Frequently Asked Questions

CHSPS is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit standards and accreditation body. It publishes standards for certification programs, education providers, courses, assessment-based certificates and related assessment systems, and accredits organizations and programs against those standards through conflict-screened review and an independent decision committee. CHSPS accredits organizations and programs — it does not certify individual professionals. Its standards, fees, policies and verification service are all published on this website. See Organization Facts for legal-identity details.

That an independent, conflict-screened review found your program conforms to the published CHSPS standards — covering governance, impartiality, defensible assessment, candidate rights, security, honest claims and continuous improvement — and that an independent committee granted accreditation on that evidence.

Because every part of it is inspectable: published standards, published fees, conflict-screened reviewers, an independent decision committee, a Public Verification that shows suspensions as well as grants, and a complaints process open to anyone. Trust is built from verifiable structure, and CHSPS publishes its structure.

Assigned reviewers are screened for conflicts of interest before every engagement, and the accreditation decision itself is made by an independent decision committee — never by the reviewer alone and never by anyone with a commercial relationship to the applicant. Reviewers and the decision committee do not see education purchases, membership status, sponsorship or payment records. Adverse decisions carry a right of appeal to an independent panel. The full governance model is described in the decisions and handbook pages.

No. CHSPS accreditation evaluates organizations and programs. Individuals are certified by the certification programs themselves — which may state that their certification is granted by a CHSPS-accredited program, per the mark policy.

No. Accreditation does not confer governmental authorization to practice a profession. Licensure comes only from a governmental authority.

CHSPS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. See Organization Facts for the public legal-identity information CHSPS publishes on this website.

No — structurally, not just as a promise. Under the published Sponsorship, Grants & External Funding Policy (CHSPS-DEV-600), supporter status never appears in any review or decision file, decision bodies are not told who supports CHSPS, personnel are separated, and funding conditioned on any accreditation outcome is declined. External funding relationships are documented and subject to conflict review, separation controls and Board oversight under CHSPS-DEV-600. CHSPS does not publish a supporter roster.

CHSPS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Whether a particular grant, gift or sponsorship payment is deductible can depend on the nature of the payment and any benefits received; CHSPS does not provide tax advice.

On the Public Accreditation Actions register (CHSPS-ACT-800): suspensions, withdrawals, revocations, reinstatements and denials upheld on appeal, each with the record holder, number, action and effective date. Actions are also reflected immediately in the affected record's status at chsps.org/verify. When no actions are in effect, the register says so explicitly — an empty register is a result, not an omission.

Openly and with protection. Complaints about CHSPS — its decisions, personnel or processes — go through Complaints & Appeals, which is open to anyone. Protected reporting and non-retaliation are guaranteed under CHSPS-GOV-001 — Code of Conduct, so staff, reviewers, applicant personnel and members of the public can raise concerns without fear of reprisal. Security vulnerabilities in the website or portal have their own route at Security & Responsible Disclosure. The full accountability picture is at Accountability & Financials.

CHSPS maintains 11 accreditation pathways — 5 general and 6 specialty — plus 5 defined offering standards, for 16 active program codes in total. Core pathways: Certification Program Accreditation (CHSPS-CERT-200), Education Provider Accreditation (CHSPS-EDP-300), Course Accreditation (CHSPS-COURSE-400), Assessment-Based Certificate & Micro-Credential Accreditation (CHSPS-ABC-250) and Work-Based Learning & Competency Program Accreditation (CHSPS-WBL-450). Specialty accreditations: High-Stakes Assessment Integrity (CHSPS-HSAI-210), Remote Examination Administration (CHSPS-REA-220), Medication Safety Systems (CHSPS-MSS-310), Healthcare Workforce Competency Assurance (CHSPS-WCA-410), Clinical Education Quality (CHSPS-CEQ-510) and AI Governance & Assurance (CHSPS-AIG-610). Technology certifications: AI Proctoring & Assessment Technology Certification (CHSPS-APS-710) and AI Learning & Tutor Platform Certification (CHSPS-ALT-720). Scope attachments to an existing accreditation: the AI-Assisted Assessment Endorsement (CHSPS-HSAI-215), the AI Learning & Tutor Assurance Provider Supplement (CHSPS-ALT-320) and the Telehealth Workforce Competency Scope (CHSPS-WCA-415). Start from the accreditation overview.

If you operate a certification of persons with an exam and renewal cycle, use Certification Program Accreditation. If you deliver continuing education or training as an organization, use Education Provider Accreditation; a single defined course fits Course Accreditation; assessment-based certificates and micro-credentials fit ABC Accreditation; structured apprenticeship-style programs fit Work-Based Learning Accreditation. Specialty accreditations recognize defined operational systems such as remote exam administration or medication safety, and the APS and ALT Platform certifications cover assessment and learning technology products. Unsure? The free eligibility inquiry confirms the right pathway before any fee applies.

A certification attests to assessed competence, is typically time-limited and renewable, and is addressed through Certification Program Accreditation. A course-completion or learning certificate documents completion or learning from a defined educational offering; Course Accreditation does not convert that certificate into professional certification. The claim must match the actual program type.

Certification Program Accreditation runs on a five-year cycle. Education Provider, Course, Assessment-Based Certificate, Work-Based Learning and the six specialty accreditations run on three-year cycles. The AI Proctoring (APS) and AI Learning & Tutor Platform (ALTP) certifications run on two-year cycles. Endorsements, supplements and added scopes follow the accreditation record they attach to. Every accredited organization also completes an annual maintenance report and annual fee each anniversary; renewal review happens at the end of the cycle.

They extend an existing accredited scope without a separate full accreditation: the AI-Assisted Assessment Endorsement (CHSPS-HSAI-215) attaches to High-Stakes Assessment Integrity Accreditation, the AI Learning & Tutor Assurance Provider Supplement (CHSPS-ALT-320) attaches to an accredited education provider, and the Telehealth Workforce Competency Scope (CHSPS-WCA-415) attaches to Healthcare Workforce Competency Assurance Accreditation. Each is reviewed at a reduced fee when done concurrently with the host review, or can be added to a current accreditation later, and is verified under the host accreditation record.

Accreditation attaches to each program: every certification and course gets its own review, decision, number and verification records. Efficiency attaches to the organization: the Core Requirements are reviewed once and credited across a coordinated application, additional certification programs cost $2,500 instead of $6,500, course volumes price down in tiers, and one consolidated annual report covers the whole portfolio. List everything in one free eligibility inquiry and CHSPS recommends the structure.

Every pathway has its own published standard: CHSPS-CERT-200 for certification programs, CHSPS-EDP-300 for education providers, CHSPS-COURSE-400 for courses, CHSPS-ABC-250 for assessment-based certificates, CHSPS-WBL-450 for work-based learning, the 210–610 series for specialty accreditations and the 710/720 standards for technology certifications. Standards access is free — read them in the Standards Library before you apply, and use the Standards Explorer to browse requirement domains.

Legally established organizations operating a certification program, a continuing-education system, a specific course, or a defined specialty system within an open CHSPS accreditation scope. Organizations still developing a program may submit the free eligibility inquiry and receive a written determination of pathway and timing — but full accreditation review requires the operating evidence specified in the standards.

Yes. The eligibility inquiry is always free, requires no payment details and creates no obligation. CHSPS confirms whether your program fits an open accreditation scope and which pathway applies. Fees begin only if a qualified application proceeds to a signed engagement — and the application fee is credited toward your first review. Start at eligibility.

CHSPS planning windows are approximately 4–9 months for certification programs, 3–6 months for education providers, and 6–12 weeks for individual courses, depending on scope, evidence readiness, findings and applicant response time. Stage-specific service targets are published on the Accreditation Process page.

Free eligibility inquiry, then application with scope confirmation, then the application fee opens the engagement, then evidence submission organized by requirement domain, then independent conflict-screened review, then written findings with a corrective-action window where needed, then an independent decision committee decision, then award — certificate, seal and public verification record. You track every stage, task and document in your My CHSPS account. The full sequence is described in the process guide and review stages.

Evidence is organized by the requirement domains of your pathway's standard — for example fifteen domains for a certification program and fifteen for a course — covering areas like governance, impartiality, assessment defensibility, candidate rights, security and continuous improvement. Your My CHSPS workspace lists each domain with plain-language guidance on what satisfies it, and documents are uploaded and assigned per requirement. See evidence & documentation.

You receive written findings tied to specific standards, with a corrective-action window for addressable gaps before the decision is completed.

Yes. Accreditation may be denied when the applicable requirements are not met. A denial includes documented reasons, an appeal right under the published procedure, and the ability to reapply when the identified gaps have been addressed.

Any adverse accreditation decision can be appealed within 30 days of the decision notice. Appeals go to an independent panel that was not involved in the original review or decision, and the outcome is documented in writing. The process, grounds and timelines are published on Complaints & Appeals.

The full staged schedule is published on the Fees & Payment page. The eligibility review is always free; fees begin only when a qualified application proceeds, and no fee ever purchases an outcome.

Application fees on signed agreement: Certification Program Accreditation $1,500; Education Provider Accreditation $950; Work-Based Learning Accreditation $950; Course Accreditation $400; Assessment-Based Certificate Accreditation $650; Specialty Accreditation $1,250; AI Proctoring & Assessment Technology Certification $2,500; AI Learning & Tutor Platform Certification $1,800. For CERT, EDP, WBL, COURSE, ABC and specialty pathways the application fee is credited toward the first review, so it is never money lost on a successful engagement. Full staged tables: Fees & Payment.

Total initial review including the application fee: certification program $6,500 (balance $5,000 at evidence submission); education provider system review $3,900; work-based learning $4,000; assessment-based certificate first program $2,500; course review $1,200 per course ($800 first-course balance after credit); specialty accreditation $5,500. The APS technology certification is a $2,500 application fee plus a $7,000 system evaluation; the ALT Platform certification is $1,800 plus a $5,200 evaluation. Additional programs in the same organization use reduced additional-program fees, and concurrent second pathways receive 15% off. All amounts are from the published, version-controlled Fee Schedule 2026.1.

Annual accreditation fees each anniversary: certification programs $1,800; education providers $1,200; work-based learning $1,200; courses $350 per course (capped at $3,150 per organization); assessment-based certificates $600 per program (capped at $5,400 per organization); specialty accreditations $1,500. Annual surveillance for technology certifications: APS $3,500; ALT Platform $2,500. Attached scopes: AI-Assisted Assessment Endorsement $400; ALT Provider Supplement $300; Telehealth Workforce Competency Scope $300. The annual fee is invoiced through My CHSPS Billing alongside your annual maintenance report.

Before the work they fund — never after, and never as a surprise. The application fee is due at the signed engagement and opens the review; the annual accreditation fee must be settled before your annual maintenance report can be submitted; the renewal review fee must be settled before a renewal submission is accepted. Every amount is invoiced in My CHSPS Billing with secure card payment, and the portal opens payment right in the submission flow when something is due. Fee Schedule 2026.1 is version-controlled and later revisions do not apply retroactively to an active engagement.

No. No fee ever purchases an outcome: reviewers and the decision committee never see billing, education-purchase, membership or sponsorship records, and payment status appears nowhere in a review file. Unpaid required fees pause processing — an application, maintenance report or renewal simply waits until the invoice settles — but payment never buys approval and non-payment is never punished with an adverse quality finding.

Four, all published: a $150 late filing fee applies after the 30-day cure period for an overdue annual report or annual maintenance obligation (it does not compound); a late-renewal fee of 15% of the renewal review fee (minimum $150) applies to a complete renewal first submitted fewer than 90 days before expiration; reinstatement after an administrative suspension is $250 once the noncompliance is corrected; and post-expiration reinstatement is $500 plus the applicable renewal review fee, available only within 90 days after expiration. Details: Fees & Payment.

No. CHSPS fees and paid products are non-refundable once paid, including application, review, annual, renewal, late, reinstatement and change fees, verification letters, education purchases and membership dues. Withdrawal, cancellation or non-use does not create a refund right. Duplicate or erroneous charges are corrected, and any non-waivable rights under applicable law remain unaffected. No fee purchases or influences an accreditation outcome. Billing questions may be reported to CHSPS billing. The complete policy is published at Refund Policy.

Every payment surface — cart checkout, in-portal purchases and secure invoice payment links — includes a compact Terms & Refund Policy notice with the full text one click away, and payment proceeds only with your agreement to the Terms of Use and the Refund Policy. Your acceptance is recorded with the payment. Fee amounts always come from the published Fee Schedule, and later fee revisions never apply retroactively to an active engagement.

Everything lives in My CHSPS Billing: open invoices with secure hosted payment links, your full order history, and a downloadable PDF receipt for every settled order. Invoices are issued automatically at each lifecycle stage — application, annual maintenance, renewal, changes — so finance teams always have a document trail without asking.

An official accreditation certificate (PDF) carrying your accreditation number, approved scope, effective and expiration dates and a QR code that resolves to your live verification record; the CHSPS accreditation seal files with usage rules; an embeddable live verification badge for your website; and your public verification record at chsps.org/verify. All artifacts are issued and re-downloadable in your My CHSPS account, and are reissued automatically if your record is amended.

Scanning it opens your live public verification record — a link of the form https://chsps.org/verify?accreditation=YOUR-NUMBER. Because it resolves to the live record rather than a static image, a scanned certificate always shows current status: a suspended or expired accreditation is visible as such no matter how the certificate is presented. This makes printed and forwarded copies self-verifying.

Only organizations with active accredited status, within their listed scope, with the accreditation number adjacent — per the Accreditation Mark & Claims Policy. Use of the seal is governed by the Accreditation Mark & Claims Policy and must match the official verification record.

Yes. On personal LinkedIn profiles, add it under Licenses & certifications with CHSPS as the issuing organization, your accreditation number as the credential ID and your verification link as the credential URL — your My CHSPS award page has a one-click button that pre-fills all of it. LinkedIn company pages have no certifications section, so organizations share a post instead; the portal provides ready share links for LinkedIn, Facebook and X that include the accreditation number and verification link. All public claims must follow the Accreditation Mark & Claims Policy.

Report material and operational changes from your accreditation record page in My CHSPS. A focused scope-change review within an already accredited program starts at $900; acknowledgment or focused material-change review runs $0–$1,500 depending on what changed; adding a separate certification program uses the $2,500 additional-program fee. Ownership changes, pauses and other edge cases have guided routes under special situations.

CHSPS does not publish a browseable public accreditation roster or listing. When an exact accreditation number is verified at https://chsps.org/verify, the public verification result returns the record holder, approved scope, accreditation number, effective and expiration dates, and current status. Applicant, deferred and denied matters are not represented as accredited.

Enter the exact CHSPS accreditation number at https://chsps.org/verify. A matching current public verification record confirms the record holder, approved scope, dates and status for that number. If the submitted number does not return a current record, the claim is not verified through CHSPS public verification. Formal third-party written verification is available as the Official Accreditation Verification Letter for $100 USD from the same verification page.

By design, verification is exact-number lookup rather than a browseable roster. Every legitimate accreditation claim must display its accreditation number, so anyone can check the one authoritative live record at chsps.org/verify — while lookalike names, stale copies of lists and implied endorsements get no foothold. If an organization cannot produce a number that verifies, the claim should not be relied on.

Yes — an Official Accreditation Verification Letter is available for $100 USD, ordered directly from the verification page after a successful record match. It is a signed formal confirmation of the record holder, scope, dates and status as of issuance, suitable for regulators, procurement files and employers who need documentation beyond the online record.

Report the claim. A valid current claim must match the official verification record exactly — holder, scope, number and status. CHSPS reviews reported claims under the Accreditation Mark & Claims Policy and acts on misuse of the seal, misstated scope and claims by organizations that hold no current record.

Four things: file the annual maintenance report each anniversary with supporting documents per requirement domain; pay the annual accreditation fee; keep your record current by reporting material and operational changes when they happen; and use the seal and accreditation claims only per the mark policy. All of it runs through the Maintenance tab of your accreditation record in My CHSPS. See maintaining accreditation.

Your accreditation record in My CHSPS opens a guided report each cycle: structured questions about changes, complaints, assessment performance and continued conformity, with supporting documents uploaded per requirement domain so evidence lands exactly where reviewers need it. CHSPS staff review the filing and either accept it or request specific changes; you see status, requested changes and history in the record's Maintenance tab, and drafts save as you go.

The annual accreditation fee is invoiced in My CHSPS Billing with your maintenance cycle, and the maintenance report cannot be submitted until it settles — the submit flow opens secure payment right there and continues automatically once the invoice is paid. If the annual obligation goes overdue, a 30-day cure period applies; after it, the published $150 late filing fee is added (it does not compound daily).

You get a 30-day cure period first. After it, the $150 late filing fee applies, and continued noncompliance can lead to administrative suspension — which is visible in public verification. Reinstatement after an administrative suspension is $250 once the underlying noncompliance is corrected and properly due amounts are satisfied. The fastest path is simply filing inside the cure window; the portal shows the deadline and outstanding items on your record's Maintenance tab.

Your renewal window opens in My CHSPS 270 days before expiration, and CHSPS targets submission about six months out so review completes comfortably before the term ends. The renewal review fee must be settled before the renewal submission is accepted — the portal collects it in the submit flow. A complete renewal first submitted fewer than 90 days before expiration triggers the late-renewal fee, and accreditation ends at the published expiration date with no automatic grace period, so early is the only safe schedule.

Re-accreditation review fees: certification programs $4,500 on the five-year cycle; education providers $2,600, courses $800 per course, assessment-based certificates $1,500, work-based learning $3,000 and specialty accreditations $3,500 on their three-year cycles; APS recertification $6,500 and ALT Platform recertification $4,500 on two-year cycles. Attached scopes renew with their host record: AI-Assisted Assessment Endorsement $900, ALT Provider Supplement $600, Telehealth Workforce Competency Scope $700. All amounts are in the published Fee Schedule 2026.1.

Yes. A complete renewal first submitted fewer than 90 days before expiration carries a late-renewal fee of 15% of the applicable renewal review fee, minimum $150. It covers expedited administrative and review work — it does not guarantee completion before expiration, and it never affects the review outcome. Submitting inside the normal window avoids it entirely.

If a timely renewal is not pending and no written continuation applies, accreditation ends at the close of the published expiration date. Current mark use stops and verification shows the historical record as Expired. CHSPS may accept reinstatement within 90 days; after that, the current initial accreditation pathway applies. Read the expiration & reinstatement guide.

Two situations. After an administrative suspension: correct the underlying noncompliance, satisfy properly due amounts and pay the $250 reinstatement fee. After expiration: within 90 days CHSPS may accept a reinstatement request for $500 plus the applicable renewal review fee — the record shows Expired until reinstatement completes. Beyond 90 days after expiration there is no reinstatement path; the current initial accreditation pathway applies. Request either route from your accreditation record in My CHSPS.

No — and buying it earns no advantage. Reviewers never see education purchase records. Education exists to help you prepare more systematically, not to sell outcomes.

The Accreditation-Ready orientation webinar is free. Other live webinars, workshops and team sessions use the prices shown in the current Education Catalog. A recording is provided only when the offering or participant confirmation says so.

Add it to your cart from any page that offers it and complete a $0 order — no payment details are ever requested for free items. The order attaches the PDF to your My CHSPS account, where it stays available for re-download; new users can check out with just an email and claim their account right after. Free CHSPS webinars work the same way: register with your email and a free account is created for you.

$395 per person for the live online workshop (two half-days), with a five-seat team bundle at $1,495. Current sessions, dates and any other listed offerings are on the workshop page and in the education catalog. As with all CHSPS education, participation provides no advantage in any accreditation decision.

Membership is an annual benefits program with published education discounts, standards updates and participation notices. It is open to everyone in the field and completely firewalled from accreditation: reviewers and the Decision Committee never see membership records, and dues never discount accreditation fees.

The free account portal where the entire relationship runs: eligibility inquiries and applications, per-domain evidence upload with guidance, invoices, secure payment and PDF receipts, annual maintenance and renewal filings, your certificates, seal files and promotion tools, and notifications for every task and deadline. Applicant teams and accredited organizations use the same account throughout the accreditation lifecycle. Sign in or create an account at My CHSPS.

Yes — every order, including $0 orders for free resources, runs through a My CHSPS account so your materials, receipts and course access stay in one place and remain re-downloadable. You can check out as a guest with just your email and claim the account immediately afterward; nothing about an education account creates any accreditation obligation.

Contact CHSPS with application, billing or standards questions — messages about an active engagement are routed to staff who can see your record's context. For situations that do not fit the normal process — ownership changes, application pauses, deadline conflicts, sensitive evidence, payment issues, partial renewals — start from the guided routes on special situations.

The complaints process is open to anyone — candidates, employers, regulators and the public, not just applicants. Complaints about an accredited program, about a claim, or about CHSPS itself are filed through Complaints & Appeals, are documented and tracked, and are handled by personnel independent of any commercial relationship. Questionable accreditation claims can also go straight to Report a claim.