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Recertification for Pesticide Applicators/Dealers

Pesticide applicators and dealers are required to requalify for licensing prior to every fifth licensing period. The Department of Agriculture has a staggered four year requalification time period designated by applicator classification and sub-classification. The recertification and renewal chart has the four-year recertification periods for each of the pesticide categories. There are two ways to requalify for your pesticide license:

  1. Pass the complete examination series again or
  2. Attend 12 hours of training approved by the Department of Agriculture.

An applicator can attend approved industry sponsored training or department sponsored training to obtain the 12 credits needed to requalify for his or her pesticide license. If you have more than 12 credits in a 4-year recertification period, the extra credits will not transfer to the next 4-year recertification period. The new recertification period starts at zero credits and you are responsible for another 12 credits. The Department of Agriculture does provide safety training courses in the 4-year recertification period, but these courses are not mandatory for a pesticide applicator or dealer to attend.

Requesting Pesticide Credits
An organization, association, industry group, state and federal agencies, and individual applicators can submit a training course for Montana commercial recertification credits. All courses need to provide a balanced program for applicators and dealers, which means courses should include at least 4-5 of the 8 items in the Standards for Pesticide Training. For sponsors providing yearly training, this balance can be achieved over an extended time frame (3-4 years). For more information on how to set up a training course click on Guidelines for Commercial Pesticide Training.

To request recertification credits for a training course:

  1. Submit a completed Pesticide Recertification Credit Request Form.
  2. Include a copy of the program agenda with a description of the presentation titles.
  3. Submit your request at least 30 days before the course date.
  4. Send your request and agenda to:

Montana Department of Agriculture
Agricultural Sciences Division
Attn: Janet Kirkland
P.O. Box 200201
Helena, MT 59620-0201
Phone: 406-444-3732
Fax: 406-444-7336
E-mail: agr@mt.gov