Geneva, 30 November 2020 :
The PIC/S Committee has invited Brazil’s Agência Nacional de Vigilância Sanitária (ANVISA) to join the PIC Scheme.
Brazil / ANVISA will become PIC/S’ 54th Participating Authority as from 1 January 2021. ANVISA submitted a complete membership application in October 2014. A paper assessment was carried out followed by an on-site assessment visit which took place in October 2019, after a reorganisation at ANVISA. The assessment report was finalised in the course of 2020. The Audit team recommended to the Committee to accept the PIC/S membership application of ANVISA. After endorsement by the PIC/S Sub-Committee on Compliance (SCC), the PIC/S Committee then unanimously decided by written procedure completed on 27 November 2020, on the participation of ANVISA in PIC/S.
This is the first time in PIC/S’ history that an assessment process is completed by written procedure rather than at a Committee meeting. This was due to the situation with Covid-19 which prevented a Committee meeting taking place in 2020. A special welcome will be given to ANVISA at the next PIC/S virtual Committee meeting in 2021.
Geneva, 30 July 2026
PIC/S has published the revised PIC/S Recommendations on Qualification and Validation (PI 006-4).
These Recommendations have been revised by a dedicated PIC/S Working Group, successively chaired by Norman Gray (UK / MHRA) and subsequently jointly chaired by Kevin O’Donnell (Ireland / HPRA) and Rebecca Dowd (USA / US FDA). They supersede the PIC/S Recommendations on Validation Master Plan; Installation and Operational Qualification; Non-Sterile Process Validation; and Cleaning Validation (PI 006-3).
PI 006-4 will enter into force on 1 October 2026.
To download the revised Recommendations document, please consult the page “Publications”.
Geneva, 28 July 2026:
Registrations for the 2026 PIC/S Seminar on “Digital Transformation in GMP” which will be hosted by Türkiye / TMMDA from 4-6 November 2026 are now open (for Medicines Regulatory Authorities only). Deadline for registrations is 31 August 2026 (early-bird) and 23 October 2026 (standard).
For more information, please contact the PIC/S Secretariat.
Geneva, 28 July 2026:
On 15 July 2026, a Rapporteur was appointed by written procedure for the pre-accession application of Emirates Drug Establishment (EDE), for which a pre-accession application was received on 5 March 2026.
In line with the revised PIC/S Guidelines for the Pre-Accession Procedure, the designation of the Rapporteur marks the start of the pre-accession process.
Geneva, 28 July 2026:
On 17 December 2025, the State Entity “Center of Good Practices” of the Pharmaceutical Industry Development Agency under the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the State Institution “Center for Pharmaceutical Products Safety” under the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Uzbekistan, submitted a joint membership application to PIC/S.
The application received was completed on 15 January 2026, further to which the Rapporteurs and Audit Team are in the process of being appointed by written procedure.
Geneva, 16 July 2026:
The joint EMA - PIC/S drafting group has developed a concept paper on the revision of the Annex 15 (Qualification and validation) of the EU - PIC/S GMP Guide.
This concept paper aims to outline the rationale, objectives, and proposed changes for updating the Annex 15 - Qualification and validation, of the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) Guide, that is common to the Member States of the European Union (EU) / European Economic Area (EEA), as well as to the Participating Authorities (PAs) of the Pharmaceutical Inspection Co-operation Scheme (PIC/S). The aim of the revision is to extend the scope of the annex to active substances manufacturers and to consider the revision of ICH Guideline Q9 (R1) on quality risk management.
This concept paper was submitted to a joint EMA - PIC/S public consultation and comments have been collected until 9 April 2026. Following the public consultation, the initial timetable has been revised, and only this section has been updated accordingly.
The revised Concept Paper can be downloaded on the PIC/S website (link), as well as on the EMA website (link).