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    OHSAS 18001 to ISO 45001 Migration and Gap Checklist

    Is OHSAS 18001 still valid? No. ISO 45001 replaced it in March 2018, the migration period ended in 2021, and no accredited OHSAS 18001 certificate has been valid since. This checklist takes a system still built on OHSAS 18001 through every ISO 45001 clause, shows where the old clause sat, and records the gap and the action.

    Once, to plan the move from an OHSAS 18001 system to ISO 45001, for certification or because a client or tender asks for it; and again before the certification audit to confirm every gap is closed.

    Two people at a table going through printed forms, with a pen ready to sign

    What is in the template

    Gap checklist

    Columns: ISO 45001 clause · What it asks for · Old OHSAS 18001 clause · Evidence we have · Gap (Y/N) · Action, owner and due

    • 4.1 and 4.2 · Context, and the needs of workers and other interested parties, including whether climate change is relevant (2024 amendment) · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: None (new)
    • 4.3 and 4.4 · Scope set from that context; the system and its processes · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.1
    • 5.1 · Top management leads the system and takes overall responsibility and accountability · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.4.1 (management representative)
    • 5.2 · OH&S policy, including commitments to eliminate hazards and to consult workers · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.2
    • 5.3 · Roles, responsibilities and authorities assigned and communicated · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.4.1
    • 5.4 · Consultation and participation of workers, including non-managerial workers · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.4.3 (in part)
    • 6.1.2 · Hazard identification and assessment of OH&S risks and opportunities · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.3.1
    • 6.1.3 · Legal and other requirements determined and kept as documented information · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.3.2
    • 6.2 · Objectives with plans: what, resources, who, when and how results are evaluated · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.3.3
    • 7.2 and 7.3 · Competence; awareness, including that workers may remove themselves from imminent and serious danger · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.4.2
    • 7.4 · Internal and external communication: what, when, with whom and how · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.4.3
    • 7.5 · Documented information (replaces documents and records) · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.4.4, 4.4.5 and 4.5.4
    • 8.1.2 · Hazards eliminated and risks reduced using the hierarchy of controls · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.3.1 (determining controls)
    • 8.1.3 · Management of change, temporary and permanent · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.3.1 (in part)
    • 8.1.4 · Procurement, contractors and outsourcing controlled · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.4.6 (in part)
    • 8.2 · Emergency preparedness and response, planned and tested · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.4.7
    • 9.1 · Monitoring and measurement, and evaluation of compliance · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.5.1 and 4.5.2
    • 9.2 · Internal audit programme · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.5.5
    • 9.3 · Management review with its set inputs and results · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.6
    • 10.2 · Incidents, nonconformities and corrective action; preventive action gives way to planning for risks · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.5.3
    • 10.3 · Continual improvement · Old OHSAS 18001 clause: 4.2 and 4.6 (in part)

    Rows marked "None (new)" or "in part" are where most OHSAS 18001 systems have a gap. The mapping is a guide to where to look; check each clause against your copy of ISO 45001:2018 and its 2024 amendment.

    Migration plan

    • Gaps found (number)
    • Highest-risk gaps and how they will be closed
    • Documents to rewrite or retire
    • Training and worker consultation planned
    • Internal audit against ISO 45001 (date)
    • Management review (date)
    • Certification audit (date)

    Sign-off

    • Prepared by: name, signature and date
    • Approved by top management: name, signature and date

    How to fill it in

    1. 1Gather the current OHSAS 18001 manual, procedures and records, and a copy of ISO 45001:2018 with its 2024 amendment.
    2. 2Work down the gap checklist clause by clause. For each, record the evidence you already have, usually under the old OHSAS clause shown.
    3. 3Mark a gap wherever the evidence does not meet the ISO 45001 requirement; most come from the new clauses on context, leadership, worker participation, management of change and contractors.
    4. 4Give every gap an action, an owner and a due date, and rewrite the documents around ISO 45001 rather than patching the OHSAS ones.
    5. 5Run an internal audit against ISO 45001 and a management review before you book the certification audit.

    A general template, not certification advice. BS OHSAS 18001:2007 was withdrawn when ISO 45001:2018 was published on 12 March 2018. The three-year migration period ended in March 2021 and was extended by up to six months because of COVID-19, so the last OHSAS 18001 certificates lapsed in 2021. ISO 45001:2018 was amended in 2024 to add climate change to clauses 4.1 and 4.2, and a revised edition is expected around 2027. The standards are voluntary; the legal duties they help you meet come from the OHS Act or the MHSA and their regulations.

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    The same record in Inspecable

    On paper the register is only as current as the last person who updated it. In Inspecable the same record keeps going:

    Do it in InspecableLegal registerThe longer readCorrective action under ISO 45001: what clause 10.2 asks you to prove

    Questions

    Is OHSAS 18001 still valid?

    No. ISO 45001 replaced OHSAS 18001 in March 2018 and the migration period ended in 2021, so no accredited OHSAS 18001 certificate is valid today. A tender or client that still asks for OHSAS 18001 will normally accept ISO 45001 certification; ask them to confirm it in writing.

    What is the difference between OHSAS 18001 and ISO 45001?

    ISO 45001 follows the same high-level structure as ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. It adds the organisation's context and interested parties, puts the system on top management rather than a management representative, requires worker consultation and participation, and adds management of change, contractor and procurement controls, and planning for risks and opportunities.

    Can this checklist be used for an ISO 45001 internal audit?

    Use it once, for the migration. After that, audit the system against ISO 45001 on a programme so every clause is covered at least once a year; the free ISO 45001 internal audit checklist on this site is built for that.

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