If you were just elected or appointed to a condominium or homeowners association board in Florida, you have to take a course and hand a certificate to your association. This is not a suggestion. A director who does not file on time is suspended from the board until they do, and the board may fill the seat in the meantime.
The rules are not the same for condos and HOAs. They live in two different chapters of Florida law, and they use different deadlines, different course lengths, and different renewal periods. Boards get this wrong all the time, usually because someone applied the condo rule to an HOA or the other way round.
Below is what each chapter actually says, in plain words, with the section cited so you can check it yourself.
The short version
Condominium directors file two things: a written statement and a course certificate. The course is at least four hours. You file within one year before you are elected, or within 90 days after. The certificate is good for seven years. After the first year you also do one hour of continuing education every year.
HOA directors file one thing: a course certificate, within 90 days of being elected or appointed. That certificate is good for up to four years. On top of it you do continuing education every year, four hours if your association has fewer than 2,500 parcels and eight hours if it has 2,500 or more.
Condominium boards: section 718.112(2)(d)
A director of a residential condominium association has to do two separate things.
One, certify in writing. You confirm to the association secretary that you have read the declaration of condominium, the articles of incorporation, the bylaws, and the current written policies. You confirm you will work to uphold them, and that you will faithfully discharge your fiduciary responsibility to the members. A fiduciary duty means you have to put the association ahead of yourself.
Two, file a course certificate. The course has to be run by the state division that regulates condominiums, or by a provider the division has approved. The statute sets a floor of four hours and lists what has to be covered:
- milestone inspections
- structural integrity reserve studies
- elections
- recordkeeping
- financial literacy and transparency
- levying of fines
- notice and meeting requirements
When it is due. Each newly elected or appointed director files both items either within one year before being elected or appointed, or within 90 days after. Directors who were already serving before July 1, 2024 had until June 30, 2025 to comply.
How long it lasts. The written certification and the educational certificate are valid for seven years from the date they are issued. You do not have to file them again as long as you serve without a break during those seven years.
Every year after the first. One year after you file, and every year after that, you file a certificate showing you have completed at least one hour of continuing education on the recent changes to Chapter 718 and its rules.
If you miss it. A director who does not file on time is suspended from the board until they comply. The board may temporarily fill the seat during the suspension. The secretary has to keep your certification and certificate available for members to inspect for seven years after your election, or for as long as you serve without a break.
HOA boards: section 720.3033
Homeowners associations run on a shorter clock and a shorter renewal.
File within 90 days. Each director submits a certificate showing they completed the educational curriculum from a department-approved education provider, within 90 days after being elected or appointed. There is no separate written statement the way there is for condos.
What the course covers. For newly elected or appointed directors the curriculum has to include financial literacy and transparency, recordkeeping, levying of fines, and notice and meeting requirements. Note what is missing compared with the condo list: milestone inspections and structural integrity reserve studies are not named here.
How long it lasts. The certificate is valid for up to four years, and a director has to complete the new-director education again at least every four years.
Continuing education every year. This is where the HOA rule is heavier than the condo rule. A director of an association with fewer than 2,500 parcels completes at least four hours of continuing education a year. A director of an association with 2,500 parcels or more completes at least eight.
If you miss it. Same consequence as a condo. The director is suspended from the board until they file, and the board may temporarily fill the seat. The association keeps each certificate available for members to inspect for five years after the director's election. One useful detail: the statute says that failing to have the certificate on file does not by itself invalidate anything the board did.
Condo and HOA side by side
| | Condominium (718.112) | HOA (720.3033) | | --- | --- | --- | | Written statement as well as a course | Yes | No | | Deadline | 1 year before, or 90 days after | 90 days after | | Minimum course length | 4 hours | Set by the approved curriculum | | Certificate valid for | 7 years | Up to 4 years | | Continuing education each year | 1 hour | 4 hours under 2,500 parcels, 8 hours at 2,500 or more | | Records kept for member inspection | 7 years | 5 years | | Penalty for filing late | Suspended until filed | Suspended until filed |
Where to take the course
The statute does not require you to pay for it. For condominiums the course has to come from the state division or from a provider the division has approved, and for HOAs from a department-approved provider. A number of approved providers run the course at no charge, including law firms and management companies, because it is a normal way for them to meet boards. The state keeps the list of approved providers, and that list is the only place worth checking before you sign up, because a certificate from an unapproved provider does not count.
Two things to confirm before you book a seat:
- That the provider is approved for your chapter. Condo approval and HOA approval are not the same thing.
- That the course is the right one. New-director education and annual continuing education are two different courses with two different purposes.
What boards get wrong
Treating it as a formality. The suspension is automatic in the sense that it follows from not filing. It is not a penalty someone has to decide to impose on you.
Filing with the wrong person. The certificate goes to the association secretary and becomes an association record. Keeping it in your own drawer does not satisfy the statute.
Forgetting the annual hour. The first certificate gets attention because it comes with an election. The continuing education that follows is what people let slide, and it is due every year.
Assuming the condo rule covers the HOA. They are different statutes with different numbers. If your firm manages both, ask which chapter applies to your community before you count days.
A note on what this is
This is a plain-language summary of two statutes, current as of September 2026, written to help boards understand what is being asked of them. It is not legal advice, and Chapter 718 in particular has changed in each of the last several legislative sessions. Confirm the current text and your own governing documents with your association's attorney before you rely on any of it.
Royale has managed condominium, cooperative, and homeowners associations in Fort Lauderdale and across South Florida since 1984, and tracking director certification is part of what we do for the boards we work with. If your board would like help keeping this on schedule, see our management services or read how annual meetings and elections should be run.
