PLEASE NOTE: This information is created, published and updated by the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries and is shared by PSEP as is, for your information. Please direct any questions to the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries. 

Thank you for your interest in taking the recertification exam administered by the Alabama Department of Agriculture (ADAI). Passage of this exam allows you to renew your commercial applicator permit if you did not accrue the required 30 recertification points during your three-year renewal cycle.  Please note that this exam must be taken between the 1st and 28th the month in which your certification expires.

There are two ways to test for an exam:

• The most convenient way to test is to take a computer-based exam at one of our testing sites.  Tests are given on a weekly basis. and we have testing centers in Athens, Auburn, Birmingham, Hanceville, Headland. Millbrook. Mobile, and Pelham. The fee for a computer-based exam is $125 per exam ($75 state fee plus $50 administrative fee). To sign up for an exam. please visit http://apply.adaitesting.com to submit your application. Please check the box for “Recertification,” not for your pesticide applicator category (i.e., if you have OTPS, check Recertification and not OTPS). Once ADAI has approved your application, you will receive an approval email: please save this email and follow the instructions therein. It is during this second phase that you will pay for and schedule your exam.
• You may take a paper-based exam at the ADAI facility in Montgomery; the fee is $75 per exam. Recertification exams are given eight times a year on the third Tuesday in February, March, May, June, August. September, November, and December.  Preregistration is not required.  Exams are administered in the auditorium of the Beard Building, located at the address above.  Please arrive by 8:30 a.m.; testing begins promptly at 9 a.m.  No cell phones or study materials arc allowed; pencils and simple calculators will be provided, although you may bring your own if you wish.

Once you have passed the recertification exam, you must submit a completed renewal application and the appropriate fee(s) per category of certification.  A renewal application may be found on the right-hand side of this web page: agi.alabama.gov/pesticidemanagement/programs/commercial-applicators/

For questions related to testing, please contact the Certification & Training Unit at (334)240-7243.

Note: This information is created, published, and updated by the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries and is shared by the Alabama Cooperative Extension System Pesticide Safety Education Program as is, for your information. Please direct any questions to the Alabama  Department of Agriculture and Industries. 

Testing Information for Professional Service Examinations

Thank you for your interest in taking the Tree Surgery (TS) exam, which is administered by the Alabama Department of Agriculture (ADAI). There are two ways to test in this category:

• The most convenient way to test is to take a computer-based exam at one of our testing sites. Tests are given on a weekly basis, and we have testing centers in Athens, Auburn, Birmingham, Hanceville, Headland, Millbrook, Mobile, and Pelham. The fee for a computer-based exam is $125 per exam ($75 state fee plus $50 administrative fee). To sign up for an exam, please visit http://apply.adaitesting.com to submit your application, being sure to include a qualification statement if required (follow onscreen instructions). Once ADAI has approved your application, you will receive an approval email; please save this email and follow the instructions therein.  It is during this second phase that you will pay for and schedule your exam.
• You may take a paper-based exam at the ADAI facility in Montgomery. Professional service exams are given four times a year on the third Tuesday in March, June, September, and December. Preregistration is required; please submit your application and qualification statement (if required) 30 days prior to exam date. You may download and print the Professional Services Exam Application at http://agi.alabama.gov/divisions/pesticidemanagement/certification-and-testing.

For questions related to testing, please contact the Certification & Training Unit at (334)240-7243.

What to Do Once You Have Passed Your Test

Once you have passed the Tree Surgery (TS) exam administered by the Alabama Department of Agriculture (ADAI), you need to apply for an annual Professional Services permit if you will be going into business for yourself. The Application for Professional Services Permit-Horticulture can be found under the Professional Services tab of the ADAI website. The fee for this annual permit is $175/year and covers the period of October 1- September 30 and must be renewed before November l each yea r to avoid being delinquent.  For questions related to the Professional Services Permit-Horticulture, please contact Professional Services at (334)240-7269.

• If for any reason the permit holder decides to not renew the annual permit, the holder is required to notify the department (in writing) of that decision. Please mail such correspondence to the above address.

Note: Tree Surgery is a lifetime category (i.e., the exam results never expire); therefore, please retain a copy of your test results for future reference.

NOTE. This information is created, published, and updated by the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries and is shared by PSEP as is, for your information. Please direct any questions to the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries. 

Testing Information for Professional Service Examinations

Thank you for your interest in taking the Fumigation Pest Control (FC or FB) exam, which is administered by the Alabama Department of Agriculture (ADAI). Please note that FC is the certified operator category, which an applicator must have in order to own a pest control company performing structural fumigation work.  FB is for those persons wishing to manage a branch office of an already established fumigation business.  (Please note that this category is for structural fumigation,  not agricultural commodity fumigation.)

There are two ways to test in this category:

• The most convenient way to test is to take a computer-based exam at one of our testing Tests are given on a weekly basis, and we have testing centers in Athens, Auburn, Birmingham, Hanceville, Headland, Millbrook , Mobile, and Pelham. The fee for a computer-based exam is $125 per exam ($75 state fee plus $50 administrative fee).  To sign up for an exam, please visit apply.adaitesting.comto submit your application, being sure to include a qualification statement if required (follow onscreen instructions). Once ADAI has approved your application, you will receive an approval email; please save this email and follow the instructions therein.  It is during this second phase that you will pay for and schedule your exam.
• You may take a paper-based exam at the ADAI facility in Professional service exams are given four times a year on the third Tuesday in March, June, September, and December. Preregistration is required; please submit your application and qualification statement (if required) 10 business days prior to exam date.  You may download and print the Professional Services Exam Application at agi.alabama.gov/pesticidemanagement/programs/professional-services/.

For questions related to testing, please contact the Certification & Training Unit at (334)240-7243.

What To Do Once You Have Passed Your Test

Once you have passed the Fumigation Pest Control (FC or FB) exam administered by the Alabama Department of Agriculture (ADAI), you must apply for your Commercial Applicator Permit in order to be certified; the fee for certification is $45 per category.  The Application for Commercial Pesticide Applicator Permit is located under the Certification & Testing for Commercial Pesticide Applicators and Horticulturalists.

Please note that if you do not apply for your certification within one year of passing the exam, your exam will be void and you will be required to retest in order to apply for certification.

If you will be starting a business (FC), you need to apply for an annual Professional Services-Structural permit. This application can be found on the same website listed above, under the Professional Services tab.  This annual permit covers the period of October 1 – September 30 and must be renewed before November 1 each year to avoid being delinquent. If for any reason the permit holder decides to not renew the annual permit, the holder is required to notify the department (in writing) of that decision.  Please mail such correspondence to the above address.

Once you are certified in FC/FB, in order to be eligible to apply for renewal you must obtain a minimum of 30 continuing education points during your three-year renewal cycle; if you do not obtain the required number of points, you will be required to take a recertification exam prior to applying for renewal.  A list of recertification meetings and CEU guidelines is maintained on our website under the Certification & Training tab.

For questions related to certification, please contact the Certification & Training Unit at (334)240-7240.