Last Updated: April 13, 2026
First Published: April 13, 2026
Beginning in 2027, ACC and PCC Portfolio candidates will demonstrate coaching competence through enhanced mentor coaching rather than a performance evaluation.
Table of Contents
Fairness. Rigor. Trust.
These principles guide how we evaluate coaching competence at ICF. They shape how we uphold professional standards and how the world recognizes the value of ICF credentials.
As the global coaching profession continues to evolve, our credentialing must evolve with it. That means regularly examining how we define, measure, and support coaching excellence. This commitment led us to conduct a comprehensive review of the Performance Evaluation requirement.
And after careful review, the Performance Evaluation will no longer be a requirement for ACC and PCC Portfolio credentials effective April 1, 2027. In its place, applicants will complete an enhanced mentor coaching requirement, delivered by mentor coaches who have completed robust training and hold the new Mentor Coach Qualification (MCQ).
This enhanced model positions mentor coaches — qualified through robust training and the Mentor Coach Qualification (MCQ) — to validate coaching competence through structured, evidence‑based evaluation within the mentor coaching process.
Beginning January 1, 2027:
- ACC and PCC candidates applying through the Portfolio path will need to complete any new mentor coaching hours with a mentor coach who has earned the MCQ in place of the Performance Evaluation requirement.
- All credential candidates (ACC, PCC, and MCC) will need to complete the mentor coaching requirement with a mentor coach who has the MCQ.
Until this date, current requirements and processes remain in effect.
This change reflects how coaching competence is actually developed: through practice, feedback, and reflection over time.
By strengthening mentor coaching and evolving our evaluation model, we are creating a more consistent, practice-based approach to validating coaching skills. The result is a credentialing process that is more reliable, more relevant to real coaching practice, and better aligned with the expectations of our growing global profession.
Why Is the Performance Evaluation Going Away?
The Performance Evaluation requirement has served an important purpose in the development of ICF credentialing. However, the context in which coaching operates today has changed significantly since the process was first introduced.
Coaching conversations are shaped by cultural nuance, communication style, and language context. As the profession expands across cultures, languages, and regions, evaluating coaching competence through a single recorded session presents increasing challenges. Assessing recordings — often through translated transcripts — can make it difficult to fully capture the depth of a coaching interaction and may introduce unintended barriers for candidates around the world. The current model can also present accessibility challenges for some coaches, including those who coach using sign language or other specialized communication methods.
Candidates pursuing the Portfolio path have also reported that the process can be complex, time-consuming, and costly, creating unintended hurdles to credential attainment.
To better address these realities, we worked closely with mentor coaches, assessors, educators, and certification experts to explore new approaches aligned with modern certification practices.
The result is a shift from a single, high-stakes performance assessment to a formative evaluation model approved by the ICF Credentials and Standards Board of Directors.
This change strengthens the validity, credibility, and global relevance of ICF credentialing — ensuring our programs continue to reflect best practices in professional certification.
Most importantly, it ensures that ICF credentials continue to represent the highest standard of coaching competence worldwide.
What Is the New Requirement?
Beginning January 1, 2027, candidates applying for ACC or PCC through the Portfolio path will complete mentor coaching with a mentor coach who has completed robust training and holds the Mentor Coach Qualification (MCQ). These candidates will also need to submit standard mentor coaching documentation as a part of their credential application.
Mentor coaching will now serve as the primary method for evaluating coaching competence. Through this process, mentor coaches will observe coaching sessions over time, document skill development, and verify proficiency using structured competency review forms.
This replaces the current reliance on a recorded coaching session for evaluation. Instead, candidates will demonstrate their coaching ability across multiple interactions and contexts, which provides a more accurate and meaningful validation of professional competence.
Learn more about the MCQ.
How Does Mentor Coaching Strengthen Credentialing?
Coaching competence doesn’t happen in a single moment. It develops through practice, reflection, feedback, and growth over time.
A formative evaluation model — like the new mentor coaching requirement — captures this progression, offering a deeper understanding of a coach’s ability to apply the ICF Core Competencies consistently, ethically, and adaptively across real coaching interactions.
This approach:
- Provides a richer and more comprehensive review of coaching skills across multiple observations.
- Allows evaluation within the candidate’s language and cultural context.
- Encourages continuous learning and professional growth.
- Reduces pressure associated with high-stakes, single-session assessments.
- Strengthens transparency, integrity, and security in the evaluation process.
By aligning credentialing more closely with how coaching is actually practiced, this change reinforces the credibility and value of ICF credentials worldwide.
|
Current Requirement: Performance Evaluations (Summative) |
New Requirement: Mentor Coaching (Formative) |
|
|
Assessors review one evaluation submitted by a candidate. |
Mentor coaches will work with mentor coaching clients over a period of time. |
|
|
Provide evaluation of candidate that results in a pass/below passing standard score. |
Mentor coaches will complete Session Observation forms over the course of several sessions, providing feedback to support a client’s reflection and growth throughout the engagement. |
|
|
Measure learning, ensure coaches demonstrate coaching skills at a given moment in time. |
Provide candidates with learning over time and increases accessibility. |
|
|
Formal assessments/tests delivered against a pre-determined standard that contributes to the award or denial of a credential. |
Session observations and cumulative review that identify areas of strength and development to validate skills and promote ongoing learning and growth. |
What Are the Benefits for Candidates and the Profession?
The transition to the mentor coaching model makes the credentialing process more straightforward, consistent, and aligned with how coaches actually develop their skills.
This means:
- A simpler ACC and PCC Portfolio application process, with fewer steps and less administrative burden.
- Faster, more efficient application review timelines.
- Greater clarity and transparency for applicants in selecting qualified mentor coaches.
- More consistent, high-quality mentor coaching experiences across clients and programs.
- A credentialing system that is more accessible while maintaining strong standards.
Candidate feedback reinforced the need for this change. In recent surveys, 54% of respondents cited complexity in the credential application as a concern, while 38% reported the process was too time-consuming. The updated model directly addresses these challenges while strengthening the rigor of our credentials.
Who Does This Change Affect?
Several groups across the coaching ecosystem will be impacted by this change. We will provide additional details and timelines as implementation progresses.
Credential Applicants
These changes take effect April 1, 2027. If you submit your application on or after that date, you will follow the updated requirement.
ACC and PCC Applicants Using a Level Path
If you are submitting your application using the Level 1/Level 2 Path for ACC or Level 2 Path for PCC, you won’t need to do anything differently. Your coaching education program will incorporate the new mentor coaching requirements.
If you completed your coaching education before April 1, 2027, but submit your application afterward, your Level 1 or Level 2 program certificate will still be accepted.
ACC and PCC Applicants Using the Portfolio Path
Your pathway is becoming simpler, fairer, and more aligned with global certification standards to enhance your development.
- If you are using the Portfolio Path for either the ACC or PCC, you will need to:
- Complete your mentor coaching with one or more mentor coaches who have earned the MCQ.
- Mentor coaching must be completed over a minimum period of three months.
- At least three hours must be individual mentor coaching sessions.
- At least three of your coaching sessions must be observed and reviewed by your mentor coach.
- Include the Competency Review Form completed by your qualified mentor coach in your credential application.
- The Competency Review Form verifies the coaching competencies observed by the mentor and replaces performance evaluation recordings and transcripts.
- Keep your Session Observation Forms on file for each session your mentor coach reviewed.
- If your application is selected for audit, you will be required to submit these forms as part of the audit process. This provides an additional layer of quality assurance, validation, and accountability.
You can also expect a more affordable credential application. Details are forthcoming.
All MCC Candidates (Regardless of Application Path)
The Performance Evaluation requirement will remain in place; however, beginning January 1, 2027, any new mentor coaching hours must be completed with a mentor coach who holds the MCQ. Mentor coaching hours completed prior to this date will be accepted.
This requirement adds transparency to the mentor coaching process and makes it easier for you to identify qualified mentor coaches through the Mentor Coach Registry. Beginning in July, you can begin searching for mentor coaches with the MCQ via the Mentor Coach Registry.
Mentor Coaches
Your role — and reputation — is expanding. Beginning January 1, 2027, you will need to have earned the MCQ to continue working with ICF credential candidates. Applications for the MCQ are expected to open within the next few months.
Learn more about the MCQ.
Sign up to be notified when the application is available.
Assessors
ICF assessors have long served as stewards of quality, professionalism, and excellence in the credentialing process. Your work has helped ensure that ICF credentials represent the highest standards in professional coaching.
ACC and PCC Portfolio Assessors
With the transition away from the Performance Evaluation requirement, the assessor role will no longer be needed for new ACC and PCC Portfolio applications beginning April 2027. Your expertise and the important role you’ve played as an assessor positions you to transition seamlessly to the the MCQ, should you wish to continue supporting the credentialing process in this new model.
Learn more about the MCQ.
MCC Portfolio Assessors
The Performance Evaluation requirement will remain in place for MCC credential candidates, and so will your role.
Program Assessors
The introduction of the MCQ brings clearer recognition for the important role you’ve played. For the first time, mentor coaching expertise will be formally defined and aligned with globally consistent standards. If you wish to continue supporting assessment within accredited programs, you will need to earn the Mentor Coach Qualification (MCQ) by April 1, 2027.
Coach Educators
This change also affects coaching education programs, and it aligns with well-established principles of adult learning and professional skill development in which development is a process rather than a test of performance.
In fact, programs that collect evidence of learner growth can better show that graduates have practiced, refined, and demonstrated competency over time.
By April 1, 2027, your coaching education program must transition away from the Performance Evaluation requirement and adopt the MCQ mentor coaching requirement to maintain accreditation compliance.
