The Life Cycle of BCBA and BCaBA Applications

UPDATED: June 29, 2026

Have you ever wanted to know what goes on behind the scenes after you submit your BCBA or BCaBA application in your BACB portal account? Now you can! For your convenience, we’ve pulled together a quick overview of the BCBA and BCaBA application life cycle. In this detailed look at the beginning, middle, and end of the application process, you’ll learn more about what to expect once you apply for certification.

In the Beginning: It’s All About Documentation

Having complete and accurate documentation is one of the most important parts of the application process. However, due to the large amount of documentation that applicants are required to provide, it can be challenging to keep track of everything once it’s submitted—and that’s where we come in. Here’s an example of what the documentation stage might look like:

  1. First, we receive your documentation. The documents can arrive a few different ways. For example:
    • your university might send us your transcript directly, or they might use a third-party transcript service to send it electronically.
    • your Final Fieldwork Verification Form is submitted via the Contact Us Form.
    • your coursework attestation is submitted by university faculty in your department.
  2. Next, we retrieve the documents that come from third parties (e.g., third-party transcript service, your university) and upload them to your individual record on the date that they were received.
  3. At this point, we send you a confirmation email, and you can rest easy knowing that your documentation is in good hands. It’s important to note that if you submit documentation via the Contact Us Form, you’ll automatically receive a confirmation email. However, if your university or a third-party transcript service submits documentation on your behalf, we’ll send you an additional confirmation email. Keep in mind that your university may send you a confirmation email, but this only indicates that your transcript has been sent—not received.
  4. Finally, we add your documentation to a queue to be reviewed.

Helpful Reminder: Take your time when preparing for your application and try not to submit it before it’s completely ready. For example, you might consider requesting a copy of your transcript to confirm that your degree has been conferred and that all of your behavior-analytic coursework is listed and includes passing grades. If you have your ducks in a row from the very beginning, you can potentially avoid application processing delays.

Next Up: The Waiting Game

After submitting documentation for something important, we often start asking ourselves questions: Was my information received? How long will it take to hear back? Should I submit again just to be sure? Be sure to keep a close eye on your email in case we request more documentation. The Applications widget in your BACB portal account shows your application status, which lets you know where your application is in the review process. Use the table below to determine what the status means and what actions, if any, you should take.

Your application shows the following status What this status means Your next steps
Incomplete You have not completed your application, so it has not been submitted for review. Click the pencil icon to edit your application. Complete all required fields, then submit your application.
Approved—Exam Authorization Confirmed Your application has been reviewed and approved, but you have not yet taken the certification examination. Schedule your certification examination.
Submitted—Awaiting Payment and Documents Your application has been submitted, but your payment and transcript(s) have not been received. Confirm that your official transcript(s) and payment have been sent to the BACB.
Submitted—Awaiting Payment Your application and supporting documents have been received. Your application will be reviewed once payment is received. Click My Account, then select Invoices and Payment to submit your payment.
Submitted—Awaiting Documents Your transcript(s) have not been received. Contact your university to request that your transcript(s) be sent to the BACB.
Under Review Your application is considered complete, and payment has been received. BACB staff will review your application and contact you if additional documentation is needed. Monitor your email and respond to any requests for further documentation.
Approved: Pass/Fail Related to examination results. Pass: No action required.
Fail: Complete a retake application.
Awaiting Applicant Action Additional information or documents are required to continue processing your application. Check the Action Items widget in your BACB portal account. Complete and submit any outstanding Action Items.
Expired The application was created more than 90 days ago and is no longer active. If you are still interested in applying, select and complete a new application.
Approved Recertification, VIS, Return from VIS, or BCBA-D application approved. No action required.

For more information, here’s a quick glance at what the review process involves on our end:

  1. As we mentioned earlier, once we get your documents, we place them in a queue and review them in the order they were received.
  2. When your application is up for review, we take a look at all of the documents that have been uploaded to your individual record and if any documentation is missing or needs to be corrected, you will receive an email with information about what is needed and how to submit it. This is why it’s so important to have all your application materials ready to go before you submit your documentation. If we need to request more documentation, you may encounter delays.
  3. As you wait to hear back from us, you can visit the Application Processing Updates web page. This page provides status updates on application processing times, and we update it daily. Please note that it may take up to 45 days from when we receive all the documentation needed to complete our review.

Helpful Reminder: As tempting as it may be, please don’t submit your documentation multiple times, as this will cause application processing delays. If any additional information is needed, we’ll be sure to let you know.

Last but Not Least: The Determination

It feels great to get two thumbs-up for an approved application, and we love giving them! That said, there are a few different outcomes that can occur at this point in the process. Here’s some additional information about what the determination phase includes:

  • If we approve your application based on the documentation we received, we’ll send an examination authorization to Pearson. Once your information is in their system, your application status will be updated in the Applications widget, and we’ll send you an examination authorization email with information about how to schedule and take the examination. You can learn more about scheduling an appointment by visiting our Examination Information web page.
  • If we don’t approve your application after the initial review, we’ll provide you with a determination via email. The determination will include a list of documents that are still needed as well as documents that have already been reviewed and approved. If you receive a determination indicating that you must provide additional documents, those documents will go through the same review cycle as before once they’ve been submitted. Bear in mind that you only have 90 days from the date you make an application payment to submit all the required documentation before your application expires.
  • If you disagree with the application determination and believe your application was denied in error, you may review our appeals policies and procedures to determine whether a second, independent review of your application should be initiated.
  • For assistance with any additional questions you may have about your application, please complete the Contact Us Form.

Helpful Reminder: If you’d like additional guidance along the way, check out our BCBA and BCaBA Applicants: 5 Tips for a Smoother Application Process blog.

Thanks for letting us share this bit of insight into how the application process works. We hope that you feel better acquainted with the life cycle of BCBA and BCaBA applications and can have peace of mind knowing that once you apply for certification, we’re here to help make the process as smooth as possible.