Renewing a CDA credential means submitting a renewal application to the Council for Professional Recognition before your credential expires, with proof of 4.5 CEUs (or a 3-credit college course, or 45 clock hours of early childhood education training), membership in an early childhood professional organization, at least 80 hours of work with young children in the past year, and a recommendation from an ECE Reviewer.
Renewal costs $250, and a CDA is valid for 3 years.
How long is a CDA good for?
A CDA credential is valid for 3 years from the award date.
The Council for Professional Recognition, which awards the credential, runs renewal on that same 3-year cycle — and the expiration date is a hard deadline.
BLS notes that some states and employers require childcare workers to hold a nationally recognized credential, most often the CDA, which must be renewed every 3 years.
The timing rules around that date are specific.
You can submit your renewal application up to 6 months before your credential expires, and the application must be received by the expiration date.
Renewal also stays in the setting of the original credential — you can only renew in the setting your CDA was awarded in.
Renewal runs through the Council for Professional Recognition: the same body that awarded your CDA credential handles keeping it current, with its own requirements, fee and deadlines.
What you need to renew
The Council's renewal guide lists the evidence a renewal application needs.
The training has to be completed after your current credential's issue date, and the work hours are measured over the past year — so it pays to know the list well before your expiration month.
- Training completed after your current credential's issue date: 4.5 CEUs, or a 3-credit college course, or 45 clock hours of early childhood education training
- Current membership in an early childhood professional organization
- At least 80 hours working with young children in the past year
- A recommendation from an ECE Reviewer
One expected item is missing from that list: first aid and CPR certification is not required for CDA renewal — the Council's FAQ states this directly.
One boundary frames the whole application: renewal happens in the setting of the original credential, so a center-based Preschool CDA renews as a Preschool credential.
Confirm the current requirements with the Council
Training and work hours
The training requirement gives you three routes, and you only need one.
Each route is measured from your current credential's issue date — training you completed before that date does not count toward this renewal.
| Route | What the Council accepts |
|---|---|
| CEUs | 4.5 continuing education units (CEUs) |
| College credit | A 3-credit college course |
| Clock hours | 45 clock hours of training in early childhood education and/or child development |
The Council also publishes how it converts training units for CDA purposes: 1 CEU counts as 10 clock hours, 1 semester credit as 15 clock hours and 1 quarter credit as 10 clock hours.
Alongside the training, the renewal guide asks for at least 80 hours working with young children in the past year and a recommendation from an ECE Reviewer.
Membership is the fourth item, and the Council is specific about what does not count: state registry membership, PTA memberships, teachers' union memberships and magazine subscriptions do not satisfy the membership requirement — it has to be an early childhood professional organization.
Renewal fee
CDA renewal costs $250.
The initial assessment fee is $525, which the Council lists as non-refundable and non-transferable.
Each renewal on the 3-year cycle is $250, paid to the Council for Professional Recognition with the application.
The amnesty program prices the same: an expired credential is renewed by meeting all current renewal requirements and paying the $250 fee online.
Fees are the Council's to set, so confirm the current amount on its renewal pages before you pay.
How to apply online
Renewal runs through the Council for Professional Recognition, the body that awarded your credential — the same organization whose initial assessment applications are made online through its YourCouncil system.
The renewal side works on the timing rules above: you can submit up to 6 months before expiration, and the application must be received by the expiration date.
Confirm your dates and setting
Find your credential's expiration date and confirm you are renewing in the same setting you were awarded in. Applications can go in up to 6 months before expiration and must be received by the expiration date.Gather your evidence
Collect your training documentation — 4.5 CEUs, a 3-credit college course, or 45 clock hours completed after your current credential's issue date — plus proof of current membership in an early childhood professional organization, your record of at least 80 hours working with young children in the past year, and your ECE Reviewer recommendation.Submit the application and pay
Submit the renewal application with the $250 payment. A completed application plus payment is what starts the renewal decision; under the Amnesty Program for already-expired credentials, the fee is paid online.Watch for the decision — and any audit
The Council says most candidates are renewed automatically when a completed application and payment come in. A percentage of applications are randomly audited, and audited candidates get 30 calendar days to fix their documentation.
What if your CDA expired?
If a CDA credential expires, the holder has to reapply to obtain a new credential — the Council's renewal guide allows no exceptions or extensions to the renewal deadline outside its amnesty program.
That is what makes the timing rules above worth planning around: the application must be received by the expiration date.
For credentials that have already lapsed, there is a limited window.
The Council's CDA Renewal Amnesty Program runs from July 6, 2026 to April 26, 2027 at 11:59 PM EST, and it lets anyone whose CDA expired as far back as January 1, 2016 renew instead of reapplying — by meeting all current renewal requirements and paying the $250 fee online.
An expiration is also visible to employers.
The Council's online CDA Certificate Search shows a credential's status as Active, Expired or Revoked, and employers can check a certificate by its number.
If you are job hunting while your renewal is in progress, browse childcare teacher jobs in the meantime.
This page is career information, not licensing or legal advice. Renewal requirements are set by the Council for Professional Recognition; confirm the current requirements with the Council before you apply or hire.
The amnesty window is time-limited