CPD requirements by profession

RICS CPD requirements for surveyors

Last reviewed 15 October 2026

RICS sets a clear annual minimum, splits it between structured and unstructured learning, and layers a three-yearly obligation on specific topics on top. The topic requirement is newer than the hours requirement and is the part most members have not yet built into their planning.

Structured and unstructured — not formal and informal

RICS uses its own terminology, and it is worth matching it when you record.

The practical test for structured CPD is whether the learning outcomes can be identified easily. A course that publishes what it intends to teach clears that bar on its face. One that doesn't leaves you arguing the point.

The three mandatory topics

Over any three-year period, at least one hour of structured CPD must be completed on each of:

• RICS global professional and ethical standards
• Sustainability
• AI, data and technology

These hours count toward your annual total — they are not additional — but they must be structured, and they must actually be on those topics. A general course that mentions sustainability in passing is unlikely to satisfy a requirement that names it specifically.

The calendar year, and the deadline

The RICS CPD year is the calendar year: January to December. You should record your CPD before the end of the calendar year. There is no grace period built into the recording expectation, so December is a poor time to discover you are six hours short.

Planning it so it doesn't bite

Twenty hours a year is not demanding in itself. What trips members up is the composition: the structured minimum, and the three-yearly topics that cannot be met with unstructured learning. A sensible approach is to fix the structured element early in the year, including any mandatory topic due in the current three-year window, and let unstructured learning accumulate naturally on top.

Where CPD accreditation fits — and where it doesn't

This is the part most training providers get wrong, so it is worth being blunt about it.

RICS does not approve, endorse or pre-authorise external CPD providers. Neither we nor any other CPD accreditation body can make a course “RICS-approved”. Any provider telling you otherwise is overstating what they hold, and members who repeat that claim in a record are the ones exposed if it is questioned.

What independent accreditation actually does is narrower and more useful: it gives members evidence that the learning was assessed against a published standard, with stated outcomes, a justified hour claim, and a certificate anyone can check. When your record is reviewed, that evidence is what turns “I did a course” into something defensible.

An AssuredCPD-accredited course carries stated learning outcomes, a CPD-hour figure assessed as proportionate rather than self-declared, and a unique verification code. We are explicit in our own rules about what providers may and may not claim — see what you can and can't claim once a course is CPD accredited.

What to look for in a course

Whatever body you report to, the same four questions separate learning that will stand up from learning that won't:

• Are the learning outcomes written down? You cannot reflect on what a course changed if it never said what it intended to teach.
• Is the hour claim justified, or just asserted? An inflated figure is the single most common reason a course fails our assessment, and it is the figure you will be putting your name to.
• Was anything actually assessed? A completion certificate for watching a video is not evidence of learning.
• Can the certificate be checked by someone else? A PDF proves nothing on its own. A reference a third party can verify does.

How the UK bodies compare

CPD requirements are set independently by each body, and they differ far more than most people expect. Across the twelve below, three set no hours target at all; three count records or outcomes rather than time; two require a set share of the total to be verifiable; one fixes nearly half the requirement to named subject areas. Knowing which model you are under matters more than knowing any single number.

Three practical points fall out of that table. First, a figure from one body tells you nothing about another — 40 ACCA units, 35 NMC hours over three years and nine CILEX outcomes are not comparable quantities. Second, several bodies now specify not just how much CPD but what kind: verifiable units for ACCA and the GDC, named themes for CIOB, participatory hours for the NMC, planned outcomes for CILEX. Third, if you hold dual registration you are under both regimes at once, and the stricter one governs your planning.

Five mistakes that cost people their CPD year

These come up across every regime, and all five are avoidable at no cost.

1. Planning against the wrong year. Some bodies run January to December, some from your own renewal or registration date. Diarise your date, not a colleague's.
2. Leaving the interactive part until last. Participatory hours, peer discussions and facilitated sessions all need another person's time. They are the components most likely to slip, and the least possible to do in a hurry.
3. Collecting certificates that prove attendance but not learning. If the certificate does not state learning outcomes and hours, you are reconstructing the detail from memory months later — and under a verifiable-CPD regime you may not be able to count it at all.
4. Recording activity but not impact. Every records-based and standards-based regime asks what changed in your practice. A list of course titles answers a different question.
5. Believing a provider's claim of regulator approval. None of the bodies above approve or endorse external CPD providers. A course advertised as “approved” by your regulator is misdescribed, and repeating that claim in your own record is your exposure, not the provider's.

Common questions

How many CPD hours do RICS members need?

A minimum of 20 hours of CPD each calendar year, of which at least 10 hours must be structured CPD. The CPD year runs January to December and you should record your CPD before the end of the calendar year.

What is the difference between structured and unstructured CPD for RICS?

Structured CPD follows a structured approach where learning outcomes can be easily identified, such as webinars, seminars, conferences and taught courses. Unstructured CPD is self-managed learning such as private study and podcasts. At least 10 of the 20 annual hours must be structured.

What are the RICS mandatory CPD topics?

Every three years, RICS members must complete at least one hour of structured CPD on each of three areas: RICS global professional and ethical standards; sustainability; and AI, data and technology. These hours count toward the annual total rather than being additional.

When is the RICS CPD deadline?

The RICS CPD year is the calendar year, January to December, and CPD should be recorded before the end of the calendar year.

Does RICS approve CPD providers?

No. RICS does not approve, endorse or pre-authorise external CPD providers or courses. Members are responsible for selecting relevant activity and recording it correctly.

Do CPD hours from one professional body count for another?

Usually yes, if the learning is relevant to your practice under both, but the arithmetic does not transfer. Each body sets its own requirement, period and recording rules, so the same activity may need to be logged twice in different formats. If you hold dual registration, plan against the stricter regime.

Can any training provider be approved by my regulator?

Generally no. The UK professional bodies covered here do not approve, endorse or pre-authorise external CPD providers or courses. A provider advertising itself as regulator-approved is misdescribing what it holds, and repeating that claim in your own CPD record is your exposure.

What should a good CPD certificate show?

The provider, the date, the hours claimed, the learning outcomes covered, and a reference someone else can check independently. A certificate stating only that you attended is the most common reason people struggle to evidence an activity later.

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AssuredCPD is an independent CPD accreditation body. We are not a government or regulatory body and do not award regulated qualifications. AssuredCPD accreditation is not endorsement, approval or recognition by any professional body named on this page, and we have no affiliation with them. Requirements are summarised from each body’s own published guidance and were checked on 15 October 2026; those bodies change their rules from time to time, so always confirm against the official source linked above before relying on it.