ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000

INTERNATIONAL ISO/IEC
STANDARD 7812-2
Second edition
2000-09-15
Identification cards — Identification of
issuers —
Part 2:
Application and registration procedures
Cartes d'identification — Identification des émetteurs —
Partie 2: Procédures de demande d'enregistrement
Reference number
ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
©
ISO/IEC 2000

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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
Contents Page
1 Scope .1
2 Normative references .1
3 Terms and definitions .1
4 Application and registration procedures .2
4.1 Application procedure for assignment of a single IIN .2
4.2 Application procedure for approval to become an authorized blockholder .2
4.3 Criteria for approval and rejection of applications .3
5 Appeal process .4
5.1 Appeal bodies .4
5.2 Information to be provided .5
6 Responsibilities .5
6.1 Responsibilities of card issuing applicants.5
6.2 Responsibilities of authorized blockholders .5
7 Sponsoring Authorities.6
7.1 Eligibility to become a Sponsoring Authority.6
7.2 Responsibilities .6
8 RMG.7
8.1 Constitution.7
8.2 Responsibilities .7
8.3 Voting procedures .8
9 The ISO Register of Card Issuer Identification Numbers .8
9.1 Publication and availability.8
9.2 Contents .8
10 Registration Authority.9
10.1 Appointment.9
10.2 Resignation .9
10.3 Responsibilities .9
Annex A (informative) Application for issuer identification number .11
Annex B (informative) Letter of Agreement on Block Assignments.12
Annex C (informative) Guidance for Sponsoring Authorities.15
Annex D (informative) Important information regarding your IIN assignment .20
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical Commission)
form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are members of ISO or IEC
participate in the development of International Standards through technical committees established by the
respective organization to deal with particular fields of technical activity. ISO and IEC technical committees
collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other international organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in
liaison with ISO and IEC, also take part in the work.
International Standards are drafted in accordance with the rules given in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 3.
In the field of information technology, ISO and IEC have established a joint technical committee, ISO/IEC JTC 1.
Draft International Standards adopted by the joint technical committee are circulated to national bodies for voting.
Publication as an International Standard requires approval by at least 75 % of the national bodies casting a vote.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this part of ISO/IEC 7812 may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard ISO/IEC 7812-2 was prepared by Joint Technical Committee ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information
technology, Subcommittee SC 17, Identification cards and related devices.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO/IEC 7812-2:1993), which has been technically
revised. Note that the previous edition of ISO/IEC 7812-2, published in 1993, was a first edition but "third edition"
was indicated by error on its cover page and in the foreword.
ISO/IEC 7812 consists of the following parts, under the general title Identification cards — Identification of issuers:
— Part 1: Numbering system
— Part 2: Application and registration procedures
Annexes A, B, C and D of this part of ISO/IEC 7812 are for information only.
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
Introduction
This part of ISO/IEC 7812 is one of a series of standards describing the parameters for identification cards and the
use of such cards for international and/or inter-industry interchange.
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INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
Identification cards — Identification of issuers —
Part 2:
Application and registration procedures
1 Scope
This part of ISO/IEC 7812 describes the application and registration procedures for numbers issued in accordance
with ISO/IEC 7812-1.
ISO/IEC 7812-1 specifies the numbering system for the identification of issuers of identification cards used in
international and/or inter-industry interchange.
2 Normative references
The following normative documents contain provisions which, through reference in this text, constitute provisions of
this part of ISO/IEC 7812. For dated references, subsequent amendments to, or revisions of, any of these
publications do not apply. However, parties to agreements based on this part of ISO/IEC 7812 are encouraged to
investigate the possibility of applying the most recent editions of the normative documents indicated below. For
undated references, the latest edition of the normative document referred to applies. Members of ISO and IEC
maintain registers of currently valid International Standards.
ISO 3166-1:1997, Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions — Part 1: Country
codes.
ISO/IEC 7810:1995, Identification cards — Physical characteristics.
ISO/IEC 7812-1:2000, Identification cards — Identification of issuers — Part 1: Numbering system.
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this part of ISO/IEC 7812, the terms and definitions given in ISO/IEC 7812-1 and the following
apply.
3.1
administrative blockholder
body/business entity that is assigned a block of Issuer Identification Numbers (IINs) for re-assignment to card
issuing organizations within its specific geographic or industry sector area of jurisdiction
NOTE These IINs are assigned in accordance with the procedures established herein and under legal agreement with the
Registration Authority.
3.2
block of IINs
reservation in the ISO Register of Card Issuer Identification Numbers of a series of two or more IINs for assignment
by an administrative or card scheme blockholder
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
3.3
card acceptor
party accepting the identification card for the purpose of presenting transaction data to an acquirer
3.4
card scheme blockholder
body representing a group of card issuers, one purpose of which is to facilitate the issuance and acceptance of the
cards of that group
NOTE To facilitate such acceptance, the card scheme and card issuer are visibly identifiable on the identification card.
Interchange among the card scheme members is governed by a set of operating procedures.
3.5
Sponsoring Authority
body authorized by the Subcommittee responsible for administering an ISO numbering system, (in this case
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17) to receive, process and approve applications for IINs submitted in accordance with
ISO/IEC 7812
4 Application and registration procedures
4.1 Application procedure for assignment of a single IIN
A card issuer shall apply to its national standards body, or in the absence of a national standards body, to the
secretariat of the ISO/IEC technical body responsible for this International Standard, for the assignment of a single
IIN using the form shown in annex A. Application forms are also available, on request from the Registration
Authority, the secretariat of the Registration Management Group (RMG) and the secretariat of
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17. The national standards body or the secretariat of the ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 then acts as the
"Sponsoring Authority" (see clause 7) with respect to the application.
4.2 Application procedure for approval to become an authorized blockholder
4.2.1 Types of blockholders
There are two types of blockholders, administrative blockholders and card scheme blockholders.
Administrative blockholders (see 3.1) are assigned a block of IINs, following approval by the RMG, for re-
assignment to organizations that fall within their specific industry or geographic area of jurisdiction. Once assigned
the IIN belongs to the organization unless it specifically agrees to relinquish the IIN because it is no longer used by
them. The Registration Authority fee applies to each IIN assigned from the block.
Where a single body represents a group of card issuers (see 3.4) that body may apply to become a card scheme
blockholder (see 3.2). These blockholders are assigned a block of IINs, following approval by the Registration
Management Group, for assignment to the members of that particular card scheme. If a card issuer relinquishes
membership of that scheme the IIN reverts back to the blockholder and use of it by the organization must cease.
The Registration Authority fee applies to each IIN assigned from the block.
4.2.2 Application procedure
Where the applicant is applying for a block of IINs either as an administrative blockholder (see 3.1), or as a card
scheme (see 3.4), the applicant shall provide the following supplementary information as justification:
a) whether the application is to become an administrative blockholder or a card scheme blockholder;
b) the reason why card issuers must receive IINs from a blockholder, rather than each card issuer applying
individually to the Registration Authority for an IIN;
c) description of the nature of the service that the applicant's organization is planning to provide;
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
d) whether the proposed blockholder will act as agent for issuers legally associated with it, but each issuer is a
separate corporate legal entity;
e) details of any future proposed plans, including where relevant the following:
1) estimated number of card issuers by country;
2) timing plans, (i.e. estimated date for allocation of all IINs in the proposed block);
f) whether card acceptors can access all the card issuers in the card scheme, through a single acquiring link;
g) whether the service provided to the issuers extends beyond networking, i.e. communications switching, and if
so in what way;
h) any common aspects of services offered by card issuers within a proposed card scheme.
The RMG may request additional information where further clarification is needed.
4.3 Criteria for approval and rejection of applications
4.3.1 Criteria for approval of an application for a single IIN
Applications for a single IIN shall meet all the criteria for approval below and shall not comply with any of the
criteria for rejection in 4.3.2.
The criteria for approval are:
a) the applicant applying for a single IIN shall not already have an IIN assigned to it in its own right (outside of any
card scheme);
b) the IIN shall be for immediate use, preferably within 12 months of the date of issue of the IIN;
c) the card being issued shall be for use in an interchange environment (see ISO/IEC 7812-1);
d) the applicant shall be a single corporate entity operating under a specific legislative regulation.
Where cards are for use solely within the country of issue, card issuers shall contact their national standards body
for information on the availability of a national numbering system (see ISO/IEC 7812-1).
4.3.2 Criteria for rejection of an application for a single IIN
An application for a single IIN shall be rejected by the Sponsoring Authority or the RMG when any one of the
following conditions exist:
a) the applicant is not a card issuer;
b) the applicant has previously been assigned an IIN in its own right (outside of its membership of any card
scheme) which it is still using and the applicant has not provided adequate supplementary information as
justification for issue of an additional IIN (see 4.2);
c) the cards issued by the applicant would not be used in an international and/or inter-industry interchange
environment;
d) the IIN will be used to identify or differentiate between products, services, or technologies (i.e. including but not
limited to integrated circuit cards), or solely to facilitate routing, or to identify geographic location;
e) the IIN will be used to identify or differentiate between branches or subsidiaries within the applicant's
organization (i.e. these branches or subsidiaries are not separate corporate entities);
f) the applicant has requested a specific number or the reservation in the register of a specific number or made a
request which is outside the scope of this part of ISO/IEC 7812;
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
g) no card will be issued for immediate use, e.g. within 12 months from the date of issue of an IIN.
Where special circumstances exist, the Sponsoring Authority may approve an application for assignment of a
specific number and forward the application to the Registration Authority for assignment of the number. All such
requests shall be reported by the Sponsoring Authority to the RMG.
4.3.3 Criteria for approval as an authorized blockholder
Applications to become an administrative or card scheme blockholder shall be approved only by the RMG,
following sponsorship by a Sponsoring Authority.
Requests to become a blockholder shall meet all the criteria for approval below and shall not comply with any of
thecriteriafor rejectionin4.3.4.
The criteria for approval are:
a) the applicant has provided adequate supplementary information as justification to become an administrative or
card scheme blockholder (see 4.2);
b) the applicant shall request a block size which accommodates only a single IIN for each entity that it currently
represents or may reasonably expect to represent in the future;
c) the applicant agrees to assign a single IIN from the block to each card issuer and not to assign subsequent
IINs to differentiate between products, services or geographic location;
d) the applicant agrees to forward requests for second or additional IINs to the Registration Management Group
for their decision;
e) the applicant shall agree to sign a legal agreement with the Registration Authority (see letter of agreement on
block assignments, annex B) and shall accept the responsibilities laid down in the letter of agreement.
4.3.4 Criteria for rejection of an application to become an authorized blockholder
An application to become an administrative or card scheme blockholder shall be rejected by the Sponsoring
Authority or the RMG where any one of the following conditions exist:
a) the applicant does not meet the criteria for approval as a blockholder in 4.3.3;
b) the organizations represented by the applicant (i.e. the card issuers) will not issue cards for use in an
interchange environment;
c) the organizations represented by the applicant (i.e. the card issuers) will use the IINs to identify or differentiate
between products or services, or technologies (i.e. including but not limited to integrated circuit cards), or to
identify geographic locations;
d) the blockholder will not be in a position to assign any IINs from the reserved block within 12 months from the
date of issue of the block of IINs.
5 Appeal process
5.1 Appeal bodies
Where an application has been rejected by a Sponsoring Authority the applicant may appeal to the secretariat of
the RMG (see clause 8). Where an application has been rejected by the RMG the applicant may appeal to
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 through the secretariat of ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17. Applicants may submit for appeal,
applications that have been rejected by ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17, to the ISO Central Secretariat.
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
Appeal against rejection of an application shall be lodged with the appropriate body within 90 days of the date of the
letter of rejection.
5.2 Information to be provided
Where an application for either a single IIN or to become an authorized blockholder has been rejected by the
Sponsoring Authority, the following information shall be provided by the applicant to the relevant appeal body in
support of the appeal:
a) statement of which rejection clause (see 4.3.2 or 4.3.4) is disputed and why the applicant believes that the
rejected application fulfils the criteria for acceptance (see 4.3.1 or 4.3.3);
b) statement of special circumstances whereby a specific requirement of the rejected application can be met, but
such requirement is outside the current procedures and criteria for acceptance outlined in this part of
ISO/IEC 7812.
6 Responsibilities
6.1 Responsibilities of card issuing applicants
The responsibilities of card issuing applicants shall be:
a) to comply fully with the numbering system and the procedures for application for IINs as contained in
ISO/IEC 7812-1 and ISO/IEC 7812-2;
b) to forward to its national standards body, or in the absence of a national standards body, to the secretariat of
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17, a completed application form, (see annex A) together with the requisite fee;
c) to retain the completed application form containing the IIN assigned to the applicant by the Registration
Authority;
d) to issue cards using the IIN assigned by the Registration Authority within a reasonable timeframe preferably
within 12 months of the date of assignment of the IIN;
e) to inform the Registration Authority of any change to the details provided on the original application form.
6.2 Responsibilities of authorized blockholders
Applicants meeting the criteria in 4.3.3 and approved to become an administrative or card scheme blockholder shall
enter into a written legal agreement with the Registration Authority (see annex B). The responsibilities of
blockholders shall be:
a) to process applications for IINs from within its area of responsibility within 30 days of receipt of the application;
b) to approve applications that meet the criteria in 4.3.1;
c) to assign sequentially a single IIN, within 30 days of receipt of the request, from the reserved block to each
card issuer whose application fulfils the criteria for acceptance in 4.3.1;
d) to inform its constituents in writing, within 30 days of receipt of the application, as to the disposition of their
application;
e) to inform the Registration Authority in writing, within the agreed timeframe (see 10.3.3) of each number
assignment; and to notify the Registration Authority regarding changes to the information as originally supplied.
This information shall be provided either when such changes arise or monthly by the fifteenth of each month
and submitted along with the issuance fee unless otherwise stipulated by separate written agreement with the
Registration Authority. The Registration Authority shall stipulate the format for supplying the information (see
10.3.3);
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
f) where an application has been rejected, to inform the applicant in writing, within 30 days of receipt of the
application, of the rejection and of the appeal process (see clause 5);
g) to verify that the ISO Register of Card Issuer Identification Numbers maintained by the Registration Authority
(see 9.2) contains accurate information regarding IINs issued from within its block;
h) to establish and maintain records relative to the request for or assignment of an IIN including notification of the
assignment to the Registration Authority. Records of IIN issuance shall be permanently maintained and
available for reference by the RMG. Requests for an IIN that have been denied, shall be maintained for a
minimum period of 90 days where no appeal is initiated; or when an appeal is initiated, until that process is
complete. In the event that the blockholder's organization relinquishes the management of the block, or the
block is terminated by action of the RMG, all records shall be transferred to the Registration Authority.
7 Sponsoring Authorities
7.1 Eligibility to become a Sponsoring Authority
The following bodies may act as Sponsoring Authorities in processing applications for IINs:
a) any national member body of ISO (or agent appointed to act for its national member body);
b) ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17; and
c) any group within ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 appointed for purposes concerning the identification card numbering
system.
A document entitled 'Guidance for Sponsoring Authorities' (annex C) is available to assist Sponsoring Authorities
in assessing the eligibility of applications and to assist in the procedures for dealing with applications. This
document is also available from the Registration Authority, the secretariat of the RMG and the secretariat of
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17.
7.2 Responsibilities
The responsibilities of a Sponsoring Authority shall be:
a) to ensure that the application fully complies with the numbering system and procedures for application for IINs
in ISO/IEC 7812-1 and ISO/IEC 7812-2;
b) to process, within 30 days of receipt of the request, applications for IINs from within their countries or areas of
responsibility;
c) to notify the applicant in writing, within 30 days of receipt of the application, as to the disposition of their
application;
d) to forward to the Registration Authority (see 10.3.2) those sponsored requests for single IINs that it is satisfied
shall be used for the purposes described in this part of ISO/IEC 7812 and that meet the approval criteria in
4.3.1;
e) where special circumstances exist, to approve applications for assignment of a specific number and forward
the application to the Registration Authority for assignment of the number. The Sponsoring Authority shall
report all such requests to the RMG. All other requests of an unusual nature must be reported to the RMG for
review;
f) to sponsor requests for blocks of IINs submitted to the RMG where appropriate supplementary information has
been provided as justification and that justification satisfies the criteria for approval to become an authorized
blockholder (see 4.3.3);
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ISO/IEC 7812-2:2000(E)
g) to respond to general enquiries covering the IIN numbering system;
h) ensure that applicants are aware that additional IINs will not be assigned to identify products, services,
technologies or geographical location. How this information is passed to the applicant is at the discretion of the
Sponsoring Authority.
8RMG
8.1 Constitution
In order to effectively manage the numbering system for the identification of card issuers, ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 has
established a RMG, ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17/WG 5, which is delegated to act on its behalf.
The RMG shall be made up of:
a) a representative of the Registration Authority who shall be a non-voting member of the RMG and shall be
expected to attend all meetings;
b) the Convenor of the RMG, appointed by the P members (national standards body with Participant status) of
ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17;
c) the secretariat of the RMG, appointed by the P members of ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17.
d) In addition, each member of ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 is entitled to nominate one delegate and one alternate to
the RMG. The alternate may attend all meetings, but is entitled to vote only in the absence of the principal
delegate.
8.2 Responsibilities
The responsibilities of the RMG shall be:
a) to enforce the requirements for approving applications to become authorized blockholders (see 4.3.3) and to
ensure that applicants whose applications do not fulfil the criteria in 4.3.1 or 4.3.3 are rejected and informed of
their right to appeal (see clause 5);
b) to process applications to become authorized blockholders (within 60 days of receipt of the request) received
from the secretariat of the RMG, which have been submitted by Sponsoring Authorities. This may be done
either by electronic ballot or at a meeting;
c) to provide, on request, guidance and counsel to any national standards body on the establishment of a
national numbering system (see ISO/IEC 7812-1);
d) to provide guidance to Sponsoring Authorities on applications that demonstrate special circumstances,
requests for block assignments and requests for specific numbers. This guidance shall be decided by
resolution at a meeting or in writing following an electronic ballot;
e) to approve the report on the cost recovery scheme from the Registration Authority;
f) to monitor Sponsoring Authorities to ensure that they comply with the criteria laid down within this International
Standard (see clause 7);
g) to respond to all requests for guidance from the Registration Authority within 60 days of the date of request; to
review annually the register of card issuer identification numbers; to review at each meeting all block
assignments and to report its activit
...