Hi Aubrey, thanks for your question. Yes, it is true that you can lose your credential if you do not maintain it through the LEED Credential Maintenance Program.

The LEED Credential Maintenance Program (CMP) is designed to expand the knowledge and experience base of LEED Professionals while providing continuing professional development.

Continuing Education Hours for LEED

Beginning with the LEED Green Associate and LEED AP Operations + Maintenance (O+M) credentials, followed by LEED AP Homes, Building Design + Construction (BD+C), Interior Design + Construction (ID+C), and Neighbor Development (ND), all credentials awarded for passing any LEED examination given by the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI) must be maintained on a 2-year cycle through the accumulation of continuing education (CE) hours.

The GBCI reports that LEED professionals must earn their required CE hours during the 2-year period following the date GBCI awarded their credential. This 2-year period, called the CMP reporting period or, simply, reporting period, begins on the exam date or the CMP enrollment date and ends 2 years minus 1 day from the start date (except for LEED Professionals who passed the LEED Green Associate or a LEED AP with specialty exam before August 3, 2009*). LEED Professionals will continue on the same cycle unless the credential is not renewed.

At the end of the 2-year reporting period, LEED Professionals are required to have completed their continuing education requirements. If LEED Professionals do not complete these requirements and/or do not report their hours to GBCI, the credential expires. For more information on expiration, see the Non-compliance section of the CMP Guide.

The term “CE hours” refers to hours earned from credentialing maintenance activities. LEED APs must earn 30 CE hours biennially (6 of which must be LEED-specific hours and at least 3 of those 6 hours must be Rating System-specific hours) and LEED Green Associates must earn 15 CE hours biennially (3 of which must be LEED-specific hours) to maintain their credential. CE hours are calculated differently depending on the activity; see the Activities sections of the CMP Guide for an outline of credentialing maintenance activities and the CE hours possible.

Good luck!

Related Advice:

• Losing My Legacy LEED AP: Is it Necessary to Enroll in Credential Maintenance (CMP)?



• New LEED CMP Requirements: What Courses Can I Take?