In science, the term “reference procedure” may have several meanings and is used, for example, for procedures 

• that have such a high quality so that they are used for the assessment of the result quality of other procedures,
• that define measurement or test parameters,
• that are stipulated for measurement or testing by legal regulations. 

With regards to disinfectant testing, reference procedures are comparative procedures for evaluating the efficacy of disinfectants in accordance with specified European Norms (EN). 

Example: For hand disinfection, the following reference procedures are used: 

1. EN 1500 / hygienic hand disinfection:  
   1-minute rubbing with 2 x 3 ml 2-propanol (60 %, v/v)
2. EN 12791 / surgical hand disinfection an washing: 
   3-minute rubbing with 1-propanol (60 %, v/v)