1.The tasks related to accreditation pursuant to this Regulation shall be carried out by the national accreditation bodies appointed pursuant to Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) No 765/2008.
2.Where a Member State decides to allow the certification of verifiers that are natural persons, under this Regulation the tasks related to the certification of those verifiers shall be entrusted to a national authority other than the national accreditation body appointed pursuant to Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) No 765/2008.
3.Where a Member State decides to use the option laid down in paragraph 2, it shall ensure that the national authority concerned meets the requirements of this Regulation, including those laid down in Article 71 of this Regulation, and provide the required documentary evidence in accordance with Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 765/2008.
4.A national accreditation body shall be a member of the body recognised under Article 14 of that Regulation (EC) No 765/2008.
5.A national accreditation body shall be entrusted with the operation of accreditation as a public authority activity and be granted formal recognition by the Member State, if accreditation is not operated directly by public authorities.
6.For the purposes of this Regulation, the national accreditation body shall carry out its functions in accordance with the requirements set out in the harmonised standard referred to in Annex III.