 | |
| Abbreviation | OIML |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1955 |
| Type | IGO |
| Legal status | Treaty |
| Purpose | Legal metrology |
| Headquarters | Paris, France |
Region served | World |
Membership | Sovereign states |
Official language | English, French |
Budget | €2 million |
| Website | www |
The International Organization of Legal Metrology (French: Organisation Internationale de Métrologie Légale - OIML), is an intergovernmental organisation that was created in 1955 to promote the global harmonisation of the legal metrology procedures that underpin and facilitate international trade.
Such harmonisation ensures that certification of measuring devices in one country is compatible with certification in another, thereby facilitating trade in the measuring devices and in products that rely on the measuring devices. Such products include weighing devices, taxi meters, speedometers, agricultural measuring devices such as cereal moisture meters, health related devices such as exhaust measurements and alcohol content of drinks.
Since its establishment, the OIML has developed a number of guidelines to assist its Members, particularly developing nations, to draw up appropriate legislation concerning metrology across all facets of society and guidelines on certification and calibration requirements of new products, particularly where such calibration has a legal impact such as in trade, health care and taxation.
The OIML works closely with other international organisations such as the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM) and International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to ensure compatibility between each organisation's work. The OIML has no legal authority to impose solutions on its Members, but its Recommendations are often used by Member States as part of their own national legislation.
As of May 2024[update], 64 countries had signed up as Member States and a further 63 as Corresponding (non-voting) Members including all the G20, EU and BRICS countries. Between them, the OIML Members cover 86 % of the world's population and 96 % of its economy.
The Headquarters of the OIML is located in Paris, France.