Federation Tier

I. Formal Definition

The membership classification of an organisation or practitioner within the IFO4 federation, comprising observer, member, contributor, accredited, and steward tiers in ascending order of substantive commitment and conferred privilege. Tier is not the same as IFO4 Score: tier reflects the relationship to the federation, while score reflects the substantive posture. A high-scoring observer remains an observer until the membership steps are completed; a low-scoring accredited member retains tier privileges until the next attestation cycle subject to TGS-002:1.7.

II. Etymology

The tier construct was adopted in the federation's constitutive proceedings; the labels were chosen to mirror the participation gradient familiar from open standards bodies.

III. Federation Usage

Federation tier is published on every federation profile and on the verification card. Misrepresentation of tier is reported under TGS-002:1.7 and may result in suspension of privileges.

IV. Related Terms

• ifo4-score
• maturity-phase
• ufms
• tgs

V. Authoritative Citations

• UFMS-001:2.4UFMS Article II - Tier Definitions
• TGS-002:1.7TGS Title II - Tier Conduct

VI. Citation in BibTeX

@misc{ifo4_glossary_federation_tier,
  title        = {{Federation Tier}},
  author       = {{IFO4 Federation Editorial Board}},
  howpublished = {{IFO4 Federation Glossary, slug \texttt{federation-tier}}},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://ifo4.org/glossary/federation-tier},
  note         = {Category: Governance; key: FederationTier}
}

VII. Challenge This Definition

Federation members and accredited practitioners may challenge any entry under TGS-002:1.7. Filed challenges are routed to the editorial board, triaged into the revision register, and resolved in writing on the public docket. The slug remains stable through any revision.