ISO's national members pay subscriptions that meet the operational cost of ISO's Central Secretariat. The dues paid by each member are calculated as a proportion of their country's Gross National Product and trade figures. Another source of revenue is the sale of standards, which contributes more than a third of the budget.
The operations of the Central Secretariat in Geneva represent only about one fifth of the cost of our international standardizing activities . The remaining costs are borne by the organizations which manage the specific projects or loan experts to participate in the technical work. These organizations are, in effect, subsidizing the technical work by paying the travel costs of the experts and allowing them time to work on their ISO assignments. Such organizations and individuals make an essential and highly valued contribution to standardization.