CE Provider Corner
The Continuing Education Committee of the Certification Council shall be primarily responsible for the Continuing Education Standards and Procedures.
This committee is charged with reviewing course material to determine acceptability for continuing education credit hours and the procedures surrounding that process.
The Continuing Education Committee (CEC) will publish a listing of all pre-approved courses, which will be available for review by Designees. Designees will be encouraged to use pre-approved courses to assure acceptability for renewal hours.
What Types of Instruction will Qualify?
The guidelines require that qualifying instruction shall cover one or more of the following subject areas regarding Section 1031 exchanges from a substantive or procedural perspective:
- Exchange Procedures
- Third-Party Relationships
- Legal, Compliance and Technical Issues
- Ethical and Professional Practice Standards for an Exchange Accommodator
Only that portion of instruction that meets these criteria will be considered as qualifying for continuing education credit.
Why Apply for Pre-Approval of Instruction
It is strongly suggested and economically more viable to have course materials reviewed and approved before being taken. Pre-approval is not a prerequisite for acceptable materials. However, a CES® Designee who takes a course that is not pre-approved takes the responsibility upon him or herself that the course is acceptable under the given standard. If it is determined that the coursework does not qualify, those hours will not be credited toward the continuing education requirement.
Note that (1) any hours from an FEA regional or annual meeting accumulated after your examination date will qualify, and (2) FEA-sponsored webinars count as live, in-person training.
Procedures for Prior Committee Approval of Materials for Procedures of a Course of Seminar
Course materials, outlines, length of instruction and any written materials that describe the content, and any promotional material issued regarding this material will be submitted to the CEC via the FEA. Information descriptive of the course may be transmitted to the FEA, which will forward that information to the CEC.
The CEC will have 30 days to review and issue a written approval and the number of hours approved or denied of acceptability, although most requests will be responded to more quickly.
The CEC will keep the materials in the strictest confidence and will only pass upon the material's acceptability for renewal hours under the given standard. A copy of the materials will be retained by the CEC for review against actual coursework and will not be used for any other purpose or shared with any other party.
Approved courses may advertise that the course reviewed will be honored as qualifying for Continuing Education Credit Hours renewal purposes. The CEC may grant permission for the producer to use the CES® logo on its promotional materials.
Request for review may come from the course producer or a person considering taking a course.
The fee for pre-approval and use of approval language for course producers is $50.00 per each renewal (clock) hour sought to be approved.
For example, a three-hour course for which three hours of renewal credit are sought shall submit a fee of $150.00 and the material to be reviewed.
The fee for pre-approval of a course requested by a CES® Designee is $25.00 per course.
For Hours Submitted for Renewal by CES® Designee which were Not Pre-Approved
Although pre-approval of course materials is strongly suggested for course providers, there may be situations where Designees have taken classes where the course provider has not received pre-approval.
The process for Designees submitting hours where approval has not been previously obtained is as follows:
Within 60 days of receiving the instruction, Designees must submit a copy of all available course material listed above for a course producer for review by CEC along with the review fee (see below).
The fee for this review is $25.00 per the course sought to be approved, regardless of length or the number of hours sought.
Any Continuing Education Credit Hours sought for renewal must meet the standard articulated by the Certification Council as reviewed and approved by the CEC.
Designees must obtain and submit the material to be reviewed, independent confirmation of their attendance at the course work for which they seek credit.
Designees must submit their renewal hours on a form issued by the Continuing Education Committee and sign to indicate their compliance with the requirements at that time.
The CEC may review the renewal hours listing as submitted by the designee and are free to inquire about any course attendance, either for cause or at random, to most efficiently assure that continuing education work is in keeping with the articulated standards.
The designee will receive written notice of any coursework that has been disallowed. The Certification Council, at its sole discretion, will allow a reasonable time to make up the missing hours with acceptable courses. The designee will be permitted to continue using the CES® designation during any such grace period.
Continuing Education Credit Hours for Teaching or Course Creation
Candidates may take credit for course preparation, but such credit is limited to three times the actual presentation length. These candidates will not receive additional credit for the presentation of the material. Where a candidate only presents material created by another, renewal hours are limited to the actual length of the presentation. Credit is given only for courses presented primarily for educational purposes. Presentations that are primarily for marketing purposes are not eligible for credit.
Any hours related to the preparation or presentation of any materials are available for credit only once and are not eligible for renewal during any subsequent renewal period, even if the course is offered again.
The fee for this review is $25.00 per the course sought to be approved, regardless of length or the number of hours sought.
Carryover of Credit Hours
Carryover of Continuing Education Credit Hours over the minimum requirements; no more than two (2) hours more than the minimum required will be allowed to be carried over to the next renewal period.
Pre-approval for FEA Meeting Agendas
The FEA annual and regional meeting producers may submit the planned presentations to the committee for pre-approval of acceptable hours at no charge. The committee will make the number of hours available to the producer for that set of presentations.
Miscellaneous
Following the first hour, hours will be accountable only in no smaller than one-quarter (1/4) hour increments. In practice, one hour of credit shall be equivalent to physical presence at the delivery of the program for at least 50 minutes of each hour, which allows for a 10-minute break for each full hour of instruction. One-half hour of credit must be for a full one-half hour of instruction, with no break allowable during the half-hour increment.
The CES® Certification Council reserves the right to alter the standards for acceptable continuing education credit hours should circumstances dictate that this change is in the profession's and its customers' best interests.
