Clause 7.5.3: Control of documented information
Documented information that the standard, or the OH&S management system itself, calls for is controlled so that it can be found and used, in a fit state, at the place and time it is needed, and so that it is properly protected.
What clause 7.5.3 asks
Documented information that the standard, or the OH&S management system itself, calls for is controlled so that it can be found and used, in a fit state, at the place and time it is needed, and so that it is properly protected. Control covers how it is distributed, accessed, retrieved and used; how it is stored and preserved, legibility included; how changes are controlled; and how long it is kept and how it is disposed of. Documented information from outside sources that the organization judges necessary is identified and controlled.
Control means the right person can find the right version at the right time, and the wrong version cannot be used. It also covers retention and disposal, including external documents such as safety data sheets.
Access, privacy and retention at a distance. A remote record may contain a worker's health information, photographs of their home or a self-assessment. It has to be available to the people who need it and protected from the people who do not. The public record does not set a privacy rule; the organization's own legal and privacy duties decide that, and the system has to keep the two in step.
Basis: ISO, BSI Standards Development. For clause 7.5.3, the public record is a draft guideline and does not state a requirement in terms that this site can quote. The clause 7.5.3 overlay is our reading of the public scope and the named summaries, not the draft text.
Evidence for clause 7.5.3
An auditor will go to a workstation and ask for the current procedure, then check a safety data sheet is current.
- Document control Document control procedure covering access, change, retention and disposal
- Document control Controlled register of external documents (regulations, safety data sheets, manufacturer instructions)
- Document control Retention schedule including health surveillance and exposure records
- Document control Evidence current versions are available at the point of use
Where clause 7.5.3 commonly fails
- Superseded procedures in use at sites
- Safety data sheets out of date
- Health records not retained for the statutory period
What to do about clause 7.5.3 before the guidance lands
Classify the remote records, set access by role and state the retention period. Tell the worker what is collected, why and who sees it. Remove home photographs and health detail from any copy used for a general report.
For clause 7.5.3, do the work that will be right under either instrument. The current requirement for clause 7.5.3 is ISO 45001:2018, and the certificate, if you hold one, is issued against it. The clause 7.5.3 remote working preparation is an extension of the existing duty to a group of workers the system already covers, not a new system and not a reason to rebuild around a draft.
Read across from clause 7.5.3
← Clause 7.5.2 | Clause 8.1.1 →
Open the full index. The public record behind clause 7.5.3 shows the scope and the themes.
Source for clause 7.5.3: ISO 45001:2018, clause 7.5.3, retrieved 20 October 2026, record at the standards library. The clause 7.5.3 remote overlay rests on the public 45008 record named above. The clause 7.5.3 requirement, evidence and gaps are written from our clause record. Every source.