Maintaining CGFM Certification

To continue using the CGFM designation after their name, CGFMs must be in an active or retired status.

Active Status

To maintain the CGFM certification in an active status, CGFMs are required to:

• Pay the CGFM renewal fee by the due date every year.
• Complete at least 80 hours of continuing professional education (CPE) in government financial management topics or related technical subjects within each designated two-year cycle (including 4 hours in ethics per cycle).
• Maintain and, if requested by AGA, provide detailed information on CPE hours completed.

By submitting their annual renewal payment, CGFMs affirm that they have and will continue to abide by AGA’s Code of Ethics and that they have fulfilled the minimum CPE Requirements.

Important CPE Policies Update: the CGFM CPE policies have been updated to include changes and clarifications to current policies. Please see CPE requirements for more details.

Retired Status

Individuals who have permanently retired from AND are not working in the field of financial management can request an adjustment of their status to “retired” by contacting us. Individuals should include their date of retirement and confirm that they are not working in the field of financial management.

CGFMs must be active at the time of retirement in order for their status to be changed to “retired”; if the CGFM first becomes inactive, the individual must reactivate the designation before being able to change the CGFM status to “retired.” Therefore, CGFMs retiring in the second half of the year should renew their designation that year—to avoid their CGFM become inactive and not being able to adjust it to “retired” status.

Additional clarifications for the retired status definition:

• Individuals must be fully retired, not just stop working or change fields.
• Individuals must be fully retired AND not working in the field. Individuals who have retired but continue working part-time, consulting, teaching or working as a contractor in the field of financial management are NOT considered retired.
• The field of financial management includes not-for-profit and private sectors (for example, CPA firms)—individuals working in these sectors are NOT considered retired.
• If an individual retires and then starts working in another field with no responsibilities for financial management (for example, working as a florist), that individual is considered retired.
• Volunteering does not count as “working in the field”—individuals can volunteer and qualify for retired status; however, AGA members/CGFMs are encouraged to maintain the active status if the nature of the volunteer work requires current expertise in government financial management.
• The election of the retired status is voluntary—individuals who are retired, but want to maintain their AGA membership/CGFM in the active status, may do so by fulfilling the active status requirements.
• Individuals who are both AGA members and CGFMs, and who want to change their status to retired, must do so for both membership and certification.

CGFMs in retired status are not required to remit the CGFM renewal fee or earn the 80 CPE hours. They may continue to use the CGFM designation, but must clearly indicate their retired status by using “CGFM-Retired” after their name and using “Retired” or “Retired status” on a resume, bio or other statements of qualification. 

If retired CGFMs return to work in the financial management field, they must notify the Office of Professional Certification and change their status within 90 days of returning to work. NOTE: CGFMs who want to change their status from retired to active would need to follow the same reactivation requirements as inactive CGFMs (see Inactive Status below).

Inactive Status

If a CGFM fails to meet the requirements to maintain the CGFM in an active or retired status, the CGFM becomes inactive.

Inactive CGFMs may not present themselves as CGFMs, either in writing or orally, or display the CGFM certificate. Any reference to the CGFM designation on a resume, bio or other statements of qualification must clearly indicate that the CGFM is inactive.

Inactive CGFMs may request a reactivation by complying with current reactivation requirements, but may not use the “CGFM” after their name until after they receive a written confirmation from the AGA’s Office of Professional Certification that their reactivation submission has been approved.

Current reactivation requirements:

• Submitting a completed CPE report listing at least 40 CPE hours earned within the last 12 months with required back-up documentation (Note: The report will not be accepted without required back-up documentation. See guidelines document for more details. The report and the documentation must be submitted no later than 30 calendar days after the end of the 12-month period).
• Paying the applicable renewal fee and reactivation fee (see payment form).

AGA's Professional Certification Board reserves the right to revise the reactivation policy without notice.

A CGFM can remain in inactive status for up to two consecutive years from the last renewal deadline (March 31) as an active CGFM. After that period, the CGFM is voided. A CGFM can only enter inactive status twice. The third time the CGFM is automatically voided.

Voided Status

The CGFM designation will be voided if the holder is inactive for longer than two consecutive years from the last renewal deadline (March 31) as an active CGFM, or enters inactive status for a third time.

Any appeals to voided status must be submitted to the Office of Professional Certification within a 12-month period of CGFM being voided.  After one year of being voided, appeals will not be considered.

Individuals who have had their CGFM certification voided may not present themselves as CGFMs, either in writing or orally, and must remove any reference to their CGFM designation on a resume, bio or other statement of qualifications. They must also destroy or return their CGFM certificate to AGA.

Individuals seeking reinstatement must reapply as new candidates.

Certification Revocation

The Professional Certification Board reserves the right to revoke any certification for cause as determined by the PCB. Cause may include, but is not limited to a violation of AGA's Code of Ethics, repeated violations of the CGFM policies, or actions discreditable to the CGFM Program.

Individuals who have had their CGFM certification revoked may not present themselves as CGFMs, either in writing or orally, and must remove any reference to their CGFM designation on a resume, bio or other statement of qualifications. They must also destroy or return their CGFM certificate to AGA.

updated 6/16/2022