Article 15 Accreditation procedures

1.   Conformity assessment bodies referred to in Article 14(1) of this Regulation shall be accredited by a national accreditation body pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 765/2008.

2.   Each Member State shall designate an authority that shall maintain an updated list of the accredited conformity assessment bodies. Those designated national authorities shall make that list publicly available on an official government website. A Member State may decide that such duty is to be performed by the national accreditation body referred to in paragraph 1.

3.   By 31 March each year, the national accreditation body referred to in paragraph 1 shall notify to the Commission the list of accredited conformity assessment bodies, together with all relevant contact information.

4.   Where no specific provisions concerning the accreditation of conformity assessment bodies are laid down in this Regulation, Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 shall apply.

5.   Without prejudice to Article 16, the Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 17 to supplement this Regulation by establishing further methods and criteria for the accreditation of conformity assessment bodies.