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Certification 2025 The Continuous Certification 5-Year Cycle To meet the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) Assessment Standards for Continuing Certification updated on January 1, 2024, ABFM will begin the transition to Certification 2025, the new Continuous Certification 5-Year Cycle (5-Year Cycle) on January 1, 2025. At-A-Glance The ABMS standard for continuing certification states that “member boards must determine an interval no longer than five years of whether a Diplomate is meeting continuing certification requirements to retain each certificate.” This change will help Diplomates maintain awareness of increasingly rapid medical advancements and changes in practice guidelines. Learn More Below Every ABFM Diplomate will be enrolled in the new 5-Year Cycle when their next exam requirement is due. The new 5-Year Cycle is built on the same four foundational components that make up the current certification process: Professionalism Designed to assess professional standing, board-certified family physicians are subject to compliance with the ABFM Guidelines for Professionalism, Licensure, and Personal Conduct (Guidelines) and general adherence to professional standards. Self-Assessment and Lifelong Learning Designed to help family physicians identify gaps in knowledge through participation in self-assessment activities, this component encourages the review of the most up-to-date clinical content. Performance Improvement Designed to support high-quality patient care, this component will help family physicians identify an improvement opportunity or a performance gap, implement a change in care delivery, and measure the impact of that change to their patients/practice. Cognitive Expertise Designed to assess and measure clinical knowledge, the Family Medicine Certification Longitudinal Assessment (longitudinal assessment) and the Family Medicine Certification Examination (one-day exam) serve to assure the public that you are up-to-date and aware of the best practices in medical care across the wide spectrum of conditions treated by family physicians. Transitioning to the 5-Year Cycle You will not be required to transition to the new 5-Year Cycle any earlier than 10 years from when you last met your exam requirement. For example, if you met your last exam requirement in 2022, you will not be required to transition to the new 5-Year Cycle until 2032. To determine when you will transition to the 5-Year Cycle, please visit your MyABFM Portfolio. MyABFM Portfolio Benefits The 5-Year Cycle provides the choice to customize how you meet your certification requirements! Benefits of the new certification process include: Never have to take the one-day exam again to maintain your certification unless you want to. Continuous learning by answering 25 quarterly exam questions (longitudinal assessment) and receiving immediate feedback. More time and flexibility to complete your certification activities. A fifth year off if you complete all requirements in four years. Built-in time to complete remaining requirements, if needed. 5-Year Cycle Requirements The new 5-Year Cycle includes continuous compliance with ABFM Guidelines for Professionalism, Licensure, and Personal Conduct, completion of certification activities and Continuing Medical Education, and ongoing participation in cognitive assessment. Certification Exam: Answer 25 quarterly exam questions (longitudinal assessment) or opt to take the one-day exam. Certification Activities: Earn 60 certification points through Self-Assessment and Performance Improvement activities. Continuing Medical Education: Earn 200 CME credits. Professionalism and Licensure: Continuously comply with ABFM’s Guidelines for Professionalism, Licensure, and Personal Conduct, which includes maintaining active, valid, and full license(s) to practice medicine in the United States or Canada. Annual Fee: Submit annual certification fee. Want to learn more? Log in to your MyABFM Portfolio today! Longitudinal Assessment What Diplomates Are Saying Since being introduced in 2019, more than 80% of eligible physicians have chosen the longitudinal assessment to meet their exam requirement. Longitudinal assessment is reported to provide a number of benefits to Diplomates. 99% report it is relevant to family medicine. 85% report their intentions to make changes in practice based on what they learned. 85% seek more information after participating. 92% report less test anxiety. 95% use references and critiques. 99% report it is relevant to family medicine. 85% seek more information after participating. 95% use references and critiques. 85% report their intentions to make changes in practice based on what they learned. 92% report less test anxiety. Learn More! Want to learn more about the new 5-Year Cycle and find out when you’ll make the transition? Visit your MyABFM Portfolio now! MyABFM Portfolio 5-Year Cycle FAQs Expand All Collapse All Why is the Continuous Certification Process Changing to a 5-Year Cycle? To meet the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) Assessment Standards for Continuing Certification, the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) will transition to Certification 2025, a new continuous certification 5-Year Cycle (5-Year Cycle), effective January 1, 2025. The ABMS standard for continuing certification states that “member boards must determine an interval no longer than five years of whether a Diplomate is meeting continuing certification requirements to retain each certificate.” This change will help Diplomates maintain awareness of increasingly rapid medical advancements and changes in practice guidelines. Who is ABMS and why is ABFM conforming to their standards? The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit organization who serves the public and the medical profession by improving the quality of health care through setting professional standards for medical specialty practice and certification in partnership with its 24 certifying Member Boards. As one of the 24 member boards of ABMS, ABFM is governed by ABMS certification standards and policies and will be the 17th board to transition to the new ABMS standards. Will there be any changes to the annual certification fee? No, there will be no change to the annual certification fee in 2025. ABFM’s annual certification fee has not increased since 2012. When will this new 5-Year Cycle take effect? The 5-Year Cycle will begin on January 1, 2025. Every ABFM Diplomate will be enrolled in the new 5-Year Cycle when their next exam requirement is due. ABFM will honor your current 10-year exam. This means you will not be required to complete your exam any earlier than 10 years from the last time you met your exam requirement. For example, if you met your exam requirement in 2022, you will not be required to transition to the new 5-Year Cycle until January 1, 2032. Could you tell me more about the options to meet the exam requirement? To maintain your certification, you never need to take the one-day exam again (unless you want to). Going forward, you can complete your exam requirement by answering 25 quarterly questions (longitudinal assessment) over 3-4 years until you complete 300 questions or opt to take the traditional one-day exam. Why is the longitudinal assessment at the center of the 5-Year Cycle? Since launching the the longitudinal assessment in 2019, approximately 34,000 family physicians have participated to meet their exam requirement. The outcomes have been outstanding, with satisfaction over 95%, 99% retention year to year, and significant reduction in test anxiety. Most important, family physicians report they are learning as they participate. The longitudinal assessment replaces the traditional one-day exam, meaning you never have to take the one-day exam again to maintain your certification, unless you want to. What are the advantages of the quarterly exam questions (longitudinal assessment) versus the one-day exam? Why should I participate? Answering 25 open book, quarterly questions is a flexible, convenient option for meeting the exam requirement. You may use references — in keeping with how medicine is practiced — and get immediate feedback on what you got right or wrong. You can answer the quarterly online questions whenever and wherever you choose. Participating in this option reflects your dedication to lifelong learning, staying up to date with full scope knowledge, your willingness to be assessed, and commitment to continuous certification.
At-A-Glance The ABMS standard for continuing certification states that “member boards must determine an interval no longer than five years of whether a Diplomate is meeting continuing certification requirements to retain each certificate.” This change will help Diplomates maintain awareness of increasingly rapid medical advancements and changes in practice guidelines. Learn More Below
Transitioning to the 5-Year Cycle You will not be required to transition to the new 5-Year Cycle any earlier than 10 years from when you last met your exam requirement. For example, if you met your last exam requirement in 2022, you will not be required to transition to the new 5-Year Cycle until 2032. To determine when you will transition to the 5-Year Cycle, please visit your MyABFM Portfolio. MyABFM Portfolio
Longitudinal Assessment What Diplomates Are Saying Since being introduced in 2019, more than 80% of eligible physicians have chosen the longitudinal assessment to meet their exam requirement. Longitudinal assessment is reported to provide a number of benefits to Diplomates. 99% report it is relevant to family medicine. 85% report their intentions to make changes in practice based on what they learned. 85% seek more information after participating. 92% report less test anxiety. 95% use references and critiques. 99% report it is relevant to family medicine. 85% seek more information after participating. 95% use references and critiques. 85% report their intentions to make changes in practice based on what they learned. 92% report less test anxiety.
Learn More! Want to learn more about the new 5-Year Cycle and find out when you’ll make the transition? Visit your MyABFM Portfolio now! MyABFM Portfolio
5-Year Cycle FAQs Expand All Collapse All Why is the Continuous Certification Process Changing to a 5-Year Cycle? To meet the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) Assessment Standards for Continuing Certification, the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) will transition to Certification 2025, a new continuous certification 5-Year Cycle (5-Year Cycle), effective January 1, 2025. The ABMS standard for continuing certification states that “member boards must determine an interval no longer than five years of whether a Diplomate is meeting continuing certification requirements to retain each certificate.” This change will help Diplomates maintain awareness of increasingly rapid medical advancements and changes in practice guidelines. Who is ABMS and why is ABFM conforming to their standards? The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit organization who serves the public and the medical profession by improving the quality of health care through setting professional standards for medical specialty practice and certification in partnership with its 24 certifying Member Boards. As one of the 24 member boards of ABMS, ABFM is governed by ABMS certification standards and policies and will be the 17th board to transition to the new ABMS standards. Will there be any changes to the annual certification fee? No, there will be no change to the annual certification fee in 2025. ABFM’s annual certification fee has not increased since 2012. When will this new 5-Year Cycle take effect? The 5-Year Cycle will begin on January 1, 2025. Every ABFM Diplomate will be enrolled in the new 5-Year Cycle when their next exam requirement is due. ABFM will honor your current 10-year exam. This means you will not be required to complete your exam any earlier than 10 years from the last time you met your exam requirement. For example, if you met your exam requirement in 2022, you will not be required to transition to the new 5-Year Cycle until January 1, 2032. Could you tell me more about the options to meet the exam requirement? To maintain your certification, you never need to take the one-day exam again (unless you want to). Going forward, you can complete your exam requirement by answering 25 quarterly questions (longitudinal assessment) over 3-4 years until you complete 300 questions or opt to take the traditional one-day exam. Why is the longitudinal assessment at the center of the 5-Year Cycle? Since launching the the longitudinal assessment in 2019, approximately 34,000 family physicians have participated to meet their exam requirement. The outcomes have been outstanding, with satisfaction over 95%, 99% retention year to year, and significant reduction in test anxiety. Most important, family physicians report they are learning as they participate. The longitudinal assessment replaces the traditional one-day exam, meaning you never have to take the one-day exam again to maintain your certification, unless you want to. What are the advantages of the quarterly exam questions (longitudinal assessment) versus the one-day exam? Why should I participate? Answering 25 open book, quarterly questions is a flexible, convenient option for meeting the exam requirement. You may use references — in keeping with how medicine is practiced — and get immediate feedback on what you got right or wrong. You can answer the quarterly online questions whenever and wherever you choose. Participating in this option reflects your dedication to lifelong learning, staying up to date with full scope knowledge, your willingness to be assessed, and commitment to continuous certification.
Why is the Continuous Certification Process Changing to a 5-Year Cycle? To meet the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) Assessment Standards for Continuing Certification, the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) will transition to Certification 2025, a new continuous certification 5-Year Cycle (5-Year Cycle), effective January 1, 2025. The ABMS standard for continuing certification states that “member boards must determine an interval no longer than five years of whether a Diplomate is meeting continuing certification requirements to retain each certificate.” This change will help Diplomates maintain awareness of increasingly rapid medical advancements and changes in practice guidelines.
Who is ABMS and why is ABFM conforming to their standards? The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit organization who serves the public and the medical profession by improving the quality of health care through setting professional standards for medical specialty practice and certification in partnership with its 24 certifying Member Boards. As one of the 24 member boards of ABMS, ABFM is governed by ABMS certification standards and policies and will be the 17th board to transition to the new ABMS standards.
Will there be any changes to the annual certification fee? No, there will be no change to the annual certification fee in 2025. ABFM’s annual certification fee has not increased since 2012.
When will this new 5-Year Cycle take effect? The 5-Year Cycle will begin on January 1, 2025. Every ABFM Diplomate will be enrolled in the new 5-Year Cycle when their next exam requirement is due. ABFM will honor your current 10-year exam. This means you will not be required to complete your exam any earlier than 10 years from the last time you met your exam requirement. For example, if you met your exam requirement in 2022, you will not be required to transition to the new 5-Year Cycle until January 1, 2032.
Could you tell me more about the options to meet the exam requirement? To maintain your certification, you never need to take the one-day exam again (unless you want to). Going forward, you can complete your exam requirement by answering 25 quarterly questions (longitudinal assessment) over 3-4 years until you complete 300 questions or opt to take the traditional one-day exam.
Why is the longitudinal assessment at the center of the 5-Year Cycle? Since launching the the longitudinal assessment in 2019, approximately 34,000 family physicians have participated to meet their exam requirement. The outcomes have been outstanding, with satisfaction over 95%, 99% retention year to year, and significant reduction in test anxiety. Most important, family physicians report they are learning as they participate. The longitudinal assessment replaces the traditional one-day exam, meaning you never have to take the one-day exam again to maintain your certification, unless you want to.
What are the advantages of the quarterly exam questions (longitudinal assessment) versus the one-day exam? Why should I participate? Answering 25 open book, quarterly questions is a flexible, convenient option for meeting the exam requirement. You may use references — in keeping with how medicine is practiced — and get immediate feedback on what you got right or wrong. You can answer the quarterly online questions whenever and wherever you choose. Participating in this option reflects your dedication to lifelong learning, staying up to date with full scope knowledge, your willingness to be assessed, and commitment to continuous certification.
