Remaining Credentialed

Biennial Maintenance Fee

It is the professional responsibility of every IFBPT credential holder to keep his/her credentials current through the completion of continuing education requirements and payment of biennial maintenance fees for the CAPF, CPT or the PTR and the CM. Credential renewals are due by December 31, 2024 (with a grace period extended to January 31, 2025). Late fees will be charged for any credential renewed after January 31, 2025.

Continuing Education Unit (CEU) Requirements

All IFBPT credential holders are expected to continue their education and build on their level of expertise. Credential holders must complete 20 hours of continuing education credit for each 2-year renewal period (10 CEUs per year) including 3 hours of Professional Ethics every 4 years (minimum equivalent of 3 CEUs/3 contact hours).

Certified Mentors must complete 30 hours for each 2-year renewal period (15 CEUs per year) including 3 hours of Supervision and 3 hours of Professional Ethics every 4 years (minimum equivalent of 3 CEUs/3 contact hours).

Complete documentation should be obtained for all continuing education. Documentation may include transcripts, certificates of attendance, signed verification forms for attendances at conferences, etc. To document self-study work, please write a 2-3 page annotation that summarizes the information and outlines your opinion of the most significant learning of the work.

All required documentation should be placed in your personal Continuing Education File and retained for at least one renewal cycle beyond the cycle for which credit is claimed. DO NOT send proof of attendance, annotations, or verification documents with your renewal application unless you have been specifically asked to provide them. A random 10% of all renewals will be selected for audit. If you are selected for audit, you will be required to produce your documentation.

CEU Requirements Outline

Courses must have been completed within the past two years.

Activity
Workshops, Conferences, Seminars
Relevant college/university courses (such as poetry, therapy, literature)
Presentation at national or professional conferences (includes preparation time with documentation)
Post-training supervision from an IFBPT certified mentor
Professional publication activities (about poetry therapy, clinical studies, or literature)
New program development
Post-training research activity relevant to biblio/poetry therapy
Advocacy/Leadership (includes participation on IFBPT Board, NAPT Board, and related committee activity)
Self-study of poetry therapy and developments in the field including annotations of texts (2-3 page annotation)
Teaching a course in the field of biblio/poetry therapy
Ethics course every four years
Supervision course every four years
CEUs
CEUs awarded per certificate
Unlimited hours allowed per renewal cycle
Credit hours awarded by institution
Unlimited hours allowed per renewal cycle
Up to 10 hours
Up to 5 hours
Up to 10 hours
Up to 10 hours
Up to 10 hours
Up to 5 hours per advocacy role
Up to 10 hours
Credit hours awarded by institution
Up to 3 hours
Up to 3 hours

CEU Tracking

To keep track of your personal continuing education hours, download and use one of the following forms:

2024 Word File
Excel File

When you are ready to renew your credentials, you will need to email this completed form to admin@ifbpt.org. You will also need to complete the other renewal information and send payment on the Credential Renewal Fees page.

Definition of Good Standing

Your IFBPT credential is in good standing if you pay your biennial renewal fees on time and you fulfill current IFBPT requirements for renewal. Please do not renew until your coursework and CEUs have been completed.

Reinstatement of Credentials

If your credential has lapsed, you will need to contact the Board to inquire about reinstatement.

Additional Certified Mentor  Recommendations

Documentation of liability insurance coverage. We strongly urge, but do not require, CMs to have liability insurance coverage for their supervision, and to indicate whether or not they have such insurance coverage, either through a professional liability policy or through a homeowner’s or renter’s umbrella coverage.

***If you are in a discipline or located in a jurisdiction that requires an ethics course for license renewal (e.g., licensed psychologists, LCSWs, and MFTs in California, or licensed social workers in Maryland, DC, or Virginia) you can submit evidence of license renewal at the frequency specified by your discipline and jurisdiction and will not have to take an additional ethics course for CM renewal.