Halal certification in Egypt: who issues the certificate, what it covers and how long it lasts

Short answer: the Halal certificate is issued by Global Halal Control Office (GHC), headquartered in Jordan. CAS is GHC's exclusive authorised partner in Egypt: CAS conducts the audit and technical assessment, and the certificate is issued by GHC. It is valid for 12 months from the date of issue, with an annual surveillance audit, and it sits outside CAS's EGAC accreditation scope.

Who issues the certificate

Global Halal Control Office (GHC) is the certification body that issues the Halal certificate. The certificate is issued under GHC authority and bears the GHC certification mark. CAS conducts the required audit and technical assessment as GHC's exclusive Egypt partner.

OIC/SMIIC 2:2019 is Conformity Assessment — Requirements for Bodies Providing Halal Certification: the SMIIC standard that sets the competence, impartiality and process requirements for halal certification bodies. Whereas OIC/SMIIC 1:2019 sets the requirements your products and processes must meet, OIC/SMIIC 2:2019 governs how the certifier works. GHC operates its scheme in line with it.

Which standards the certificate covers

The GHC certificate covers four Halal standards simultaneously:

• OIC/SMIIC 1:2019 — General Requirements for Halal Food, the standard of the Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries (SMIIC), adopted across 57 OIC member states.
• GSO 2055-1:2015 — Halal Food, Part 1: General Requirements, issued by the Gulf Standardization Organization (GSO): the reference standard for Halal food in GCC member states.
• UAE.S 2055-1:2015 — UAE National Standard for Halal Food, Part 1: General Requirements.
• BPJPH Decree Nr. 20 of 2023 — Indonesian BPJPH regulations governing halal product certification for the Indonesian market.

GHC also certifies against the full OIC/SMIIC halal series: cosmetics (OIC/SMIIC 4), food service (6), halal tourism and wellness spa (9, 8), halal supply chain (17-1, 17-2, 17-3), halal quality management (18), edible gelatine (22), animal feed (23), food additives (24), pharmaceuticals (50-1) and hygiene and sanitation management (51).

Acceptance depends on the destination country. Import acceptance depends on the requirements of each country's competent authority, and each competent authority publishes its own list of recognised Halal bodies. Check the recognition requirements of your export market before shipping.

What the audit looks at

Steps, timing and validity

• Ingredient review and supplier declarations — a document review of ingredient specifications, supplier declarations and production procedures against OIC/SMIIC 1:2019.
• Site audit — by a GHC-qualified auditor, under the conformity-assessment requirements of OIC/SMIIC 2:2019.
• GHC technical approval.
• Certificate issuance — for a 12-month period, subject to annual surveillance audit.

The process typically takes 4–8 weeks from application to certificate, depending on the complexity of your product range and the number of ingredients requiring review.

What the Halal certificate does not carry

Halal certification is a partner-body service and sits outside CAS's EGAC accreditation scope, which covers six ISO management system standards. The Halal certificate bears the GHC certification mark, not the EGAC or IAF symbols.

How to confirm a Halal certificate

To confirm a certificate number or its validity, ask CAS or GHC, the issuing body (halalconformity.com). Product categories, standards and answers to common questions are on our Halal certification page.

CAS Conformity Assessment Services — EGAC-accredited certification body, CAB No. 012418. EGAC accreditation covers ISO 9001, 14001, 45001, 22000, 50001 and 22301 only, and IAF MLA recognition covers the same list except ISO 22301. Halal and CAS’s other services are outside both. Halal certification is issued by GHC, with CAS as its exclusive Egypt partner; it sits outside the EGAC accredited scope.