The OffSec Continuing Professional Education (CPE) program allows certification holders to maintain their OffSec certifications after passing the exam. Instead of retaking the exam, learners can keep their certification active by completing ongoing professional development activities.
To maintain certification through the CPE program, learners must:
- Earn 120 CPE credits over a 3-year certification cycle
- Maintain active coverage each year through either:
- the Annual Membership Program (AMP), or
- the Annual Maintenance Fee (AMF)
These options help ensure certification holders remain current with evolving cybersecurity knowledge and skills.
For detailed requirements and eligible activities, refer to the OffSec CPE Handbook.
How does the CPE program Work?
After earning an OffSec certification, the certification enters a three-year renewal cycle. During this period, learners must accumulate 120 CPE credits and maintain active coverage through AMP or AMF each year of the cycle.
CPE credits can be earned through:
Learning with OffSec
Learners may complete eligible OffSec training content and hands-on exercises that qualify for CPE credits.
Examples may include:
- Rotating CPE-eligible learning content
- Hands-on labs, including and Grimoires
- PG Practice labs
Access to this content depends on whether the learner has AMP or AMF.
External Professional Activities
Learners may also submit CPE credits earned outside of OffSec, provided they align with the certification body of knowledge.
Examples include:
- Technical presentations at security conferences (e.g., Black Hat, DEF CON)
- Published research or vulnerability discoveries
- Completing technical coursework or hands-on training on other platforms
- Relevant professional learning activities
All external submissions must follow the requirements outlined in the CPE Handbook.
Maintaining Certification: AMP vs AMF
Learners can maintain certification eligibility through one of two options:
Annual Membership Program (AMP)
AMP is an auto-renewing annual subscription ($299/year) that includes certification maintenance plus access to additional learning resources.
AMP includes:
- Annual Maintenance Fee coverage
- Access to rotating CPE-eligible content
- Access to hands-on labs (including Grimoires, and OCR/DCR ranges)
- PG Practice labs
- Access to course materials and videos for previously purchased courses
Course materials are available only if the learner previously purchased the course through a qualifying purchase (such as a Course & Cert Exam bundle, Learn One subscription or CyberCore).
AMP access begins on the purchase date and lasts one year, renewing automatically unless cancelled.
Annual Maintenance Fee (AMF)
AMF is a non-renewing annual fee ($145/year) that provides certification maintenance coverage without additional learning benefits.
AMF includes:
- Certification maintenance for eligible expiring certifications
AMF does not include:
- Access to rotating CPE-eligible content only
- Course materials
- Hands-on labs
- PG Practice access
- Other membership benefits available through AMP
AMF coverage begins at purchase and aligns with the expiration cycle of the certification.
Anyone may purchase AMP if it is available in their Buy More page. Access benefits may depend on previous course purchases.
AMF can be purchased by learners who hold eligible expiring OffSec certifications.
Who Does Not Qualify
The following users are not eligible to purchase AMP or AMF for certification maintenance:
- Individuals who have only accessed free OffSec content
- Users with only a PG Practice subscription
- Full admins
For full context, kindly check the CPE Handbook.