Registration authorities and maintenance agencies are the administrative bodies that assign globally unique codes or numbers to organizations and documents based on international standards.

The bodies that assign codes are known as registration authorities. Bodies that maintain lists of codes, but have no responsibility for their content are called maintenance agencies.  There are both national and international registration authorities and maintenance agencies.

One of the best known examples of this system is International Standard Book Numbering (ISBN). Based on an ISO developed standard, ISBN provides a numbering system for all books, once they have been published. Each book is given a unique code that distinguishes it from all other books. It is the job of a registration authority to assign the numbers and ensure there are no duplications.

SCC, as Canada's member body to the ISO has the responsibility for overseeing the work of some registration and maintenance agencies by acting as the sponsoring authority in Canada.

In some cases, like Issuer Identification Number issuance (see description below), SCC is the sponsoring authority. In other cases, like ISBN, another organization serves as the registration or maintenance authority.

Issuer Identification Number

The role of a unique Issuer Identification Number (IIN) is to correctly identify a card issuer in an international interchange environment. Each issuer may have only one IIN. The IIN is used to identify the card issuer; it is not used to differentiate between products, services or geographical location. 

For more information on IIN, please see:

• ISO/IEC 7812-1:2017 Identification cards -- Identification of issuers -- Part 1: Numbering system (disponible en anglais seulement); and
• ISO/IEC 7812-2:2017 Identification cards -- Identification of issuers -- Part 2: Application and registration procedures (disponible en anglais seulement).

To submit your application, please fill out the applicant portion of the application form and submit to isd-eni@scc.ca, or mail the application to the address below. Your application must include evidence that your organization is a legal entity authorized to carry out business in Canada. Evidence may include:

• GST/HST registration;
• A master business licence;
• A certificate of status;
• A listing in a federal, provincial, or territorial register of corporations.

A fee of $1000.00 CAD must accompany each application in the form of a cheque, money order or credit card payment (please make cheques and money orders payable to “Standards Council of Canada”). Payment may be mailed to:

Standards Council of Canada
International Standards Development
600-55 Metcalfe Street
Ottawa, ON K1P 6L5
Canada

To obtain more information on IIN registration in Canada, transfer an IIN issued in Canada or update the address/name for an IIN issued in Canada, please contact the IIN administrator at +1 613 238 3222 ext. 459 or isd-eni@scc.ca.

Canadian Open Systems Interconnection Registration Authority (COSIRA)

The Canadian Open Systems Interconnection Registration Authority (COSIRA), is administered by the SCC. It assigns and registers numeric and alphanumeric name values for organizations that wish to have these names known publicly and registered at the national level for the purpose of open systems communication.

There are also a couple of independent national registration authorities and maintenance agencies separate from SCC, such as the:

• Canadian Internet Registration Authority
• Statistics Canada
• Canada Revenue Agency business number
• Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada
• National Library of Canada

Notice of Public Review

In accordance with ISO/IEC 9834—Information technology - Open Systems Interconnection - Procedures for the operation of OSI Registration Authorities, the following applications have been submitted for Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) object identifiers:

For details, to comment on, to challenge this application, or to obtain more information on OSI registration in Canada, please contact the COSIRA administrator at +1 613 238 3222, ext. 355, or by e-mail at isd-eni@scc.ca​.