Standards
Standards
A directory of public identifiers, vocabularies, data models, formats, regulations and registries relevant to defensible records.
Identifiers
Identifiers
Codes that distinguish a registered entity, instrument, product, substance, work, or record within a defined namespace.
- Central Index Key (CIK)
The SEC's identifier for a filer in its EDGAR submission system.
- ClinicalTrials.gov identifier (NCT number)
A stable identifier for a clinical study record on ClinicalTrials.gov.
- CUSIP
A nine-character identifier used for securities in North American markets.
- D-U-N-S Number
A proprietary nine-digit identifier for a business location in Dun & Bradstreet data.
- Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
A persistent identifier for a registered digital object or other referent.
- Economic Operators Registration and Identification (EORI)
An EU customs identifier for economic operators and, where relevant, other persons.
- European Case Law Identifier (ECLI)
A common identifier format for European judicial decisions.
- Financial Instrument Global Identifier (FIGI)
An open, twelve-character identifier for financial instruments and related market contexts.
- Global Location Number (GLN)
A GS1 identifier for parties and locations in business processes.
- Global Trade Item Number (GTIN)
A GS1 identifier for trade items at a defined packaging or presentation level.
- International Securities Identification Number (ISIN)
A twelve-character code for identifying a financial instrument under ISO 6166.
- Legal Entity Identifier (LEI)
A globally issued identifier for a legal entity participating in financial transactions.
- Market Identifier Code (MIC)
An ISO code for a trading venue or market segment.
- National Drug Code (NDC)
A U.S. identifier for a listed drug product and package configuration.
- ORCID iD
A persistent identifier that distinguishes contributors to research.
- Research Organization Registry (ROR) ID
An open identifier for research organizations.
- Unique Entity ID (UEI)
The entity identifier generated by SAM.gov for U.S. federal awards.
- Unique Ingredient Identifier (UNII)
An FDA-assigned identifier for a substance based on its defined identity.
- VAT identification number
A jurisdiction-specific tax registration identifier used in value-added tax administration.
- Wikidata item identifier (QID)
An identifier for a Wikidata item in a collaboratively maintained knowledge base.
Vocabularies
Vocabularies
Controlled terms and classifications that make categories comparable across records and organizations.
- Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification
A hierarchical classification for substances used in drug-utilization research.
- Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)
A controlled classification for the subject matter of public procurement in Europe.
- Harmonized System (HS) code
A hierarchical commodity classification used as the basis for customs tariffs.
- ISO 3166 country codes
Codes for countries, dependent territories, and subdivisions under ISO 3166.
- ISO 4217 currency codes
Alphabetic and numeric codes for currencies and certain funds.
- NACE classification
The European Union's statistical classification of economic activities.
- North American Industry Classification System (NAICS)
A hierarchical industry classification for establishments in North America.
- Schema.org
A shared vocabulary for structured descriptions of things on the web.
Data models
Data models
Defined relationships and semantics for expressing structured information across systems.
- Data Catalog Vocabulary (DCAT)
An RDF vocabulary for describing datasets and catalog distributions.
- Resource Description Framework (RDF)
A graph data model for statements about identified resources.
- Simple Knowledge Organization System (SKOS)
An RDF model for concepts, labels, and relationships in controlled vocabularies.
- W3C PROV
A family of specifications for representing provenance of entities, activities, and agents.
Formats
Formats
Serialization rules that let systems exchange structured data with predictable syntax.
- ISO 8601 date and time representation
A standard for representing dates, times, intervals, and related temporal values.
- JSON-LD
A JSON-based serialization for linked data and RDF-compatible statements.
Regulations
Regulations
Legal instruments that set obligations within a particular jurisdiction and scope.
Registries
Registries
Maintained lists that publish records under an identified authority and revision process.
- EU consolidated financial sanctions list
A consolidated EU data source for persons and entities subject to financial sanctions.
- OFAC Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List
A U.S. sanctions list of designated persons and entities published by OFAC.
How to use this directory
Each entry names the steward, links to the official source and says what the identifier or standard does and does not establish. The recurring lesson is that an identifier locates a record in a namespace. Whether the record is current, whether the entity named is the one a claim concerns, and whether the registration confers any status are separate facts with their own sources.
When an entry is cited in a record, keep the identifier as received, the steward's record as read, and the date it was read. Identifiers are retired, merged and reissued, and classification systems are revised, so a value without its edition or retrieval date cannot be compared reliably with a later one. The entries also say which neighbouring standards are commonly confused with it.
Elsewhere in the reference
- Glossary of terms used in the standards
- Methods: steps, checks and pitfalls
- Comparisons of approaches
- Resolving identity by rule
- Retaining source copies
- Legal Entity Identifier (LEI)
- W3C PROV
Background reading
Found an error on this page? See corrections for what counts as one, how to report it and the dated log.
Enquiry
Bring one entity you already argue about.
Send the entity, the sources you fuse to describe it today and who may read which of them. We reply with what a first record would cover and what it would need from you.
Or write to [email protected] in your own words.