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EMDRIA Credits are continuing education hours in EMDR, approved by EMDRIA and required for EMDR certification and credential renewal. CE credits are the hours your state licensing board requires, approved by bodies like ACE/ASWB or NBCC. They are not interchangeable, though some trainings are approved to count for both.
If you have ever finished a training, filed the certificate, and then discovered at renewal time that it counted for exactly nothing you needed, you are not alone. The credit system behind trauma training is genuinely confusing, and most providers do not explain it because the confusion works in their favor. Here is the plain-language version.
EMDRIA Credits are EMDR-specific continuing education hours awarded by programs that EMDRIA has approved as credit providers. They exist for one purpose: maintaining and advancing your standing within the EMDRIA credentialing system.
You need them at three points:
Two details trip people up. First, completing EMDR Basic Training does not award EMDRIA Credits. Basic Training is the prerequisite for the credentialing path, not a credit-earning course. Second, a certificate only counts if it shows the EMDRIA program approval number and the number of credits earned. No approval number, no credit.
CE credits (you may see CEs, CEUs, or contact hours, depending on your state) are the continuing education hours your licensing board requires to renew your license. They are governed by a completely different set of approval bodies:
Here is the part that surprises clinicians every year: EMDRIA Credits do not automatically count toward your license renewal, and your license-renewal CEs do not automatically count toward EMDRIA credentialing. The two systems do not talk to each other. A training counts for whichever approvals its provider actually holds, which is why checking before you register matters more than the topic of the course.
| EMDRIA Credits | CE Credits | |
|---|---|---|
| Who requires them | EMDRIA | Your state licensing board |
| What they maintain | EMDR certification and consultant credentials | Your license to practice |
| Who approves providers | EMDRIA | ACE/ASWB, NBCC, APA, state boards |
| How many you need | 12 per two-year certification cycle | Varies by state and license type |
| Does Basic Training count | No | Often yes, if the training carries CE approval |
| Proof required | Certificate with EMDRIA program approval number | Certificate from the approved CE provider |
Yes, when the provider holds both approvals for that course, and this is where your CE planning gets efficient. A dual-approved advanced training knocks out EMDRIA Credit requirements and license-renewal hours in a single registration.
It also changes how you choose. If every advanced training you take has to earn its place twice, the question stops being which course looks interesting and becomes which course builds the clinical capacity your caseload actually needs. For most EMDR therapists, that points toward the frameworks that extend the protocol: somatic work for body-based trauma, polyvagal-informed practice for clients who freeze or flood, IFS for protective systems that block processing. Our clinical reference on combining EMDR with somatic, polyvagal, and IFS approaches maps where each framework meets the 8 phases and which clients each one serves, which makes it a useful planning companion when you are deciding where your next 12 credits should go.
At TTI, EMDR-specific trainings carry EMDRIA approval, and broader trauma trainings carry ACE/ASWB and NBCC approvals. Several advanced programs carry both. The exact approvals for every course are listed on each course page and collected in our Accreditation and CE Navigator.
Three questions, asked before you pay, will save you from the filed-certificate-that-counts-for-nothing problem:
If the answer to any of these is unclear on the sales page, ask the provider directly. A trustworthy training organization will tell you exactly what a course does and does not count for.
EMDRIA Credits are EMDR-specific continuing education hours awarded by EMDRIA-approved credit providers. They are required for EMDR certification applications, certification renewal every two years, and the Approved Consultant credential. Valid certificates must display the EMDRIA program approval number and the number of credits earned.
No. EMDRIA Credits maintain your standing in the EMDRIA credentialing system, while CE credits maintain your state license through approval bodies like ACE/ASWB, NBCC, or APA. Neither automatically counts for the other, though some trainings hold both approvals and count for both at once.
The EMDRIA Certified Therapist application requires at least 12 hours of EMDRIA Credits, and renewal requires 12 new credits within each two-year certification cycle. Credits are one-time use, so hours applied to certification cannot be reused for the Approved Consultant application.
No. Completing an EMDRIA-approved EMDR Basic Training is the prerequisite for the credentialing path, but initial basic trainings are not awarded EMDRIA Credits. Credits come from advanced EMDR trainings and programs that hold their own EMDRIA credit approval.
Not automatically. State licensing boards recognize their own approval bodies, such as ACE/ASWB for social workers or NBCC for counselors. An EMDRIA-approved training counts toward your license only if it also holds a CE approval your board recognizes, so check both approvals before registering.
Yes, when the course holds both an EMDRIA credit approval and a CE approval such as ACE/ASWB or NBCC. Dual-approved advanced trainings are the most efficient way to meet certification requirements and license renewal hours with a single course, so verify approvals on the course page first.
The credit system rewards clinicians who plan. Know your numbers, verify approvals per course, and spend your hours on trainings that deepen what you can actually do in the room. Start with the Accreditation and CE Navigator to see which approvals each TTI course carries, and browse the advanced programs from there.
Open the Accreditation and CE Navigator →EMDRIA (primary sources):
EMDR Certification criteria — https://www.emdria.org/emdr-training/emdr-certification-2/
Backs: the certification application requiring certificates for at least 12 hours of EMDRIA Credits; Basic Training not being awarded EMDRIA Credits; certificates needing to show the EMDRIA program approval number and credit count.
EMDR Certification Renewal — https://www.emdria.org/emdr-certification-renewal/
Backs: the two-year renewal cycle and the 12 EMDRIA Credits required within each cycle.
EMDRIA Approved Consultant criteria — https://www.emdria.org/?p=24916
Backs: the consultant credential’s 12-credit requirement and the one-time use rule (credits used for certification can’t be reused for the consultant application).
EMDR Consultant Renewal — https://www.emdria.org/emdr-consultant-renewal/
Backs: 12 EMDRIA Credits per two-year consultant cycle.
Training vs. Certification — https://www.emdria.org/training-vs-certification/
Backs: the general distinction between training, membership, and the certification credential, and the renewal structure.