Articles · Running the board · State guide
Florida HOA and Condo Director Certification: What Is Required
Short answer: Under Florida law (Fla. Stat. § 720.3033(1), as of September 23, 2026), each HOA director must submit a certificate of completing a department-approved course within 90 days after being elected or appointed. A director who does not timely file “is suspended from the board until he or she complies with the requirement.” Directors of residential condominiums follow a different rule in Chapter 718: a written certification that they read the governing documents, plus an education certificate (Fla. Stat. § 718.112(2)(d)5.b).
Last checked: September 23, 2026. Covers: Florida Statutes Chapter 720 (HOAs) and Chapter 718 (condominiums). Department rules, approved-provider lists and court decisions were not reviewed.
What must a Florida HOA director do?
Under Fla. Stat. § 720.3033(1):
- Certificate within 90 days. Each director submits a certificate of having satisfactorily completed the educational curriculum administered by a department-approved education provider. The curriculum for new directors must include training on financial literacy and transparency, recordkeeping, levying of fines, and notice and meeting requirements.
- Valid up to 4 years. The new-director education is repeated at least every 4 years.
- Continuing education every year. At least 4 hours if the association has fewer than 2,500 parcels, at least 8 hours if it has 2,500 or more.
- Consequence. A director who does not timely file is suspended from the board until he or she complies, and the board may temporarily fill the vacancy during the suspension.
- Board decisions. Failing to have the certificate on file does not affect the validity of any board action (§ 720.3033(1)(c)).
The statute directs the department to adopt implementing rules (§ 720.3033(1)(d)). In Chapter 720 the department is the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) (§ 720.301). We did not read the rules.
What must a condo director do?
For a residential condominium, § 718.112(2)(d)5.b requires each director to do two things:
- Certify in writing to the secretary that he or she has read the declaration, articles, bylaws and current written policies, will work to uphold them, and will “faithfully discharge his or her fiduciary responsibility.”
- Submit an educational certificate from a course of at least 4 hours, administered by the Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes or a division-approved provider. The course must cover milestone inspections, structural integrity reserve studies, elections, recordkeeping, financial literacy, fines, and notice and meeting requirements.
Both are due within 1 year before or 90 days after election or appointment. They are valid for 7 years, and need not be resubmitted if the director serves without interruption. Beginning one year after the most recent submission, and annually after that, a director completes at least 1 hour of continuing education on recent changes to the chapter and its rules. Directors elected or appointed before July 1, 2024 had until June 30, 2025 to comply. The statute has a separate rule for directors appointed by the developer. A director who does not timely file is suspended from service on the board until he or she complies, and the board may temporarily fill the vacancy.
How do the two compare?
| HOA (ch. 720) | Residential condo (ch. 718) | |
|---|---|---|
| Written certification of reading the documents | Not set out in the 2026 text of § 720.3033(1)(a), though (1)(c) still mentions “the written certification” | Yes, given to the secretary |
| Education certificate due | Within 90 days after election or appointment | Within 1 year before or 90 days after election or appointment |
| Length of course | Set by the department-approved curriculum | At least 4 hours |
| Certificate valid | Up to 4 years | 7 years while serving without interruption |
| Continuing education | 4 or 8 hours a year, by parcel count | At least 1 hour a year, starting one year after the most recent submission |
| Not filing on time | Suspended from the board | Suspended from service on the board |
| Missing certificate and board action | Does not affect validity of board action | Does not affect validity of board action |
| Certificate kept | 5 years after election | 7 years or the director’s tenure, whichever is longer |
What changed in 2024?
Chapter 2024-221 (House Bill 1203), section 4, amended § 720.3033 and took effect July 1, 2024 (the act’s section 13). Its title describes new education requirements for newly elected or appointed directors, a required curriculum, annual continuing education, and rulemaking by DBPR. The 2026 text sets a department-approved provider, a certificate valid up to 4 years, a new-director course at least every 4 years, and annual continuing education of 4 or 8 hours by parcel count.
The enrolled act also shows an earlier wording of subsection (1)(a), in which each director certified in writing to the secretary that he or she had read the governing documents, with the education certificate submitted “in lieu of” that written certification. The 2026 text of § 720.3033(1)(a) no longer contains a written certification about reading the documents. We could not read the act’s strike-through marks in the text we used, so we describe the current text and do not say more about what the 2024 act deleted. Whether any written-certification duty remains in an association’s own documents is a question for counsel.
The same act’s title also covers kickbacks and removal for criminal charges. The 2026 text makes a knowing kickback a third-degree felony and says that, if the board finds an officer or director has violated the kickback rule, the board must immediately remove that person (Fla. Stat. § 720.3033(3)). It also lists “any criminal violation under this chapter” among the charges that require removal when an officer or director is charged by information or indictment (§ 720.3033(4)). The condo education rule was amended separately by ch. 2024-244, section 9, effective July 1, 2024.
How are the certificates kept and shown?
HOA certificates are kept 5 years after the election (Fla. Stat. § 720.3033(1)(c)). The condo statute keeps them 7 years or the director’s tenure, whichever is longer (§ 718.112(2)(d)5.b). An HOA with 100 or more parcels must post director certifications on its website or app (§ 720.303(4)(b)1). See Florida HOA website requirements.
What to do next
- Write down the date you were elected or appointed and count 90 days (for a condo, see the window above).
- Look for a course from a provider the department has approved. We did not research which providers are approved, or what they charge.
- Submit the certificate, and keep your own copy.
- Put your continuing education on a calendar.
- If you are handing over a board, add the certificates to the board handover checklist.
Common questions
Do Florida HOA board members need to be certified? Yes. Under § 720.3033(1), each director submits a certificate within 90 days after election or appointment, and a director who does not timely file is suspended from the board until he or she complies. Condo directors have their own rule in § 718.112(2)(d)5.b.
Is there an online course for Florida HOA certification? The statute requires a curriculum administered by a department-approved education provider (§ 720.3033(1)(a)). We did not verify which courses are approved, whether any are online, or whether any are free. Check the department’s current list of approved providers.
Does a missing certificate make board decisions invalid? Under the HOA statute, failure to have the certificate on file does not affect the validity of any board action (§ 720.3033(1)(c)). The condo statute has a similar sentence about the written certification and educational certificate (§ 718.112(2)(d)5.b).
Is HOA certification the same as condo certification? No. The deadline, course length, validity and continuing-education hours differ, and the condo rule includes a written certification (see the table above). For more on the role, see what an HOA board member does.
Sources
Checked September 23, 2026.
- Fla. Stat. § 720.3033 (https://www.flsenate.gov/laws/statutes/2026/720.3033); § 720.303 (https://www.flsenate.gov/laws/statutes/2026/720.303)
- Fla. Stat. § 718.112 (https://www.flsenate.gov/laws/statutes/2026/718.112)
- Ch. 2024-221 (https://laws.flrules.org/2024/221); ch. 2024-244 (https://laws.flrules.org/2024/244)
Important notice
Fycus is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. Association law varies by state and by each community’s governing documents. Consult a licensed attorney for guidance specific to your association.
This page is general information, was written from official statute text as of September 23, 2026, and has not been reviewed by an attorney. Laws change; check the current text before you rely on it.
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