. Website information is not professional advice
General website content is provided for institutional information and access to ICEQC services. It is not legal, regulatory, tax, accounting, investment, safeguarding, immigration, recognition or other professional advice. It does not determine the law applicable to a user, organisation, service, qualification or transaction.
A user remains responsible for obtaining advice from a competent adviser or authority, checking the current controlled instrument and official register, and evaluating whether information is suitable for the user’s particular facts and jurisdiction. No statement on the website should be used to avoid a mandatory legal duty or a decision reserved to a competent authority.
11. Accuracy, corrections and temporal limits
ICEQC applies controlled publication and review measures intended to keep official content accurate and current. Information may nevertheless be affected by a pending update, clerical error, delayed external source, technical interruption or later legal or factual development. Unless a record expressly states otherwise, content describes the position published on its stated date and is not a representation that no later event has occurred.
A user who identifies a material error should report the exact page, record, document number, statement and supporting source. ICEQC may investigate, mark, correct, replace or withdraw content and preserve a dated correction history where record integrity requires it. Correction of public information does not by itself establish liability, invalidate a separate decision or waive a procedural requirement.
12. Permitted use of the website
ICEQC grants a limited, revocable, non-exclusive and non-transferable permission to access and use the website for lawful information, application, verification and account purposes consistent with these Terms. This permission does not transfer ownership, confer a right to use an ICEQC mark, authorise republication of a database or allow a user to present ICEQC content as the user’s own official instrument.
Reasonable extracts of public text may be quoted for lawful informational, academic or internal purposes if the source, document identity, date and status are accurately attributed and the meaning is not distorted. A user must check whether a document or image identifies another rightsholder or a more specific licence.
13. Prohibited conduct
- Accessing or attempting to access an account, record, function, file, endpoint or administrative area without authority.
- Circumventing authentication, rate limits, security controls, access permissions, evidence restrictions or technical measures.
- Introducing malware, malicious code, destructive content, credential attacks, denial-of-service traffic or automated requests that impair or place disproportionate load on the service.
- Scraping, harvesting or systematically reproducing personal data, protected registers, controlled documents or substantial parts of a database except with written authority or a clear legal right.
- Submitting false identity, authority, eligibility, evidence, payment or certification information, or concealing a material fact required by the applicable process.
- Uploading information that is unlawful, irrelevant, excessive, defamatory, infringing, malicious, obtained without authority or incompatible with the notified secure route.
- Altering a certificate, register extract, document, logo or status statement; creating a confusingly similar mark or domain; or implying endorsement, governmental authority or certification outside the official scope.
- Using the service to violate another person’s privacy, intellectual-property, contractual or other rights, or to interfere with a fair complaint, appeal, assessment or decision.
14. Security research and vulnerability reporting
A person who identifies a suspected vulnerability should stop before accessing, changing, downloading or retaining information beyond what is necessary to describe the issue and should report it to security@iceqc.org. The initial report must not include credentials, full payment-card information, unnecessary personal data or confidential certification evidence.
These Terms do not grant advance authority to test ICEQC systems, bypass controls, conduct social engineering, degrade service, access another user’s information or publish a vulnerability before ICEQC has had a reasonable opportunity to assess and address it. Any express testing authorisation must be in writing and defines its own scope.
15. Intellectual property ownership
Unless another rightsholder or licence is identified, the website, its selection and arrangement, software interface, text, standards, criteria, procedures, forms, graphics, images, video, data compilations, document identifiers, logos, certification marks and other materials are owned by or licensed to ICEQC and are protected by copyright, trademark, unfair-competition, database, contract and other applicable law.
No implied licence arises from public availability. Rights not expressly granted are reserved. Removing a copyright, trademark, status, source, version, security or rights notice is prohibited.
16. ICEQC name, logo, marks and certificates
Use of the ICEQC name to identify ICEQC or accurately refer to a public record does not authorise use of the ICEQC logo, certification mark or certificate. A certified holder may use an authorised mark or claim only under the applicable use-of-mark rules, for the recorded scope and while the certificate has the required current status.
A mark or certificate must not be altered, separated from its qualifying scope, used for an uncertified entity or object, placed on a product or qualification in a way that changes the certified object, or presented as government recognition. ICEQC may require correction, cessation, withdrawal of material or other action under the governing rules and applicable law.
17. User submissions and communications
The person submitting information retains rights that the person or another rightsholder holds in the material. The submitter grants ICEQC the rights reasonably necessary to receive, copy, store, secure, review, translate where authorised, disclose to assigned reviewers, test, annotate and otherwise process the material for the requested service, record, complaint, appeal, consultation or legal purpose. This permission lasts for the applicable processing and retention period and is limited by confidentiality and data-protection duties.
The submitter represents that the submission is accurate to the extent declared, that the submitter has the necessary authority and rights, and that disclosure to ICEQC does not breach law or an enforceable duty. ICEQC is not required to treat unsolicited ideas, marketing proposals or material sent outside a designated confidential process as confidential merely because the sender labels them confidential.
ICEQC may reject or remove material that is technically unsafe, outside scope, unlawful, excessive or submitted through an unauthorised channel. Rejection of a file does not extend a deadline or establish that an application requirement has been satisfied.
18. Confidentiality and compelled disclosure
Certification evidence and non-public case material are handled under the applicable confidentiality and access rules. Confidentiality is not absolute. ICEQC may disclose information where this is necessary for the authorised assessment, technical review, decision, complaint or appeal; required by law or a competent authority; necessary to obtain legal, audit, insurance, security or specialist support; or proportionately required to protect a person, the service or the integrity of certification.
A user must not use the website or a data-protection request to obtain another party’s confidential evidence, protected deliberation, privileged advice, security information or personal data where disclosure is not legally required. ICEQC may provide a summary, redacted record or reasons sufficient for a fair process where full disclosure would unlawfully prejudice another protected interest.
19. External links and third-party services
A link to an external law, authority, register, publication, provider or website is supplied for reference or service access. Unless ICEQC expressly states otherwise, the link does not constitute endorsement, partnership, adoption of the external content or a representation that the external service is continuously available, accurate, secure, accessible or suitable for a particular purpose.
External services are controlled by their respective operators and governed by their terms and privacy practices. ICEQC is not responsible for an external operator’s independent act or omission. This provision does not exclude responsibility for ICEQC’s own unlawful selection, instruction or disclosure where that responsibility cannot lawfully be excluded.
20. Service availability, maintenance and change
ICEQC may maintain, update, secure, restrict, suspend, replace or withdraw a website function where reasonably necessary for security, legal compliance, record integrity, maintenance, capacity, provider change or service administration. It may also correct or reorganise public content. Reasonable measures are used to preserve essential records and continuity, but uninterrupted, immediate, compatible or error-free access is not guaranteed.
A user is responsible for retaining the submission receipt, invoice, agreement or other record the applicable process instructs the user to retain. The user must not rely on uninterrupted website access to meet a deadline and should report a material service interruption through the official contact route. ICEQC will apply any deadline relief required by the governing procedure, agreement or mandatory law.
21. Suspension or termination of access
ICEQC may restrict, suspend or terminate an account or technical access where it reasonably considers this necessary to address unauthorised access, credential compromise, material breach, fraud, non-payment, legal or sanctions risk, abusive conduct, system security or protection of a fair certification process. Where practicable and consistent with the risk, ICEQC gives notice and an opportunity to address the matter.
Restriction of technical access does not extinguish accrued payment, confidentiality, evidence-preservation, intellectual-property, complaint, appeal or other obligations. It does not determine certification status unless the authorised certification process separately produces that result.
22. Disclaimers
To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, public website content and freely available functions are provided on an ‘as available’ basis. ICEQC does not make an implied warranty that general content will be fit for a user’s undisclosed purpose, that an external source will remain current or available, that every device or assistive-technology combination will operate without limitation, or that use of information will produce a particular regulatory, commercial, educational or recognition outcome.
No disclaimer applies to an express commitment in a separate agreement to the extent that the agreement governs the matter. Nothing in these Terms limits a mandatory statutory warranty or remedy, or permits ICEQC to disregard its own controlled certification procedure.
23. Limitation of liability
To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, ICEQC is not liable for loss caused by a user’s reliance on an obsolete, altered or unauthorised copy; failure to check the Standards Register or Public Certificate Register; use outside the stated purpose or scope; disclosure of credentials; unlawful or excessive submission; incompatible user equipment; or the independent act of an external website or provider. ICEQC is also not liable for delay or failure caused solely by circumstances beyond its reasonable control where it has taken the measures required by the governing agreement and law.
To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, ICEQC excludes liability arising from the free public website for indirect or consequential loss, loss of profit, revenue, opportunity, goodwill or anticipated savings, and loss or corruption of user-controlled data, except to the extent the loss was caused by liability that cannot lawfully be excluded. A claimant remains responsible for taking reasonable measures to avoid or reduce loss.
Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability for wilful misconduct or gross negligence, fraud, or any death, personal injury, statutory right or other liability that applicable law does not permit ICEQC to exclude or limit. Liability arising from a paid certification or other contracted service is governed by the applicable agreement and mandatory law, not enlarged by general website content.
24. User responsibility for unlawful use
A user is responsible for the user’s own breach of these Terms and for unlawful content or instructions submitted through the user’s account. ICEQC may seek available legal remedies for fraud, infringement, unauthorised access, deliberate service interference, false certification claims or other material misuse. Nothing in this provision imposes liability without the elements, causation, defences and procedural protections required by applicable law.
25. Privacy and communications
The Data Protection and Privacy Notice and Cookie and Similar Technologies Policy govern relevant personal-data and browser-technology processing. A user must use the designated application and evidence channels rather than ordinary email where the service so instructs.
Operational, security, contractual, invoice, decision and status communications are service communications, not marketing merely because they are sent electronically. The user must maintain an address capable of receiving them. Any optional promotional communication will provide the control required by applicable law.
26. Electronic records, signatures and evidence
ICEQC may provide notices, quotations, agreements, declarations, invoices, submissions, decisions and other records electronically where law and the applicable procedure permit. An electronic record is not deprived of effect solely because it is electronic. Its evidential weight depends on the identity and authority of the actor, the method used, the integrity and accessibility of the record, the surrounding procedure and any mandatory form requirement.
A typed name, checked declaration, authenticated portal action, electronic-signature service or other electronic indication may constitute a signature or acceptance when the interface clearly identifies the act and the person intends to sign or accept. The user must review the complete instrument before acting and must not permit another person to apply the user’s credentials or signature. ICEQC may require a stronger signature method, additional identity evidence or a handwritten instrument where consequence, law or the controlled procedure requires it.
Portal timestamps, transaction identifiers, verification events, delivery records, version identifiers and audit logs may be retained to establish what was presented, submitted, accepted, changed or delivered and when. A displayed status is not conclusive if caused by manifest technical error, tampering or an incomplete transaction; ICEQC may examine the authoritative source records and issue a corrected record with an attributable history.
27. Quotations, fees, taxes and payment information
A webpage, fee schedule or calculator is general information unless it expressly states that it is a binding offer. The applicable quotation, order, invoice, certification agreement and controlled fee instrument determine the charge, currency, included activity, validity period, payment schedule, tax treatment and consequences of delay. No application, assessment, certificate or renewal is purchased merely by viewing a fee or creating an account.
Amounts are exclusive or inclusive of tax only as stated in the governing record. The applicant is responsible for information reasonably required to determine invoice and tax treatment and for bank, intermediary, conversion or withholding costs allocated to it by the agreement or law. A payment is complete only when cleared funds and sufficient remittance information are received and reconciled to the correct invoice. A payment reference or return page does not itself prove settlement.
Refunds, credits, cancellation charges and fees for work already performed are governed by the accepted agreement and fee rules. ICEQC does not promise a refund merely because an applicant withdraws, becomes ineligible, fails to provide evidence or receives an adverse decision. Nothing in this clause overrides a mandatory statutory cancellation or reimbursement right that applies to the payer.
28. Organisational authority and user representations
A person who acts for an applicant, certificate holder or other organisation represents that the person has authority for the action taken and for the information and instructions submitted. Creating an account with a business email address is not, by itself, proof of authority. ICEQC may request a mandate, corporate record, confirmation from an authorised officer or other proportionate evidence and may defer reliance on an instruction until the authority is resolved.
The user represents that information supplied through the service is, to the user’s knowledge after reasonable enquiry, accurate and not misleading by omission; that files are lawfully obtained and disclosed; that the user will identify material changes; and that the submission does not contain malicious code or information included merely to prejudice another person. A declaration does not shift ICEQC’s independent assessment duty to the user, but a knowingly false declaration may support rejection, suspension, enforcement or legal action under the applicable instrument.
An organisation must promptly update authorised contacts and revoke access that is no longer appropriate. Until ICEQC receives and can reasonably implement a valid change, it may rely on the most recent verified authority record, except where it knows or ought reasonably to know that reliance would be unsafe or unlawful.
29. Institutional users, consumers and mandatory protections
ICEQC services are designed principally for organisations acting for professional or institutional purposes. A person who merely visits the public website may nevertheless have mandatory rights as a consumer, data subject or protected user under applicable law. These Terms are not intended to classify a person contrary to the facts or to exclude a protection that cannot lawfully be excluded by agreement.
Where mandatory consumer law applies, any pre-contract information, cooling-off right, implied guarantee, remedy, forum or burden of proof required by that law continues to apply. A clause stated to operate ‘to the maximum extent permitted by law’ is reduced only to the extent necessary to preserve that mandatory protection; it is not an assertion that no protection exists.
A person purchasing on behalf of a school, company, authority or other organisation must not select or claim consumer status merely to avoid a valid institutional obligation. ICEQC may ask for the contracting identity and purpose necessary to determine the applicable route before accepting an order or payment.
30. Indemnity for institutional misuse
To the extent permitted by applicable law, an institutional user must indemnify ICEQC against a third-party claim, final award, reasonable settlement and proportionate external cost arising directly from that user’s unlawful submission, infringement of third-party rights, unauthorised disclosure of confidential or personal data, fraudulent certification claim, deliberate security interference or use of the ICEQC name or mark contrary to an applicable licence. The indemnity does not apply to the extent the loss was caused by ICEQC’s own breach, unlawful act, wilful misconduct or gross negligence.
ICEQC will give reasonably prompt notice of a covered claim where practicable, provide information reasonably available for the defence and not agree a settlement imposing a non-monetary admission or obligation on the user without the user’s consent, not to be unreasonably withheld. ICEQC may control the defence where its reputation, marks, certification integrity, confidential information or obligations to another person are materially affected. The user may participate through its own adviser at its own cost.
This clause does not create strict liability for a good-faith error or require payment before responsibility and covered loss are established. It does not apply to an individual acting solely as a consumer to the extent such an indemnity would be unfair, invalid or unenforceable under mandatory law.
31. Events beyond reasonable control
Neither party is responsible for delay or failure in a website-related obligation to the extent caused by an event beyond its reasonable control that could not reasonably have been prevented or overcome, including severe infrastructure failure, widespread network or utility interruption, natural disaster, epidemic restriction, war, civil disorder, lawful government action, sanctions change, labour disruption not confined to the affected party, or failure of a critical provider despite proportionate continuity measures.
The affected party must take reasonable steps to limit the effect, protect information and resume performance, and must notify the other party where the event materially affects a known obligation. Payment already due, confidentiality, data protection, security cooperation and preservation of records are not excused merely because another performance is delayed. A lack of funds or avoidable failure to maintain ordinary systems is not, by itself, an event beyond reasonable control.
If disruption materially prevents a contracted service for a prolonged period, the termination, rescheduling, fee and transition consequences are governed by the applicable agreement. This Website Terms clause does not create a refund or certification extension inconsistent with that agreement or with mandatory law.
32. Formal notices and ordinary communications
A notice intended to exercise a contractual right, commence a complaint or appeal, allege breach, terminate an agreement or make a formal legal demand must use the address and method specified in the applicable instrument. Sending a message to a general inbox, assessor or social-media account does not satisfy a designated filing requirement merely because the message reaches an ICEQC-associated person.
For ordinary service communications, ICEQC may use the verified portal account, email or postal address recorded for the organisation or user. The recipient must keep those details current, monitor reasonable security filtering and notify ICEQC of suspected compromise. An electronic message is treated as delivered according to the governing instrument and applicable law, not solely according to whether an individual opened it.
ICEQC may require confirmation through a second channel before acting on an instruction that changes payment details, administrator authority, certificate scope, withdrawal, evidence access or another high-consequence matter. That verification is a security measure and does not extend a mandatory deadline unless the applicable procedure provides for extension.
33. Relationship of the parties and absence of agency
Use of the website, participation in a consultation or holding an ICEQC certificate does not create a partnership, joint venture, employment, franchise, fiduciary relationship or agency between ICEQC and the user, applicant or certificate holder. Neither party may bind the other, incur an obligation in its name or represent that it has authority beyond an express written mandate.
An assessor, reviewer, committee participant, contractor or service provider has only the authority assigned to the relevant function. No such person may waive a controlled requirement, promise a certification result, vary an agreement or authorise use of a mark unless the governing instrument expressly grants that authority. Informal guidance must not be presented as a binding institutional commitment.
Certification is an independent determination concerning conformity within the published scope and time. It is not sponsorship of the holder, appointment of ICEQC as the holder’s representative or transfer to ICEQC of the holder’s legal, educational, safeguarding, employment, financial or operational responsibilities.
34. Entire terms and reliance on authorised statements
These Website Terms, the Privacy Notice and Cookie Policy constitute the general terms governing use of the public website and related unrestricted online functions. For a contracted, certification, complaint, appeal, consultation or restricted portal activity, the controlled instruments identified for that activity form the more specific agreement or procedural framework. Together they supersede prior website statements concerning the same subject, but do not extinguish a right or obligation preserved by a separate valid instrument.
A user must not rely on an oral statement, presentation, draft, marketing description or informal correspondence as varying a controlled requirement or guaranteeing an outcome unless the person making it had authority and the variation is recorded in the form required by the governing instrument. This clause does not exclude liability for fraud or for a representation that applicable law makes binding notwithstanding a contractual formality.
Headings, summaries, navigation labels and accessibility aids assist reading but do not replace the operative text. Examples introduced by ‘including’ are illustrative and do not limit a broader provision unless the context requires otherwise. A reference to law includes an amendment or replacement to the extent applicable to the relevant time and matter.
35. Rights of third parties
Except where these Terms expressly state otherwise or mandatory law provides, a person who is not a party to the relevant website relationship has no contractual right to enforce these Terms. This does not affect an intellectual-property owner, data subject, indemnified person, authority or other person exercising a right that exists independently under law or an applicable controlled instrument.
The identification of a provider, linked organisation, standard owner, authority or certified organisation on the website does not make that person a party, guarantor or beneficiary of these Terms and does not imply reciprocal endorsement. Any rights and obligations involving that person are governed by the applicable law and separate terms.
ICEQC and the user may amend or terminate their website relationship without obtaining the consent of an incidental third party, subject to an accrued independent right, a governing agreement and mandatory law.
36. Assignment, institutional succession and continuity
A user may not transfer an account, application, certificate or contractual right merely by selling an asset, changing an operator or sharing credentials. A legal merger, succession, change of control or transfer of the certified activity must be notified and assessed under the applicable agreement and certification procedure. Continued status, scope and account access are not automatic where the identity, responsibility or conformity basis has materially changed.
ICEQC may transfer website operations or rights and obligations to a lawful successor as part of a merger, reorganisation or transfer of activities, provided the transfer does not reduce a mandatory right and appropriate confidentiality, data-protection, record-integrity and notice measures are applied. Personal data is not treated as a freely saleable asset detached from the purposes and protections stated in the Privacy Notice.
A technical migration may change hosting, addresses or service providers without changing the legal publisher. An institutional succession that changes the responsible legal entity will be identified through an updated legal notice and any notice required by the affected agreement or law.
37. Survival and accrued rights
Termination of access or replacement of these Terms does not affect rights, liabilities, remedies, decisions or payment obligations accrued before that event. Provisions concerning intellectual property, marks, confidentiality, privacy, official-record integrity, disclaimers, liability, indemnity, governing law, dispute handling and any term that by its nature must continue remain effective for the period necessary to fulfil their purpose.
Termination does not require destruction of a record that ICEQC must or may lawfully retain for certificate authentication, decision integrity, accounting, audit, complaint, appeal, enforcement, legal claim, security or data-protection accountability. Access to retained records is limited according to purpose and the Privacy Notice.
A user remains entitled to obtain information or exercise a mandatory right after access ends. Closure of the portal account is not a waiver of a valid complaint or appeal, but it does not suspend the time limit or filing method established by the applicable procedure.
38. Pre-action notice and good-faith resolution
Before commencing proceedings concerning these Website Terms, a party should give the other a written description of the dispute, material facts, provisions relied upon and remedy sought and allow a reasonable opportunity for a substantive response. The parties should consider good-faith negotiation or another proportionate consensual process where doing so would not prejudice confidentiality, urgency, procedural independence or a statutory right.
This clause does not require a person to delay an urgent application for protective relief, allow a limitation period to expire, disclose privileged material, abandon a competent authority complaint or merge a certification appeal with a different contractual dispute. A certification complaint or appeal must continue through its designated independent procedure unless that procedure or mandatory law states otherwise.
An attempt at informal resolution is not an admission and does not authorise either party to publish confidential settlement communications. Any settlement is binding only when recorded by persons with authority and in the form required by applicable law.
39. Changes to these Terms
ICEQC may revise these Terms to reflect law, services, security requirements or institutional controls. The revised version states its effective date. A change does not retrospectively alter an accrued right, completed transaction or accepted separate agreement unless the agreement, a valid transition provision or mandatory law permits that result.
Where a revision materially affects continued use of a restricted account or service, ICEQC may require express acceptance before further use. Continued use is not relied upon as acceptance where applicable law or the governing agreement requires a separate affirmative act.
40. Governing law and jurisdiction
These Terms and non-contractual matters arising from use of the ICEQC website are governed by substantive Swiss law, excluding its conflict-of-laws rules, unless mandatory law requires another law to apply. The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods does not apply to these Website Terms.
Subject to mandatory jurisdiction and any valid dispute provision in a separate agreement, the competent courts at ICEQC’s registered office in Geneva, Switzerland have jurisdiction. This clause does not deprive a consumer or other protected person of a court or remedy that mandatory law makes available.
41. Severability and waiver
If a provision of these Terms is invalid, unlawful or unenforceable, it is applied to the maximum lawful extent and the remaining provisions continue in effect. Where permitted, the invalid provision is replaced by a valid provision that most closely reflects its lawful purpose without expanding a user’s obligations beyond what could validly have been agreed.
Failure or delay in exercising a right is not a waiver. A waiver must be express, made by a person with authority and applies only to the matter for which it is given. A single waiver does not establish a course of dealing or waive a later breach. A party’s election between available remedies is governed by applicable law and does not prevent a cumulative remedy where the law permits it.
42. Language and contact
The English version is the authoritative version of these Terms. Translations are provided for access. If a translation differs from the English version, the English version governs to the extent permitted by mandatory law and any controlled instrument that expressly designates another authoritative language.
In these Terms, ‘website’ includes the pages and public online functions operated under the official domains identified above; ‘user’ includes a visitor and a person acting through an account; ‘organisation’ includes an applicant, certificate holder and other legal or institutional principal; and ‘controlled instrument’ means an ICEQC document whose identity, edition and status are established through the applicable register or formal process. Singular words include the plural where the context permits, and references to writing include an accessible electronic record that satisfies the applicable form requirement.
Questions about these Terms, use of the service or an official website record may be sent to contact@iceqc.org. Certification complaints and appeals must be submitted through their designated procedures; reporting a security issue or suspected misuse does not commence a certification appeal.
Correspondence should identify the relevant page, record or transaction and the capacity in which the sender acts, without including passwords, payment-card data or confidential certification evidence.