Renew your CFP® Certification

Download the CFP® Certification: Policies, Renewal Requirements and Continuing Education Standards booklet (PDF)

Overview
Following initial certification and authorization to use the CFP®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and certification marks, the CFP® certification must be periodically renewed. By meeting CFP Board's ongoing competency requirements of continuing education (CE) and by adhering to CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Professional Standards (Code of Ethics) and Financial Planning Practice Standards (Practice Standards), CFP® certificants demonstrate to the public that they are individuals who have voluntarily agreed to meet high standards of professionalism in a changing financial world. Certificants' compliance with CFP Board's certification standards helps to ensure the integrity of the CFP® certification marks for the benefit of the public.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Effective January 1, 2006, CE taken by CFP® certificants to meet the renewal requirement must be taken from CE sponsors who are registered with CFP Board. Programs from a non-registered CE sponsor completed after this date will not be accepted for credit by CFP Board; programs completed before this date will be subject to review and acceptance by CFP Board.

Search for CE sponsors registered with CFP Board.

CFP® Certification Renewal
There are three renewal requirements: 1) a properly completed certification application, 2) a $360 certification fee (non-refundable) and 3) 30 hours of continuing education (CE). The renewal occurs every two years at the end of the certification period. Renewal information is sent to each CFP® certificant four months before the expiration date of their certification period. Certificants are encouraged to complete the certification renewal online by logging in to CFP Board's Web site. The application, fee and CE hours must be received by the expiration date in order to avoid certification expiration and a late fee.

Certification Period
The certification period expires on the last day of the renewal month. The expiration date is located on the CFP Board ID card and can also be accessed by logging in to CFP Board's Web site.

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Renewal Requirements
The three requirements for renewing the CFP® certification are as follows:

(1) Certification Application
A certification application must be properly completed to renew the CFP® certification. Along with contact and demographic information, an important part of the form is the acknowledgement of voluntary adherence to the terms and conditions of certification with CFP Board. The renewal process involves completing a statement disclosing any investigations or legal proceedings relating to professional or business conduct. CFP Board monitors certificants' ongoing compliance with its ethical standards in addition to investigating consumer complaints, reviewing reports from other regulatory bodies and the press, and searching FINRA's Central Registration Depository system.

If it appears that a certificant may have violated CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility (Code of Ethics) or Financial Planning Practice Standards (Practice Standards), CFP Board has the right to investigate the individual's alleged behavior according to the Disciplinary Rules and Procedures. If it is found that the individual is in violation of the Code of Ethics or Practice Standards, CFP Board may impose discipline ranging from a private letter of censure or public admonition to suspension or revocation of the right to use the CFP® marks. CFP Board reserves the right to verify the accuracy of the completed statement and routinely conducts audits to ensure compliance with disclosure requirements.

(2) Certification Fee
As part of the renewal requirements, CFP® certificants pay a certification fee currently set at $360 for the two-year period. A late fee of $75 is incurred if the certification requirements are not fulfilled by the renewal date. To avoid the late fee, the CE requirement must be fulfilled and CFP Board must receive a properly-completed renewal application and payment of fee(s) by the renewal date. All fees are non-refundable.

The certification fee, in conjunction with other sources of revenue including exam fees, supports the operations of CFP Board in fulfilling its mission statement and objectives. Some of these activities include protection of the CFP® certification marks; enforcement of CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Practice Standards; educating the public about the CFP® marks; and development and administration of the CFP® Certification Examination.

The certification fee is non-refundable, and CFP Board's acceptance of a fee payment does not guarantee or imply that an individual's certification will be renewed. All renewal requirements must be completed to renew CFP® certification.

(3) Continuing Education (CE)
The CE requirement is effective immediately upon certification. CE hours for new certificants are prorated into the two-year cycle based on their renewal month. Information about your specific CE requirements can be obtained by logging in to CFP Board's Web site, where you may also report the CE hours you have completed.

All reported CE hours must be processed by CFP Board on or before the expiration date of the current certification period in order to avoid certification expiration.

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Reminders
CFP Board sends several reminders to certificants in the months and weeks before the certification expiration date. These reminders alert certificants to the possibility of certification expiration and the late fee that can be assessed if the certification is not renewed on time. Certificants are encouraged to renew their certification online, or certificants can contact CFP Board if they need printed forms or instructions and information on renewing their certification.

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Late Fees
The certification application, fee and reported CE hours must be received prior to the expiration date to ensure the information is processed before the certification expires. CFP® certificants are encouraged to log in to CFP Board's Web site to complete the certification renewal application, pay the non-refundable certification fee and report CE hours well before the expiration date so that CFP Board can answer questions or assist with any issues and so that the information can be processed prior to the certification expiration date.

If a properly-completed certification application, non-refundable certification fee payment and report of acceptable CE hours are not submitted and processed by the last day of an individual's renewal month, a late fee of $75 is assessed. To avoid this late fee, the information and payment should be completed at least a week before the certification expires.

Administrative Service Fees
A non-refundable fee will be charged to cover the administrative costs of returned checks and credit card charges not honored by our bank.

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Noncompliance with Renewal Requirements

Reminder Notice
Six days after the certification period has expired, a reminder notice is sent to individuals who have not completed all renewal requirements. Such individuals are classified in CFP Board’s records as “not certified” and are no longer authorized to use the CFP® marks. The notice specifies which renewal requirements have not been completed and also advises the individual that a late fee has been assessed. Prompt action should be taken to correct any deficiency.

Deficiency Notice
Forty-five days after the certification period has expired, a notice of deficiency is sent to individuals who have not completed renewal requirements.

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Relinquishment of CFP® Certification
Individuals who have not met the certification requirements within 90 days of the original due date are subject to additional requirements to reinstate the certification. A notice is sent to individuals advising them that, due to their failure to complete the renewal requirements, they are deemed to have relinquished the right to use the CFP® marks. Continued use of the marks in such circumstances is viewed by CFP Board as unauthorized use. CFP Board considers unauthorized use an extremely serious matter and is prepared to take necessary steps to protect its certification marks in such cases.

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Voluntary Relinquishment of CFP® Certification
Individuals who are currently certified and not under review by CFP Board's professional review department may choose to voluntarily relinquish their certification. Individuals must notify CFP Board, either in writing or by submitting the appropriate form, that they voluntarily relinquish their rights to use the CFP® certification marks. Please note that certification fees paid to CFP Board are non-refundable. Individuals who are not certified because they did not timely renew their certification are considered relinquished and do not need to submit a voluntary relinquishment form.

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Reinstatement of CFP® Certification
An individual may request reinstatement of the right to use the CFP® certification marks after voluntary relinquishment, or failure to renew within 90 days of certification expiration, by applying to CFP Board and paying a non-refundable $100 reinstatement fee. A reinstatement application may be obtained from CFP Board by request or can be downloaded from CFP Board's secure Web site. Upon receipt of the application and fee, CFP Board will instruct the individual how to complete the necessary forms (certification application, notice of appropriate fees and/or reporting of required CE hours).

Applicants for reinstatement must complete and submit all reinstatement requirements within 90 days after submitting the reinstatement application. If all of the reinstatement requirements are not completed within 90 days, the individual must reapply and pay the non-refundable $100 reinstatement application fee again. Each reinstatement application is valid for 90 days.

After the reinstatement requirements have been received at CFP Board, a disciplinary background check is conducted for each applicant. Once all requirements have been met, a written confirmation and current CFP Board ID card are sent to the certificant. Individuals are not certified and cannot use the CFP® marks until the entire reinstatement process is complete.

In the event that an application for reinstatement is denied as a result of any disciplinary action taken by CFP Board's Disciplinary and Ethics Commission, the applicant may appeal to the Appeals Committee pursuant to CFP Board's Disciplinary Rules and Procedures.

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Continuing Education Requirements for Reinstatement
To reinstate, an applicant must report CE hours as follows:

• If applying for reinstatement within one year after the certification expiration date, applicants must report outstanding CE hours to CFP Board prior to reinstatement.
  
• If applying for reinstatement more than one year, but less than five years, after the certification expiration, applicants must report all outstanding CE hours, including the number of CE hours accrued after the certification expiration date (CE accrues at a monthly rate of 1.25 hours). This accrual continues until the individual reinstates or five years have passed. Applicants must report the accrued number of CE hours to CFP Board prior to reinstatement. These hours may not be more than two years old at the time of reinstatement. Upon reinstatement, the applicant will be assigned a prorated CE requirement for the reporting period in which his or her certification is reinstated to be reported at the end of that reporting period. CE hours reported for reinstatement may not be used toward the prorated requirement for the current reporting period of the next certification renewal.
  
• Five years after the certification expiration, applicants must pass the current CFP® Certification Examination as a condition of reinstatement in lieu of the CE requirement.

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Additional CFP Board Policies

Policy on the Release of CFP® Certificant Information
CFP Board, either through telephone or e-mail responses or through its Web site "Search for a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professional" function may provide any of the following information:

• Whether the person(s) has ever been certified by CFP Board, the date of that certification, and, if not currently certified, the date on which certification lapsed or was otherwise terminated.
• Whether the person(s) has indicated he/she is in the practice of financial planning.
• Any past and/or current public disciplinary actions against the person(s) by CFP Board.
• The business name, address and phone number of the person(s).
• The renewal date for the person(s) current CFP® certification.

From time to time CFP Board provides this same information in the form of a list to education providers, industry organizations, associations or businesses related to the financial planning industry as CFP Board deems appropriate. A fee is charged for the list, and may be used one-time only. Certificants may opt-out of being included on these lists by selecting the "opt-out" box located in the Contact Information section of your online CFP Board account, at the bottom of the online Certification Application form or by e-mailing or faxing notification to the numbers listed above in this section.

CFP Board may provide information other than that listed above, including but not limited to social security numbers, to government and self regulatory organizations, to allow for the proper identification of person(s) associated with the requesting agency.

CFP Board reserves the right to deny any requests for information.

Policy Exception Requests
CFP Board enforces the policies and requirements for CFP® certification in a consistent manner. Exceptions to established policies and requirements are granted in only the rarest of circumstances. CFP® certificants and applicants for CFP® certification who wish to request exceptions to specific policies or requirements of CFP Board may complete and submit a Policy Exception Request Form. The request will be reviewed by CFP Board staff, and a written determination letter sent to the requestor by certified mail, postmarked no later than thirty days from the date the request is received at CFP Board. Individuals unhappy with a decision stated in a determination letter may submit a written appeal to CFP Board’s Policy Exception Committee. Written appeals must be received at CFP Board no later than thirty days from the requestor's receipt of the determination letter. The Policy Exception Committee meets four times each year (once per quarter). The decision of the Policy Exception Committee is final.

CFP Board
Attn: Policy Exception Committee
1425 K Street, NW, Suite 500
Washington, DC 20005