The credential
BCaBA supervision hours: the fieldwork math before certification and the supervision you keep after it
A BCaBA® (Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst) works under two separate sets of supervision hours: supervised fieldwork you log before you can apply, and ongoing supervision by a BCBA for as long as you practice. For applications through 31 December 2026 the fieldwork is 1,300 hours Supervised or 1,000 hours Concentrated, per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026); from 1 January 2027 the Concentrated route drops to 800 hours under the BACB’s 2027 BCaBA requirements. This page maps both clocks, month by month.
Two clocks: fieldwork before, supervision after
Most pages that rank for this search mix the two up, and many quote BCBA numbers on top. Keep them apart from the start. The first clock runs before certification and decides whether you may apply. The second starts on the day you pass and never stops while you see clients. If you are still deciding whether the credential fits your plans, the overview covers the role first.
Before you apply
Fieldwork clock
You log fieldwork hours under a BCBA, with a set share of each month supervised. The total and the monthly rules depend on your application date.
Application date
One rule set is chosen
Apply through 31 December 2026 and the 2022 requirements apply; apply from 1 January 2027 and the 2027 ones do, whenever your hours were earned.
After approval
Exam window
Authorization runs 2 years from approval, with up to 8 attempts at least 30 days apart, per the current handbook. The format is on the exam page.
Certification day
Supervision clock starts
No client work until a BCBA supervisor is on record with the BACB.
Every 2 years
Recertify
20 CEUs, the fee, and a supervision record that never lapsed.
Fieldwork supervision (before)
- A percentage of the hours you log toward eligibility.
- Monthly minimums and a monthly hour range.
- Ends when your hours are complete.
Ongoing supervision (after)
- A percentage of the service hours you deliver as a certificant.
- At least one meeting a month.
- Lasts as long as you practice.
The tellAsk whose hours the percentage comes from: hours you are earning toward the credential, or hours you deliver while holding it.
Fieldwork under the 2022 rules (applications through 31 Dec 2026)
If your application reaches the BACB by 31 December 2026, you choose between two fieldwork types, per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026): Supervised fieldwork, 1,300 hours with at least 5% of each month supervised, or Concentrated fieldwork, 1,000 hours with at least 10% supervised. Fewer hours buy you double the supervision.
| Each month | Supervised | Concentrated |
|---|---|---|
| Hours logged | 20–130 | 20–130 |
| Hours supervised | at least 5% | at least 10% |
| Supervisor contacts | 4 | 6 |
| Observation with a client | 1 | 1 |
| Individual supervision | at least 50% of it | at least 50% of it |
Per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026). The 40% unrestricted minimum and the 5-year window count across your fieldwork as a whole.
You may also mix the types. The handbook’s test: Concentrated hours times 1.3, plus Supervised hours, must reach 1,300. So 600 Concentrated hours (worth 780) plus 520 Supervised hours meet the mark.
Before you log hour one
- A qualified supervisor: an active BCBA. A BCBA certified less than a year needs monthly consultation from a qualified consulting supervisor. A BCaBA cannot supervise fieldwork.
- A signed supervision contract.
- The first class meeting of qualifying coursework behind you.
- A log format you will keep for five years: every hour must fall within 5 continuous years.
Fieldwork from 1 January 2027
Apply on or after 1 January 2027 and the 2027 BCaBA requirements apply to all your hours, including ones logged in 2026. Supervised fieldwork stays at 1,300 hours; Concentrated fieldwork falls to 800 hours; the monthly ceiling rises to 160.
| Rule | Apply by 31 Dec 2026 | Apply from 1 Jan 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Supervised | 1,300 h at 5% | 1,300 h at 5% |
| Concentrated | 1,000 h at 10% | 800 h at 10% |
| Hours per month | 20–130 | 20–160 |
| Client observation | 1 a month | 60 min a month (Supervised), 90 min (Concentrated) |
| Individual supervision | at least 50% | unchanged |
| Unrestricted activities | at least 40% | unchanged |
Left column per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026); right column per the 2027 BCaBA requirements. Observation minutes are cumulative across the month.
If you are mid-way, the BACB advises tracking both sets of forms through the transition; its transition guidance is the document to read. The practical move: from today, write observation minutes into your log as well as the count, so a 2026 month can be judged under either set. The coursework side of the change is laid out on the requirements page.
Worked examples: one month, two fieldwork types
Take one ordinary month of 100 fieldwork hours and run it through both types. The hours are the same; the supervision bill doubles.
- Hours logged100 h, inside 20–130
- Supervision at 5%100 x 0.05 = 5 h
- Individual share, at least 50%5 / 2 = 2.5 h
- Contacts4, one with a client observation
5 h supervised, 2.5 h or more of it individual
- Hours logged100 h, inside 20–130
- Supervision at 10%100 x 0.10 = 10 h
- Individual share, at least 50%10 / 2 = 5 h
- Contacts6, one with a client observation
10 h supervised, 5 h or more of it individual
Now the length of the route. Divide the total by the monthly ceiling and you get the fastest pace the rules allow.
- Supervised, by 31 Dec 20261,300 / 130 = 10 months
- Concentrated, by 31 Dec 20261,000 / 130 = 7.7, so 8 months
- Supervised, from 1 Jan 20271,300 / 160 = 8.1, so 9 months
- Concentrated, from 1 Jan 2027800 / 160 = 5 months
5 to 10 months at the ceiling
Arithmetic at the maximum monthly hours, not a BACB timeline; most people log fewer hours a month.
- Window5 years = 60 months
- Supervised average needed1,300 / 60 = 21.7 h a month
- Months at the 20-hour floor1,300 / 20 = 65 months
Average at least 22 h a month to finish 1,300 Supervised hours in time
A run of minimum months satisfies every monthly rule and still misses the window.
Where people stall is the single month, not the total. A 140-hour month sits outside the 2022 range, and a month with 4.5% supervision misses the 5% line; the handbook, not your log, decides what such a month is worth. Check every month against its row in the table before you start the next one.
Unrestricted vs restricted hours
At least 40% of your fieldwork hours must be unrestricted activities, under both the rules for applications through 31 December 2026 and the 2027 requirements. The rest may be restricted, so restricted work can fill at most 60%.
Restricted
- Delivering therapeutic or instructional procedures yourself, such as running a skill-acquisition or behavior-reduction plan in session.
- At most 60% of your hours.
Unrestricted
- The analyst’s side of the case: assessment, writing and revising programs, graphing and interpreting data, training caregivers or staff, overseeing others’ implementation.
- At least 40% of your hours.
The tellAsk whether you are delivering the procedure or designing, measuring or overseeing it. Delivering is restricted; the handbook’s examples settle the edge cases.
- Supervised, either rule set1,300 x 0.40 = 520 h
- Concentrated, by 31 Dec 20261,000 x 0.40 = 400 h
- Concentrated, from 1 Jan 2027800 x 0.40 = 320 h
Keep a running total; a month at 40% or more keeps you on pace
Arithmetic on the 40% minimum, per the handbook and the 2027 requirements.
Unrestricted hours double as exam preparation. Measurement, assessment and program writing are Sections C, F and H of the Test Content Outline (6th ed.), formerly called the task list: 20, 17 and 20 of the 150 scored items under the 6th-edition outline, per the current handbook. The weights for all nine sections are on the outline hub.
After you pass: practicing under a BCBA
A BCaBA never practices independently. You need a BCBA supervisor on record before you see a client, and the supervision covers every client you serve. With no supervisor on record the certification is inactive: you may not practice, bill, or supervise or train RBTs, per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026).
| Rule | Through 31 Dec 2026 | From 1 Jan 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Supervisor | an active BCBA, or a qualifying ABPP-certified psychologist | an active BCBA who meets the supervision-CEU requirement |
| Amount | 5% of monthly service hours for the first 1,000 h (at least 1 h every 2 weeks), then 2% | a flat 5% of service hours |
| Meetings | at least monthly | at least monthly |
| Group supervision | up to 50%, groups of 2–10 | no limit on the share, groups up to 10 |
Left column per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026); right column per the 2027 BCaBA requirements, for recertifications on or after 1 January 2027.
- Through 2026, first 1,000 h120 x 0.05 = 6 h
- Through 2026, after 1,000 h120 x 0.02 = 2.4 h
- From 1 Jan 2027120 x 0.05 = 6 h
6 h a month under the 2027 rule, at any point in your career
Your supervisor needs the 8-hour supervision training and may not be your relative, your subordinate or your employee. Supervision records are kept for at least 7 years under Code 4.05 of the Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts.
The weak spot is the handover. When a supervisor leaves, you are inactive until a new one is on record, so line up the next supervisor before the current one goes. The exam tests the same moment: task E.3 (when to seek your supervisor’s guidance) and E.6 (moving to a different supervisor) sit in Section E, Ethical and Professional Issues.
Supervising RBTs as a BCaBA
Yes, a BCaBA may supervise RBTs. You may also deliver the 40-hour RBT training, conduct the competency assessment and attest RBT applications, once you have completed the 8-hour supervision training, per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026). The chain runs BCBA to BCaBA to RBT, and you remain supervised the whole time you supervise.
- 8-hour supervision training completed before your first RBT.
- Your own BCBA supervisor on record: an inactive certification means no RBT supervision or training.
- 3 supervision CEUs planned for any cycle in which you supervise RBTs.
- Supervision records filed and kept at least 7 years.
Section I, Supervisory Relationships, carries 15 scored items (10%) under the 6th-edition outline: contracts, clear expectations, behavioral skills training, performance problems. You answer them from the supervisor’s chair while living the supervisee’s side every month. Mixed trials from Section I run in the 60-question practice exam.
Keeping the credential: CEUs and recertification
You recertify every 2 years with 20 continuing education units, 4 of them in ethics, plus 3 in supervision if you supervised RBTs during the cycle, per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026). The CEU rule does not change in 2027.
Across the 2 years
Earn the 20 CEUs as you go; nothing carries over to the next cycle and nothing can be made up after the date.
45 days before your date
The recertification application opens.
By your recertification date
Submit with the fee: $140 per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026).
The following 30 days
A reinstatement period with a late fee. After it, the certification expires.
- How to qualifyHow to become a BCaBA: the route if you apply in 2026, and what changes on 1 January 2027
- The examThe BCaBA exam, from booking to result: format, pass/fail scoring, pass rate and retakes
- Practice examFree BCaBA practice exam: 60 explained questions across all nine sections
- BCaBA vs BCBABCaBA vs BCBA: two BACB levels compared, with the RBT step below them
FAQ
01How many supervision hours do you need for BCaBA?
For fieldwork under the rules for applications through 31 December 2026: at least 5% of each month’s hours on the Supervised route (65 hours across 1,300) or 10% on the Concentrated route (100 hours across 1,000), per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026). From 1 January 2027 Concentrated is 800 hours at 10%, so 80 hours. The monthly percentage is the rule; the totals are its floor.
02How many fieldwork hours do you need for BCaBA?
1,300 Supervised or 1,000 Concentrated hours if you apply by 31 December 2026; 1,300 Supervised or 800 Concentrated hours if you apply from 1 January 2027. Your application date, not the date you logged the hours, decides which set applies.
03What are the fieldwork requirements for BCaBA in 2027?
From 1 January 2027: Supervised fieldwork 1,300 hours at 5%, Concentrated 800 hours at 10%, 20–160 hours a month, client observation of 60 minutes a month (Supervised) or 90 (Concentrated), with 50% individual supervision and 40% unrestricted activities unchanged, per the 2027 BCaBA requirements.
04Do BCaBAs require a supervision contact every month?
Yes. A certified BCaBA meets with a BCBA supervisor at least once a month under both the current handbook and the 2027 requirements, and needs that supervisor on record to practice at all.
05Can a BCaBA supervise an RBT?
Yes, after the 8-hour supervision training and while the BCaBA is itself supervised by a BCBA. Supervising RBTs adds 3 supervision CEUs to that recertification cycle.
06Can BCaBA supervision hours count toward BCBA?
That is a BCBA rule, and the BCBA Handbook is where to check it; the BCBA has its own fieldwork requirements. One thing the BCaBA Handbook does state: once you earn the BCBA, your BCaBA expires after 180 days.
07How many CEUs does a BCaBA need?
20 per 2-year cycle, including 4 in ethics, plus 3 in supervision if you supervised RBTs, per the BCaBA Handbook (updated June 2026). The rule is unchanged in 2027.
08What happens if a BCaBA has no supervisor?
The certification becomes inactive: no practice, no billing, and no supervising or training RBTs until a BCBA supervisor is back on record.