The certification processes are performed outside the guidelines and legal regulations, which only apply to degree programmes. However, they do follow a series of requirements from the Bologna Process and the FIBAA Quality criteria for the accreditation of degree programmes, in order to simplify or to make possible the allowance of acquired credit points for degree programmes. 

FIBAA certification therefore aims to secure a higher education level of continuing education and training as well as its design and conception on the basis of the criteria of the Bologna Process (e.g. modularisation, award of credit points), which, inter alia, is assured through comparison with the requirements of the European Qualifications Framework /Bachelor's ans Master's Level), whereby a higher education entrance qualification is not an absolute requirement. 

To ensure an unbiased and objective assessment by the assessors - and by FIBAA itself - in every assessment procedure, FIBAA distinguishes clearly between reviewing and consulting. 

To maintain this distinction, FIBAA ensures, when conducting programme accreditation of study programmes or certification of continuing training courses, that the consulting of higher or continuing education institutions in regard to the design of study programmes or continuing education courses and the assessment of these study programmes are not performed by the same persons: 

- Staff members of FIBAA, who have advised intitutions on the design of their study programmes or continuing education courses, are not involved in the corresponding assessment procedures; 

- Consulting staff members of FIBAA must sign a statement of non-disclosure in regard to their consulting activities.

In the field of institutional procedures, Higher Education Institutions are - as a matter of principle - either advised or assessed by FIBAA. The involvement of FIBAA in a system accreditation procedure is incompatible with a past or current assignment outside the scope of system accreditation, which serves or served to provide advice or other support for the setting up or introduction of the internal quality assurance system that is to be accredited at the same HEI. Furthermore, the involvement of FIBAA as an assessor in a system accreditation procedure is incompatible with a past or current assignment outside the scope of system accreditation, which serves to provide advice or other support for the setting up or introduction of the internal quality assurance system that is to be accredited at the same HEI.

In FIBAA publications and in communications with interested parties, we underline clearly that this strict separation will be observed at all times.