How to Get a Product or Service Certified

Click here for Certification Forms and Fees

1. Read over our Environmental Leadership Standards. Green Seal can only certify products and services that fall under the scope of our standards. In order to become certified, your product/service must meet the requirements laid out in these standards.

2. Fill out the Preliminary Application for Green Seal certification. By filling out the preliminary application, Green Seal will be better able to answer specific questions pertaining to your application.

3. When we receive the completed preliminary application, a member of our staff will contact you and forward our formal application package including a confidentiality agreement.

4. Complete, sign, and return signed duplicates (that is, two original copies) of both the Application for Certification and the Confidentiality Agreement, along with the product evaluation fee, to Green Seal's Headquarters office at 1001 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 827, Washington, DC 20036. Applications are not considered complete and work cannot begin until the evaluation fee is paid.

5. Green Seal will countersign the Application and Confidentiality Agreement and send you an original copy for your files.

6. Upon completion of the application process, Green Seal staff will contact your contact person to explain the evaluation process and will send you a check sheet of needed data.

7. Submit the necessary data in duplicate (data material is not considered complete if duplicate copies are not sent) to Green Seal's Headquarters office. Failure to provide data in duplicate may cause delays in the evaluation and incur additional expenses.

8. The Green Seal staff assigned to manage your evaluation will keep in touch with you regarding any additional data needs, further testing required, or product samples that may be requested.

9. The evaluation process typically takes about three months, but delays may occur due to additional testing required or ingredient changes necessitated by the evaluation. We understand that companies are eager to receive certification of their products or services once they apply, but please be patient so that we may conduct the evaluation in a thorough and proper way.

10. For product submissions, an audit of the manufacturing facility(ies) will be scheduled at the appropriate time. Usually this occurs when the product(s) has gone through and passed most of the evaluation.

11. When a product has completed virtually all requirements for certification, Green Seal staff will work with you on the design of the product's packaging to include the Green Seal Certification Mark and the accompanying text that spells out the environmental preferability of your product, as well as on any sales and marketing materials. Any use of the Green Seal must be approved in advance by Green Seal and conform to the Rules Governing the Use of the Green Seal Mark.

12. If a product or service is determined to meet all requirements for certification, Green Seal will grant your company the right to use the Green Seal Certification Mark with regard to the product or service, its packaging, and its promotion and advertising by awarding an official letter and certificate of certification.

13. Should a product or service fail to meet the requirements for certification, Green Seal will inform you of the reason(s). Green Seal keeps confidential all test results as well as the fact that you have submitted products or services for evaluation. In many cases, companies are able to modify their original submissions in order to achieve certification.