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Purpose: The ICRU has published new recommendations for ionizing radiation dosimetry. In this work, the effect of recommendations on the water‐to‐air and graphite‐to‐air restricted mass electronic stopping power ratios (sw, air and sg, air) and the individual perturbation correction factors Pi was calculated. The effect on the beam quality conversion factors kQ for reference dosimetry of high‐energy photon beams was estimated for all ionization chambers listed in the Addendum to AAPM's TG‐51 protocol. Methods: The sw, air, sg, air, individual Pi, and kQ were calculated using EGSnrc Monte Carlo code system and key data of both ICRU report 37 and ICRU report 90. First, the Pi and kQ were calculated using precise models of eight ionization chambers: NE2571 (Nuclear Enterprise), 30013, 31010, 31021 (PTW), Exradin A12, A12S, A1SL (Standard imaging), and FC‐65P (IBA). In this simulation, the radiation sources were one 60Co beam and ten photon beams with nominal energy between 4 MV and 25 MV. Then, the change in kQ for ionization chambers listed in the Addendum to AAPM's TG‐51 protocol was calculated by changing the specification of the simple‐model of ionization chamber. The simple‐models were made with only cylindrical component modules. In this simulation, the radiation sources of 60Co beam and 24 MV photon beam were used. Results: The significant changes (p < 0.05) were observed for sw, air, sg, air, the wall correction factor Pwall, and the waterproofing sleeve correction factor Psleeve. The decrease in sw, air varied from −0.57% for a 60Co beam to −0.36% for the highest beam quality. The decrease in sg, air varied from −0.72% to −1.12% in the same range. The changes in Pwall and Psleeve were up to 0.41% and 0.14% and those maximum changes were observed for the 60Co beam. All changes in the central electrode correction factor Pcel, the stem correction factor Pstem, and the replacement correction factor Prepl were from −0.02% to 0.12%. Those changes were statistically insignificant (p = 0.07 or more) and were independent of photon energy. The change in kQ was mainly characterized by the change in sw, air, Pwall, and Psleeve. The relationship between the change in kQ and the beam quality index was linear approximately. The changes in kQ of the simple‐models were agreed with those of the precise‐models within 0.08%. Conclusion: The effects of ICRU‐90 recommendations on kQ for the ionization chambers listed in the Addendum to AAPM's TG‐51 protocol were from −0.15% to 0.30%. To remove the known systematic effect on the clinical reference dosimetry, the kQ based on ICRU‐37 should be updated to the kQ based on ICRU‐90. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]