Certification Maintenance Exemptions

Unemployed/ In Transition

Most Certification Maintenance requirements may be waived if you are unemployed or in a transition period.

Under this exemption, you must earn 4 CM credits per quarter of the calendar year you were employed including law and ethics credits.

• Calculate the number of credits required within the last quarter of your reporting period with assistance of AICP staff.
• These CM credits must be reported before the end of your current two-year CM reporting period.
• Under this exemption, you may continue to use the AICP credential as long as AICP and APA dues are paid.
• You must submit a new exemption application for each two-year reporting period.
• Tip: If you become employed more than 3 months, start earning the minimum credits required — don't wait until the end of your reporting period.
• Tip: Members who are unemployed or in transition may apply to pay dues at a reduced rate or in monthly installments.

Below are subcategories of the Unemployed/ In Transition CM Exemption:

• Full or Nearly Full Unemployment: If you are completely unemployed for the entire two-year reporting period or employed for less than a quarter of a calendar year (full-time or part-time), you will be required to earn 0 CM credits (waiving the CM ethics and CM law credit requirements).
• Periodic Employment: If you are unemployed for any portion (more than 1 quarter of the year) of your current two-year reporting period, you will be required to complete the CM credit requirements for the portion that you are/were employed.

  Example 1: If you were employed full-time for the first year of your reporting period, and half of your second year of your reporting period, your CM credits due for this reporting period would be 24 CM credits (4 CM credits x 6 quarters); including 1.0 credit towards ethics, 1.0 credit for law, 1.0 credit for equity, and 1.0 credit for sustainability and resilience.
  
  Example 2: If you work on a project full-time for three months and are unemployed for the rest of the reporting period, your CM credit required would be 4 CM credits; including 1.0 credit towards ethics, 1.0 credit for law, 1.0 credit for equity and 1.0 credit for sustainability & resilience.

• Part-Time Employment: If you are in transition or working part-time, your requirements will be calculated proportionate to the number of hours worked.

  Example 1: If you work an average of 20 hours per week for the entire reporting period, then your CM requirements for the reporting period would be 16 CM credits (20 hours / 40 hours x 8 quarters x 4 CM); including 1.0 credit towards ethics, 1.0 credit for law, 1.0 credit for equity and 1.0 credit for sustainability & resilience.
  
  Example 2: If you work on a project part-time (20 hours per week) for six months and are unemployed for the rest of the two-year reporting period, your CM credits required would total 4 CM credits (20 hours / 40 hours x 2 quarters x 4 CM); including 1.0 credit towards ethics, 1.0 credit for law, 1.0 credit for equity and 1.0 credit for sustainability & resilience.

Life Members

Life Members are partially or completely exempt from Certification Maintenance requirements. An AICP member qualifies if they are a current and continuous APA member for 25 or more years, and are 65 or older. Life Members have two exemption options:

Option 1: You have the option to meet half the CM credit required (16 CM credits) including 1.0 credit each of ethics, law, equity and sustainability and resilience.

OR

Option 2: If you are a Life Member who meets the Retired Member criteria, then you qualify for a full exemption from CM requirements.

To request the Life Member exemption, please complete the Life Membership Application.

Retired Members

Retired Members are exempt from Certification Maintenance requirements. An AICP member qualifies if they are a current and continuous APA member for 10 or more years; are 65 or older; and are completely retired — excluding part-time non-planning related or nonprofessional work. Planners practicing part time or who were retired and return to the workforce must meet the full obligations of Certification Maintenance unless granted one of the exemptions below.

To request the Retired CM exemption, please complete the Retired Membership Application.

Foreign Practice

Planners practicing entirely outside the U.S. will be exempt from taking registered CM courses, although they will still be required to maintain certification through the creation of a Personal Professional Development Plan.

Members who are unable to engage in professional development activities while working abroad have the option of applying for a foreign residency exemption resulting in inactive membership status described below.

Please note, this exemption type requires a new exemption application and updated Personal Professional Development Plan for each reporting period.

The exemptions below may be granted to AICP members who wish to be in a temporary inactivate membership status. Under this status, AICP membership will be inactivated. The maximum consecutive number of years a member may claim an inactive status is four.

AICP members who wish to apply for inactive status:

• Must do so prior to the expiration of their membership.
• Must cease using the AICP credential during the period in which their membership is inactive.
• Must continue to abide by the AICP Code of Ethics.
• Must reinstate their AICP membership within four years of the effective date of their last AICP membership dues status and pay 20 percent of back AICP dues owed.
• Will not be required to pay AICP dues during the period in which their membership is inactive.
• Will not have access to the online CM log and not required to log CM credits during the inactive period.
• May continue to remain members of APA and their chapter. To learn about reduced APA membership dues rates please contact customer service or to request the unemployed/in-transition rate, please complete the Unemployed/ In Transition Application.

Parental Leave

An inactive membership status of up to four consecutive years may be granted for the birth or adoption of a child.

Military Service Leave

An inactive membership status of up to four consecutive years may be granted to members on active duty who are deployed overseas for either Temporary Duty (TDY) or Permanent Change of Station (PCS), or to members of the Armed Forces Reserve or National Guard who have been mobilized or deployed.

Health

An inactive membership status of up to four consecutive years may be granted for reasons of ill health.

Care leave

An inactive membership status of up to four consecutive years may be granted to members who need to stay at home to care for another person.

Foreign Residency

An inactive membership status of up to four consecutive years may be granted to members living outside of the U.S. Members living abroad may also wish to engage in developing a Professional Development Plan to maintain AICP membership during their time abroad.

Other

Other reasons (up to four consecutive years) for inactive membership.