HalalBoss

Withdrawn JAKIM Recognitions

Published by HalalBoss, an independent register on 4 July 2026

Cut-out paper letters spelling the word no

JAKIM recognition is not permanent. The Department of Islamic Development Malaysia removes certification bodies from its list when they no longer meet its requirements. The most recent verified withdrawals took effect on 19 February 2025, removing one body each in France, Croatia, and China. Always confirm a body's current status against JAKIM's published list.

JAKIM recognition is not permanent. The Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) reviews the certification bodies it recognises, and it removes bodies from the list when they no longer meet its requirements. The most recent verified withdrawals took effect on 19 February 2025, when JAKIM removed one body each in France, Croatia, and China from its published list. An earlier withdrawal removed a body in Belgium effective 13 October 2023. If you are checking whether a specific body is still recognised, the only reliable answer comes from the current edition of the list published by JAKIM, read together with any withdrawal announcements issued since that edition.

This page records the withdrawal announcements we have verified against JAKIM’s own publications, explains what a withdrawal means in practice, and shows how to keep your own checks current.

Why recognitions get withdrawn

JAKIM grants recognition to halal certification bodies outside Malaysia for a fixed term. Recognition is a supervised status, not a one-time award. A body stays on the list only while it continues to satisfy JAKIM’s conditions, which include working to the Malaysian halal standards, submitting to audits, and renewing before its recognition period expires.

In practice, a body can drop off the list through several routes:

  • Expiry without renewal. Recognition runs for a defined period. A body that does not complete renewal before its term ends is no longer recognised, even without a formal withdrawal announcement.
  • Audit findings. JAKIM audits recognised bodies. Findings that are not corrected can lead to suspension or withdrawal.
  • Non-compliance with requirements. Certifying outside the approved scope, or failing to maintain the systems JAKIM assessed at the time of recognition, puts a body’s status at risk.

JAKIM does not always publish the specific grounds for an individual withdrawal. In the February 2025 case, JAKIM’s director general stated that the affected bodies had been given time to make the necessary improvements and corrections, and that JAKIM would reassess them before any decision on reinstating recognition. That statement confirms the general policy: withdrawal follows unresolved shortcomings, and reinstatement requires a fresh assessment. Beyond what JAKIM itself has stated, this directory does not speculate about why any named body lost its status.

For background on how recognition works in the first place, see What is JAKIM recognition.

Recent withdrawals we have verified

Two withdrawal events are verified against announcements published on the Halal Malaysia Portal.

Effective dateCountries and bodiesSource
19 February 2025France: Ritual Association of Lyon’s Great Mosque (ARGML). Croatia: Centre for Halal Quality Certification (CHQC). China: China Islamic Association (CIA)JAKIM announcement, “Withdrawal of Recognition of Foreign Halal Certification Bodies in France, Croatia, and China”, March 2025
13 October 2023Belgium: Halal Food Council of Europe (HFCE)JAKIM announcement, “Withdrawal of Recognition of Foreign Halal Certification Body in Belgium”, 20 October 2023

The 2025 announcement gave companies certified by ARGML, CHQC, or CIA a grace period until 19 August 2025 to obtain halal certification from another body recognised by JAKIM. Manufacturers affected by the ARGML and CHQC withdrawals could switch to another recognised body in their own country or in a nearby country. Manufacturers affected by the CIA withdrawal were directed to another recognised body within China.

The 2023 announcement gave companies certified by HFCE a grace period until 12 April 2024 on similar terms, with stated exceptions for products already in Malaysia before the withdrawal, shipments in transit under valid certificates, and goods already in processing before the deadline with documented production dates.

Bodies can also leave the list quietly when a recognition period lapses between editions, which is why comparing list editions matters as much as watching for announcements.

What a withdrawal means for products and exporters

A withdrawal changes what Malaysian authorities will accept at the border. It does not retroactively invalidate everything the body ever certified.

  • Products already in Malaysia before the effective date are handled under the conditions in the announcement rather than being recalled outright.
  • Certificates issued before the withdrawal remain usable only within the grace period and under the stated conditions. Once the grace period ends, the certificates carry no weight for Malaysian import purposes.
  • New certificates issued after the effective date are not accepted for the Malaysian market at all.

For exporters, the practical consequence is a deadline. If your certifier loses recognition, you must obtain certification from a body that is still on the list before the grace period closes, or your products stop entering Malaysia. The transition options JAKIM offers are usually another recognised body in the same country or, where permitted, in a nearby country. Our guide on halal certification for export covers how to plan certification around market requirements.

For buyers and importers, the lesson is to verify at source before every significant transaction. A certificate that was valid when a supplier relationship began may sit outside the recognised list today. Our walkthrough on how to verify a halal certificate shows the steps.

How to stay current

Three habits keep you ahead of status changes:

  • Watch the announcement section of the Halal Malaysia Portal at halal.gov.my. Withdrawal notices are published there, including effective dates and grace periods.
  • Compare editions of the recognised list. JAKIM publishes updated editions of the list, and each edition supersedes the previous one. A body present in one edition and absent from the next has lost or lapsed its recognition even if no separate notice was issued.
  • Record when you last checked. Certification status is time-sensitive. A verification done a year ago tells you what was true a year ago, nothing more.

If you deal with bodies in a specific market, start from our country pages and confirm each body against the current JAKIM list before contracting.

How this directory tracks changes

This directory reflects the latest gazetted edition of JAKIM’s recognised list. When JAKIM publishes a new edition or a withdrawal announcement, we reconcile our records against it: bodies that have left the list are marked accordingly rather than silently deleted, so the history of a status change stays visible.

Every body profile carries a verified date showing when we last checked it against JAKIM’s publications, and every guide, including this one, carries its own verification date. If the date on a page is older than the most recent JAKIM edition you are aware of, treat JAKIM’s publication as authoritative and ours as pending an update.

We are independent of JAKIM. Nothing here replaces the official list or the announcements on the Halal Malaysia Portal. What we add is a readable, dated layer on top of those publications, so that the question this page answers, whether a given body is still recognised, can be answered quickly and then confirmed at source.

Sources

  1. JAKIM, Halal Malaysia Portal, Withdrawal of Recognition of Foreign Halal Certification Bodies in France, Croatia, and China
  2. JAKIM, Halal Malaysia Portal, Withdrawal of Recognition of Foreign Halal Certification Body in Belgium
  3. Bernama, Halal Products By Three Foreign Certification Bodies Banned From Entering Malaysia

Verified 2026-07-04

Frequently asked questions

Is the China Islamic Association still recognised by JAKIM?

JAKIM withdrew recognition of the China Islamic Association effective 19 February 2025, together with bodies in France and Croatia. Companies certified by it were given until 19 August 2025 to obtain certification from another recognised body. Always confirm the current status against the latest list published by JAKIM before relying on any certificate.

What happens to products certified by a body that loses recognition?

JAKIM announcements set a grace period. Products already in Malaysia before the withdrawal, and shipments covered by valid certificates within the transition window, are handled under the conditions stated in the announcement. After the grace period ends, certificates from the withdrawn body are no longer accepted for import into Malaysia.

Can a certification body regain JAKIM recognition after withdrawal?

Yes. JAKIM has stated that withdrawn bodies are given time to make the required improvements and corrections, after which JAKIM reassesses them before deciding whether to reinstate recognition. A body that returns to the list will appear in a later edition of the published list.

How do I find out if a certification body has lost JAKIM recognition?

Check the announcement section of the Halal Malaysia Portal at halal.gov.my and compare the body against the most recent edition of the recognised list. This directory also records a verified date on every body profile so you can see when its status was last checked.

Does losing JAKIM recognition affect a body's status in other countries?

Not directly. JAKIM recognition only governs acceptance of certificates for the Malaysian market. A body withdrawn by JAKIM may still hold accreditations or recognitions from other authorities, and each importing country applies its own rules.

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