Recertification Application Fees
IBLCE is committed to serving the global public interest by advancing professional practice in lactation consultation and support through credentialing. There are now over 38,000 IBCLCs in 136 countries. Over the last several years, IBLCE has invested in significant enhancements to the IBCLC programme, including re-engineering the online credentialing management system so that initial candidates in all ten examination languages and recertifying IBCLCs can easily (re)apply through the system. Additionally, Live Remote Proctoring has been made available in both English and Spanish, and pursuant to IBCLC feedback in response to a customer experience survey, digital credentials in all languages are coming in the near future.
To raise the visibility of the IBCLC to consumers, employers, and others in healthcare, in 2024 IBLCE has also invested in a professional media campaign, which to date has:
- Resulted in TV and radio interviews about the IBCLC in five distinct media markets;
- Reached approximately 900,000 in maternal health, healthcare management, and digital health, driving 1,000 influentials from these key market segments to the IBLCE website;
- Resulted in 3,000 LinkedIn views of an article featuring three IBCLCs
With more to come!
At the same time, costs, most particularly vendor expenses associated with the IBCLC certification programme, have been increasing for a number of years, including examination development and administration fees, translation fees, as well as technical and credit card fees in the digital online world.
IBLCE has not increased its base application or recertification fees from which tiered fees are set in over 10 years. To advance equity, like a number of international organisations, IBLCE uses a tiered fee schedule which is adjusted annually in response to changing consumer purchasing power in countries around the globe based on an objective third-party metric.
Effective with the April 2025 examination administration and 2025 recertification cycle, fees for new applications will be changing, representing a (rounded) increase of 5%. This adjustment has been approved by IBLCE and will allow for continued investment in, and elevation of, the IBCLC, the global gold standard in lactation.
In order to make its certification financially accessible to all those qualified to participate, despite the wide variance in economic conditions throughout the world, we use the purchasing power parity (PPP) per capita metric as determined by international organisations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund and used by a number of international NGOs. PPP takes into account the relative cost of living, the exchange rate and the inflation rates of countries.
The Fee Guide is available for recertifying IBCLCs. IBLCE only accepts payments in USD.
For detailed information regarding the recertification process, review the Recertification Guide.
Upcoming Key Dates
April 2026 IBCLC Examination
Administered worldwide in English.
| Application Window | Mid-November 2025 – January 5, 2026 |
| Examination Administration | April 15 – 24, 2026 |
2026 Recertification by CERPs
Available online in all IBLCE languages.
| CE Self-Assessment becomes available to IBCLCs due to recertify in 2026 | April 2023 |
| 2026 Recertification by CERPs Application Window | TBD – September 30, 2026 |
September 2026 IBCLC Examination
Administered worldwide in the ten IBCLC examination languages.
| Application Window | Applications open 4 – 5 months in advance of the examination. |
| Examination Administration | September 1 – 10, 2026 |
2027 Recertification by CERPs
Available online in all IBLCE languages.
| CE Self-Assessment becomes available to IBCLCs due to recertify in 2027 | January 2024 |
| 2027 Recertification by CERPs Application Window | TBD – September 30, 2027 |
2028 Recertification by CERPs
Available online in all IBLCE languages.
| CE Self-Assessment becomes available to IBCLCs due to recertify in 2028 | February 2025 |
| 2028 Recertification by CERPs Application Window | TBD – September 30, 2028 |