Certifications remain active as long as you are employed as a Peace Officer, and up to three years after leaving a position. You must renew your certification if you allow your certification to lapse, and wish to return to duty.
Who may apply for renewal of basic certification?
In most cases, any former Colorado peace officer who at one time possessed basic certification but who has not worked as a peace officer or reserve peace officer within the past three years, i.e. whose certification has expired, may apply for renewal of his or her basic certification. With the passage of Senate Bill 00-77, even officers whose basic certification expired more than 10 years ago may apply for renewal.
What must I do in order for my basic certification to be renewed?
Begin your renewal process by ordering a Renewal Packet. It includes all the materials you'll need. In addition, the following requirements must be satisfied in order for an officer's basic certification to be renewed:
Obtain CBI/FBI Fingerprint Clearance
A provisional applicant must provide his or her fingerprints to CBI/FBI Background Check (a.k.a. CBI/FBI fingerprint clearance). No one convicted of a felony may be certified as a peace officer in the State of Colorado. The POST Board shall deny certification to any person who has been convicted of certain misdemeanors.
A provisional applicant must provide his or her fingerprints to CBI/FBI using a designated POST fingerprint card with the POST logo. (Please send these cards to CBI not POST) As processing of the prints may take up to eight weeks, the applicant may, on an interim basis, have the hiring agency in Colorado call POST to verify that we can accept a NCIC clearance or III Index to satisfy the background check requirement until the fingerprint card is completely processed and the results are forwarded to POST by the CBI/FBI. Please be aware that in order to accept the NCIC or III Index, POST must have the CBI Response in our office.
Complete POST Form Application for Renewal of Basic Certification
The completed Form 4 must be on file at POST.
Complete First Aid and CPR Training
The applicant must successfully complete at least basic first aid and CPR. Copies of the cards, front and back, must be on file at POST, AND the cards must be current as of the date that renewal certification is granted.
Complete a Written Exam**
The applicant must pass the written examination with a minimum score of 70 percent. The exam may be taken a maximum of three times, and the exam fee is $125 each time the exam is taken.
Only a certified check or money order will be accepted as payment; i.e. NO cash and NO personal checks will be accepted. The exam fee is not refundable.
The exam is administered the 3rd Wednesday of every month at P.O.S.T. and advance registration is required at least two weeks PRIOR to the exam date. There are 100 multiple choice questions on the exam and the time allowed is two hours. You may contact POST at any time while working to satisfy the requirements for renewal to register for and take the written exam.
Complete Skills Training**
The applicant must have successfully demonstrated proficiency in firearms, driving and arrest control. Please be aware that the test-out will not be an instructional time but a time to demonstrate your proficiency. It is required that the Skills Proficiency Manual be purchased with the Provisional Packet. This manual gives detailed information on what to expect when demonstrating your proficiency in the skills areas.
Hold a Colorado Drivers License or Other Optional ID
Colorado Statute 24-76.5-101 requires any individual seeking a Colorado POST. certification must provide POST with a copy of one of the following forms of ID:
- A valid Colorado driver's license
- A Colorado Identification Card, issued pursuant to Article 2 of Title 42, C.R.S.
- A United States military card
- A military dependent's identification card
- A United States Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Card
- A Native American tribal document
Once the certificates of completion are received by POST, and all other requirements for certification have been satisfied, the applicant's basic certification will be renewed.
Important Notes
Once all of the requirements for basic certification have been satisfied, POST will issue a letter to the applicant stating that the basic certification has been renewed and the original certification number has been re-activated. No new certificate will be issued.
Every person who possesses basic certification must notify POST, in writing, within 30 days of any change in his or her name, address, or home telephone number.
The above items are listed for general reference only. Please refer to the POST Web site for POST Rules and selected Colorado Revised Statutes OR call POST if further clarification is needed.
To obtain a Renewal Packet and Skills Proficiency Manual, please complete the Order Form and send it to POST along with the required payment.
Please call POST at (303) 866-5692 or (303) 866-5394 with any questions or concerns about this process or its applicability to your individual situation.
** The written exam and skills training requirements may be satisfied through one of the three options described below:
Option #1 - Test-Out
This two-day process incorporates both the written exam and skills training requirements. The exam is administered on one day; skills are evaluated on the other day. The applicant is provided with an opportunity to demonstrate skills proficiency in the areas of firearms, driving and arrest control by being evaluated against POST proficiency standards in each skill in lieu of attending a two-week refresher academy or 158-hours of skills training classes.
The fee to test-out is $125 for each of the three skills areas. The written exam fee is also $125. Registration and advance payment of $500 is required in order to participate in the test-out process. Only a certified check or money order payable to "POST" will be accepted as payment. A schedule listing the upcoming dates and registration deadlines is enclosed.
POST recognizes only nationally recognized disciplines for arrest control: PPCT, FBI, and Koga. Each applicant must declare only one of the disciplines at the time of registration and then demonstrate proficiency in the tactics associated with only that ONE discipline during the arrest control proficiency testing. Please include a note to POST at the time you submit payment specifying the discipline you will be using to demonstrate your arrest control proficiency.
If an applicant passes the written exam and demonstrates proficiency in all three skills areas during the two-day test-out, and all other requirements have been satisfied, the applicant's basic certification will be renewed.
Option #2 - Refresher Academy
A refresher academy is a two-week academy that consists of one week of academics and one week of skills training in firearms and driving. The written exam is administered on the last day of the two-week academy. An applicant who successfully completes the refresher academy and passes the POST exam will then have six months to complete comparable skills training in arrest control, typically documented by a letter from the hiring agency to POST Once documentation of the comparable skills training in arrest control is received by POST, and all other requirements have been satisfied, the applicant's basic certification will be renewed.
A list of refresher academies is available on our training resources page.
Option #3 - Skills Training Classes
Under this option, the applicant may either take the written exam at POST and then attend skills training classes (52 hours of firearms, 40 hours of driving and 62 hours of arrest control) at a POST approved basic academy or skills-only academy OR complete the skills training first and then take the written exam. Academies may, but are under no obligation to, offer the skills training to renewal applicants. The applicant must make all arrangements with the academy to complete skills training under this option. Certificates of completion for each skill must be provided to POST.