5.3 Continuing Education

The 12-hour floor in the Act and the rule

225 ILCS 407/10-30(b) is the statutory floor: a renewal applicant must prove at least 12 hours of continuing education during the Department's pre-renewal period, from Department-approved schools. 1440.310(a)(1) restates it: during each pre-renewal period, prior to expiration, each auctioneer who applies to renew must successfully complete 12 hours of auction CE courses approved by the Division from a school reviewed by the Board and approved by the Division. Illinois-licensed auctioneers who reside and practice in other states still comply unless a 10-30 waiver applies. The Division audits its records for compliance.

1440.310(c) makes the renewal application a certification of full compliance. The Division may demand certificates of completion. If an audit suggests a deficiency, the licensee has 60 days from receipt of the deficiency notice to submit evidence. Failing to document hours after certifying compliance is treated as a false or fraudulent representation to obtain a license under 20-15(1). Keep the certificates; IDFPR's 2026 fact sheet notes that a completed course can take 45 to 60 days to appear on the public CE lookup.

Six mandatory core hours — closed list

1440.310(b)(3)(A) is not a suggestion. Of the 12 hours, 6 hours shall be mandatory core from this list:

• Illinois statutes and rules governing auctioneering;
• federal statutes and regulations governing auctioneering;
• auctioneering ethics;
• escrow and trust accounts;
• contracts; and
• other subject matter recommended by the Board.

The remaining 6 hours may come from those same core subjects or from the elective list in 1440.310(b)(3)(B):

• agency;
• business courses related to auctioneering;
• real estate related courses;
• auction management;
• bid calling;
• public speaking;
• advertising;
• specialty auction courses; or
• other Board-recommended subjects.

A 12-hour package that is entirely bid calling and advertising fails the 6-hour core minimum. A 12-hour package that is entirely Illinois statutes is acceptable, because leftover hours may be additional core.

Course mechanics the exam actually writes items on

Each CE course is a minimum of 3 hours and is offered in 3-hour increments. Each 3-hour increment is from topics in the core category or the elective category. Mandatory and elective topics cannot be combined in the same 3-hour period. A Saturday block that mixes 90 minutes of trust-account law with 90 minutes of bid calling is not a valid 3-hour increment. The certificate of completion must state the hours earned and whether the course was mandatory or elective.

One hour of approved CE is at least 50 minutes of classroom instruction, exclusive of the examination. Do not count exam time toward the hour.

Every CE course requires an examination that measures understanding. At least 70 percent is required to receive credit. The examination is given on-site immediately following the course, or at the end of each course in a sequence. All examinations, including distance-education and retake exams, are proctored by a representative of the approved CE school and include at least 25 questions for each three-hour period. No CE credit without a passing exam. The school must allow one retake within 30 days. No more than one retake. Fail the retake and the entire course must be retaken and passed.

Distance education under 1440.310(b)(7) and 1440.330 still needs a proctored exam; verified attendance is required only for the examination. Classroom instruction is not required because the licensee studies the material independently. An instructor need not proctor the distance exam; a school representative must.

An instructor may earn CE for teaching an approved course, one time per course per pre-renewal period. One hour of teaching equals one hour of CE. Teaching the same ethics course twice in one cycle does not double the credit.

CE must come from an IDFPR-licensed Auction Continuing Education Provider. Out-of-state CE claimed toward Illinois compliance is a 1440.310(d)(2) filing: application, $25 processing fee, within 90 days after the course and before expiration, Board review for substantial equivalence and a proctored examination.

First-renewal exemption versus the 2026 CE Fact Sheet

1440.310(d)(1): an auctioneer is exempt from the continuing education requirements if it is his or her first renewal. The Department's 2026 Continuing Education Fact Sheet — Auctioneer Renewal (revised 6/2025) is how IDFPR currently applies that idea to the December 31, 2026 deadline:

SHPT may be counted toward elective hours if completed through an approved education provider. It does not replace the 6 mandatory core hours. A typical 2026 package for a 2020 licensee is therefore 6 mandatory core hours + 1 hour SHPT counted as elective + 5 additional elective or core hours = 12. Completing a 1-hour SHPT course from a non-approved provider and trying to treat it as one of the 6 mandatory hours is the trap.

First-renewal licensees still certify on the renewal application that they have complied with CE requirements, even when the fact sheet says no hours are due. The Department may demand evidence.

CE earned for disciplinary purposes may not be used toward renewal CE. That sentence is printed on the 2026 fact sheet. Hours ordered after a 20-15 case do not double as the 1440.310 package.

1440.310(d)(3)–(4) still allow a waiver or extension for good cause: full-time armed-forces service during a substantial part of the renewal period; a temporary, incapacitating illness documented by a licensed physician; or temporary undue hardship such as hospitalization. A second consecutive illness-waiver request is treated as prima facie proof of an impairment that may itself be a 20-15(24) problem. The CE-waiver request fee is $25 under 1440.170(g).

Worked 2026 split

Licensee A was first issued in May 2018. For the December 31, 2026 renewal A needs 12 hours: at least 6 mandatory core, plus SHPT that may count as elective if taken through an approved provider, plus remaining elective or core hours. Courses must arrive in 3-hour mandatory or elective blocks, each with a 70-percent proctored exam of at least 25 questions per 3 hours.

Licensee B was first issued in June 2025. Under the 2026 fact sheet B needs no CE for this renewal, which is the current operational reading of the 1440.310(d)(1) first-renewal exemption. B still certifies compliance on the renewal application.

Licensee C completed a 6-hour ethics course solely to satisfy a disciplinary order. Those hours cannot be reused for the 2026 renewal, even if the course would otherwise have been valid mandatory core.

Do not confuse the auctioneer even-year cycle with CE-school licensure. 1440.320 expires continuing education school and course licenses on December 31 of each odd-numbered year. That is the provider's license, not the auctioneer's 12-hour duty.