Human resources credentials differ fundamentally from most other professional certifications covered in this guide: they are professional organization credentials rather than government-issued licenses. There is no state HR licensing board, no legal requirement that HR professionals hold a certification to practice, and no government-mandated continuing education system. Instead, the two dominant HR certification bodies — the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the HR Certification Institute (HRCI) — operate voluntary credentialing programs with their own recertification requirements.
Despite being voluntary from a legal standpoint, HR certifications carry significant professional weight. Employers increasingly specify SHRM or HRCI credentials in job postings for HR manager, HR director, and HR business partner roles. Salary data consistently shows certified HR professionals earning more than their non-certified counterparts. And the recertification requirements — 60 Professional Development Credits (PDCs) or credit hours per three-year cycle — serve as a meaningful professional development structure that keeps HR practitioners current with evolving employment law, compensation practices, organizational development research, and technology trends.
This guide covers the recertification requirements for SHRM and HRCI credentials in detail, what activities qualify, how certificates and documentation must be maintained, and how digital credentialing platforms are improving recertification management for HR professionals and the organizations that invest in their development.
SHRM offers two primary certifications:
The SHRM-CP is designed for HR professionals who are early- to mid-career, working in operational HR roles such as HR generalist, benefits specialist, or HR manager. The credential requires demonstrating HR competency through a knowledge-based exam aligned with the SHRM Body of Applied Skills and Knowledge (SHRM BASK).
The SHRM-SCP targets senior HR practitioners working at a strategic level — HR directors, VP of HR, and CHRO roles. The SCP credential requires the same knowledge base but emphasizes strategic and leadership competencies. Candidates for the SCP must demonstrate both a knowledge foundation and significant HR leadership experience.
Both SHRM-CP and SHRM-SCP holders must earn 60 Professional Development Credits (PDCs) within each three-year recertification cycle to maintain their credentials. Alternatively, certification holders can recertify by passing the current version of the SHRM exam, which eliminates the need to submit PDC documentation.
HRCI offers a broader portfolio of HR credentials at multiple career levels and specialty areas:
| Credential | Level | Recertification Credits | Recertification Cycle |
|---|---|---|---|
| aPHR (Associate Professional) | Entry | 45 credits | 3 years |
| aPHRi (International) | Entry/International | 45 credits | 3 years |
| PHR (Professional) | Mid-Level | 60 credits | 3 years |
| PHRi (International) | Mid-Level/International | 60 credits | 3 years |
| SPHR (Senior Professional) | Senior | 60 credits (15 in business mgmt) | 3 years |
| SPHRi (International) | Senior/International | 60 credits | 3 years |
| GPHR (Global Professional) | Global/Senior | 60 credits (15 in global HR) | 3 years |
SHRM's recertification program accepts PDCs from a wide range of professional development activities, organized into several categories:
Educational programs from SHRM-approved providers, including conferences, seminars, workshops, and online courses. This is the broadest category and typically generates the most PDCs for most professionals. SHRM-approved provider events clearly identify their PDC value. Non-SHRM-approved educational programs may also qualify if the content aligns with SHRM BASK competencies — SHRM offers a self-reporting process for these activities.
Work-based learning and HR leadership activities including:
Activities that advance the HR profession more broadly:
SHRM caps the PDCs that can be earned in certain categories to ensure a balance of educational approaches:
HRCI's recertification system uses three primary activity categories:
Programs, courses, conferences, and workshops directly related to HR practice. HRCI-approved programs are clearly marked, but HR professionals can also self-report qualifying educational activities. Most HR conferences — SHRM Annual, WorldatWork, ATD, and similar events — qualify for HRCI continuing education credit.
Professional activities demonstrating HR leadership impact, including:
HR work experience gained through progressively responsible roles. HRCI awards recertification credits for documented on-the-job HR experience, with annual limits. This category recognizes that senior HR practitioners develop significant competency through applied work experience in addition to formal education.
HR research, writing, and publishing activities including authoring articles, books, white papers, or contributing to HR knowledge bases.
Both SHRM and HRCI require certification holders to retain documentation supporting any recertification activity claims. Valid HR CE or professional development certificates should include:
Both SHRM and HRCI conduct random audits of recertification applications. Professionals whose applications are audited must provide documentation for every claimed PDC or credit. Without proper certificates, credits cannot be verified and the certification renewal may be denied.
HR training organizations, SHRM chapters, and corporate learning departments use IssueBadge to issue verifiable digital certificates that HR professionals can store in a credential wallet, track against recertification requirements, and present to SHRM or HRCI during audit reviews.
Start Issuing HR Development CertificatesMany experienced HR professionals hold both SHRM and HRCI credentials simultaneously. This is not uncommon — the two organizations' certifications are independently valuable, recognized by different employer segments, and cover overlapping but not identical competency domains.
Dual certification holders can typically apply qualifying professional development activities toward both recertification programs simultaneously. A SHRM Annual Conference session attended for SHRM PDCs will generally also qualify as HRCI continuing education credit. This dual-credit efficiency is one of the practical arguments for maintaining both credentials.
Managing the documentation for both systems adds administrative overhead. Professionals must track which activities have been submitted to each system, ensure they meet each organization's specific documentation requirements, and submit separate recertification applications on their respective timelines (which may not perfectly align).
The breadth of qualifying recertification activities — educational programs, volunteer leadership, on-the-job projects, research, speaking engagements — creates a documentation challenge that is unique to HR certification compared to clinical professions with standardized CE systems.
When SHRM chapters, corporate training departments, and external HR education providers issue digital certificates through platforms like IssueBadge, every certificate includes standardized fields — provider name, SHRM Provider ID (when applicable), PDC value, activity category, and completion date — that streamline the recertification submission process. HR professionals no longer need to manually reconstruct incomplete certificate information when submitting recertification applications.
A digital credential wallet allows HR professionals to organize all earned certificates and documentation by recertification cycle, activity category, and PDC value. At recertification time, the total earned across all categories is immediately visible, making it straightforward to confirm that the 60 PDC requirement is satisfied and that any mandatory category minimums have been met.
For organizations investing in the certification and recertification of their HR teams, digital credentialing platforms provide visibility into team-wide learning and certification status. HR directors and CLOs can monitor which team members have current certifications, which are approaching recertification deadlines, and how much of the recertification requirement has been satisfied — enabling proactive support rather than reactive scrambling at renewal time.
Beyond SHRM and HRCI, the HR profession includes several specialty certifications with independent recertification requirements:
Beyond compliance with certification renewal requirements, the professional development activities that generate recertification credits represent genuine strategic value for HR professionals and their organizations. The HR function has evolved dramatically — algorithmic hiring tools, pay equity analytics, remote and hybrid workforce management, evolving state and federal employment law, and generative AI applications in talent management all represent areas where HR professionals must build new competencies.
The SHRM and HRCI recertification frameworks — with their emphasis on educational breadth, leadership activities, and professional contribution — encourage HR practitioners to develop across multiple domains rather than deepening expertise in a single narrow area. The resulting credential is not just a maintenance requirement; it is a structured professional development program for a rapidly evolving profession.
SHRM-CP and SHRM-SCP holders must earn 60 Professional Development Credits (PDCs) within each three-year recertification cycle. These PDCs must come from activities aligned with the SHRM BASK framework. Alternatively, holders can recertify by passing the current SHRM exam without submitting PDC documentation.
SHRM offers SHRM-CP and SHRM-SCP credentials based on its BASK competency framework. HRCI offers PHR, SPHR, GPHR, and specialty credentials at multiple career levels. Both are widely respected. Many HR professionals hold credentials from both bodies. Employers may prefer one over the other depending on industry and role level.
Qualifying activities include educational programs from SHRM-approved providers, SHRM chapter and national events, college coursework, self-directed learning, teaching and speaking, on-the-job HR projects, SHRM volunteer leadership roles, and professional mentoring. Most activity categories have maximum PDC limits per recertification cycle.
PHR, SPHR, and GPHR holders from HRCI must earn 60 recertification credits within each three-year cycle. The SPHR requires at least 15 of those 60 credits from business management and strategy activities. The GPHR requires at least 15 credits from global or international HR activities. The aPHR requires 45 credits per three-year cycle.
Yes. Many HR professional development activities qualify for both SHRM PDCs and HRCI recertification credits simultaneously. HR professionals holding certifications from both bodies can typically submit the same qualifying activity to both recertification programs, maximizing the return on their professional development investment.