Certification Renewal

Annual Renewal of Certification

Certification will expire one year from the last day of the month in which you were initially certified. For example, if your certification was awarded on October 20, 2022, your certification will expire on October 31, 2023. You can view your renewal date on your LSLS certificate. Certified LSL Specialists are required to pay a renewal fee (US$125) on an annual basis and will receive a reminder notice at least 30 days before the due date of their renewal documentation.

All LSL Specialists renewing certification must do so through the LSL Registry. Certified LSL Specialists have already met initial certification requirements and do not need to enroll in the Registry. Instead, professionals renewing certification are asked to complete and update information in the Registry at the time of certification renewal.

Renew LSLS Certification via the LSL Registry

The LSL Registry allows centralized data management of all certification activities, including renewal. The Academy can more effectively support all certified LSL Specialists when the renewal and continuing education documents are submitted digitally. The Academy can also more effectively communicate with certified LSL Specialists regarding certification activities.

One of the advantages of the Registry is that any professional may complete and update their professional profile at any time. Keeping an updated profile allows the Academy and others (e.g. potential clients/families/employers/mentees) to have current information about you. With your approval, that information can be shared with the public-facing Locate a Listening and Spoken Language Specialist Directory.

Biennial Requirement of 15 CEU Hours

Every two years, certified LSL Specialists (LSLS Cert. AVT and LSLS Cert. AVEd) must complete their annual certification renewal in the LSL Registry and upload documentation of 15 hours of pre-approved LSLS continuing education/professional development as part of maintaining LSLS certification. Only CEUs earned during the two-year certification maintenance period prior to the renewal date will be accepted for renewal; CEUs cannot be carried over into future two-year certification maintenance periods. The types of pre-approved continuing education can be found on the AG Bell Academy website: https://agbellacademy.org/continuing-education.

Have questions? Please email academy@agbell.org (English) or academia@agbell.org (Spanish).

• Recertification CEU Requirements
• Find CEU Activities

Reinstatement of Lapsed Certification

Professionals whose certification has lapsed should contact the Academy at academy@agbell.org (English) or academia@agbell.org (Spanish) with any questions about the requirements regarding reinstatement. To ensure that a LSLS certified professional has maintained the body of knowledge contained in the nine LSLS domains of knowledge, individuals with a lapsed certification status may follow the procedure below to reinstate their LSLS certification:

• 30-day grace period from the lapse date with no fee (email reminders to be provided).
• 31-90 days: Certification is reinstated when the certified LSL Specialist pays the current renewal fee + a late fee (same as half the current renewal fee price).
• 91 days up to 3 years: Certification is reinstated when the certified LSL Specialist pays the current renewal fee + late fee (same as the current renewal fee price) and submits documentation for additional CEUs (1.5 CEUs per lapsed month).
• 3 years or more: Certification is reinstated when the certified LSL Specialist pays the current renewal fee + late fee (same as the current renewal fee price); submits documentation for additional CEUs (7.5 CEUs per lapsed year); and retakes the LSLS certification examination including paying the exam fee.

 

Exceptions to this policy are only considered by the Academy’s Certification Committee for individuals who submit a written request (at least 15 days prior to their lapse date) for an extended recertification deadline due to:

• Medical disability
• Active military deployment
• Retired status request
• An extenuating circumstance*

 

*Extenuating circumstances are unique and rare. Requests for an extended recertification deadline because courtesy reminders were not received will not be considered an “extenuating circumstance,” and will not be considered by the Academy’s Certification Committee.