Frequently Asked Questions About Microsoft Certification Benefits

Learn about certification benefits on the Microsoft Certification benefits page

After you pass your first Microsoft Certification exam, you can access all of your benefits from the Microsoft Certification member site. You first need to be a registered member of your program's members only site. Once you have registered, you will need to wait 24 hours before accessing these services to allow our databases to be updated with your information. If you are already registered with the site or 24 hours have passed since you completed registration, simply sign in to your program's members only site with your Windows Live ID. Then navigate to "Program Benefits" from the left navigation menu.

Learn how to access the Microsoft Certification member site

The Microsoft Certification member site can be accessed only by Microsoft Certified Professionals (MCPs). You can access it at the following URL:

Once you have registered, please wait 24 hours before accessing your program benefits to allow our databases to be updated with your information.

If you cannot remember the Windows Live ID associated with your account, or have other difficulty accessing the MCP site, please contact the Microsoft Regional Service Center serving your area.

Note If you have a Hotmail account, MSN e-mail account, or Microsoft Passport, it is your Windows Live ID.

Because online benefits are available only to eligible Microsoft Certified Professionals, you must enter your Windows Live ID credentials to access your online benefits. Once your account has been authenticated, you will be redirected to the page that you were attempting to access.

Access your transcript on the Microsoft Certification member site.

You will be able to print a copy of your current transcript and confirm your certification status.

For security purposes, you are required to verify your credentials again before accessing the tool.

Please note that it can take up to two weeks for Microsoft to receive and process your exam records. If it has been more than two weeks since you took your exam and the results still do not appear on your transcript, or if you notice any other problems, please contact the Regional Service Center nearest you.

External certifications (such as CompTIA) will be shown on the transcript under "Microsoft Certification Exams Completed Successfully," but non-Microsoft exam credits will not appear on your transcript. Your transcript will not show any exam waivers you may have received for certifications from other companies. You are still credited for these external certifications within the certification system.

Make sure that you keep your address current with the Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) program to ensure that you receive all your benefits.

Your Microsoft Profile contains basic contact and newsletter subscription information. Your Community Profile allows you (at your discretion) to share both personal and professional information with Microsoft, other members of the certified community, or the general public.

Access your Community Profile on the Microsoft Certification member site:

The first version of the Community Profile does not auto-fill your certifications, which allows you to highlight only those certifications you choose. You also have the flexibility to highlight other industry certifications in your profile.

We are working on a second release of the MCP Community Profile tool, in which we hope to reset parameters to accept your default certification logo.

To maintain data integrity, basic contact information needs to be maintained in your Microsoft Profile. All other fields are considered part of your Community Profile and can be edited by using the MCP Community Profile tool.

Within each section of your Community Profile, you have the option to make your information visible to Microsoft only, Microsoft plus other members of the certified community, or all of the above and the general public. By default, Microsoft is the only member who will be able to view your profile. To share your profile, you must select the Visibility option and thereby give Microsoft permission to share your information.

You control visibility of the different sections of your profile. Use the Visibility radio button in the Edit mode of each section of your profile. You can select Microsoft only, other program members, or all public users.

First, you need to create a Community Profile. Within each section of your Community Profile you have the option to assign access permissions under Visibility or Choose an action: Visibility. You can select Microsoft, your fellow certified professionals, or the public.

By default, there are no products or technology interests selected in the Product/Technology Interests field in your Community Profile. Go to your Community Profile and open the Languages and Interests section where you can select your Product/Technology interests.

The certification field in the Community Profile is a free-form text field. Sorting results from a free-form text field does not produce reliable search results.

The Product/Technology Interests field in the Community Profile allows one or more selections. If the member selects multiple products or technology interests, sorting the results by this criterion would not produce meaningful search results.

Candidates who successfully complete the Microsoft Certification requirements and who enter into the MCP Program and Logo Agreement may use the MCP logo as a graphic symbol to demonstrate to clients their expertise with Microsoft products. Follow the Microsoft Certified Professional Logo Guidelines to correctly promote your relationship with Microsoft and to protect the integrity of the logo.

MCP logos are available for download from the Microsoft Certification member site only.

For security purposes, you are required to verify your credentials again before transferring from the member site to the tool.

The test that you passed might not qualify you to print that specific logo. If you believe this is an error, please contact the Microsoft Regional Service Center serving your area.

Please contact the Microsoft Regional Service Center serving your area.

Because most of our customers prefer digital logos (available for download from the Microsoft Certification member site), we no longer ship hard-copy logo sheets.

MCPs Only (does not apply to MSBC or Dynamics customers): You can purchase shirts, caps, briefcases, and other items with the MCP logo at the MCPeStore. The MCPeStore will validate your certifications based on the Live ID with which you enter the site.

The Knowledge Base Agreement is specifically for program members who want to republish sections of the KB articles. Currently, the terms of use agreement for the Microsoft support site does not allow republishing any portion of KB articles. This agreement gives more rights to our program members by allowing them to republish portions of the KB articles.

Note The full article still cannot be republished, but you may frame it on your site.

Community Solutions is only available to MCTs. To access the Community Solutions tool, you must access it from the MCT site.

Learn about welcome kit eligibility and what is included in the welcome kit

Welcome kits are not shipped automatically. You must confirm your address and activate your shipment from the Microsoft Certification member site. Please take the following steps.

The welcome kit and certificate are eligible for export to all customers worldwide, except to United States embargoed destinations.

MCPs registered as living in Japan do not have to order welcome kits; the kits are sent when you become an MCP. Allow four weeks for delivery. If you still have not received your welcome kit after four weeks, contact the Microsoft Regional Service Center in Japan.

For security purposes, you are required to verify your credentials again before transferring to the tool.

No. We have streamlined kit contents to catch up with customer preferences and a paper-free work world. You will notice that kits no longer include a paper Contact Sheet or Program Agreement; you will have access to the most up-to-date versions online.

No. Lapel pins have been discontinued in response to customer feedback, allowing us to allow us to focus on delivering benefits with higher approval ratings.

The appearance of your paper Certificates of Achievement will correspond with the new, downloadable transcript format. The hard-copy will reflect your requested improvements in the form of four-color printing, better quality paper to prevent bending in shipment, a Microsoft watermark, and a metallic seal.

Learn when new wallet cards are sent on the Welcome Kit and Certificate Details page

The new generation wallet cards do not display previously earned certifications. In response to customer feedback, we are considering cumulative credential cards that display both classic and new generation certifications.

The magnetic strips were previously used for collecting contact information at events. We no longer use them because it is more efficient and beneficial to use contact information from the event registration.

This is the date that indicates when you first became a Microsoft Certified Professional.

Candidates can contact their Regional Service Center and reorder a new certificate. The agent will verify that your address is current and reorder a new certificate. Please note that you cannot reorder a certificate or welcome kit online, as the system will only let you order one welcome kit per certification.

Microsoft does not send an updated transcript after you pass each exam. You can view and download your transcript at any time from the Microsoft Certification member site. More information about when you are eligible for a kit and what is included is available on the Welcome Kit and Certificate Details page.

By using the welcome kit after you open it, you are accepting the Agreement. You should not use the items in this kit unless you have read the Agreement in full and have accepted those terms. If you do not want to be bound by the Agreement, you may return the kit, with all its contents, to Microsoft at the address set forth in the Agreement. In the event you do not accept the terms and conditions of the Agreement, you are not authorized to use the applicable MCP designation or any logo, trademark, or trade name owned by Microsoft Corporation.

Although it can take four to six weeks for delivery after you request your kit from the MCP site, most customers receive their materials earlier than that. The shipment of MCP materials involves collaboration between numerous groups, including your test center, Microsoft, distribution centers, and the shipping provider. In some cases—most commonly in China and India—there are also customs or government stakeholders. To coordinate more than 1,000 shipments per day between all of these groups, we allow six weeks for delivery. This includes 9 to 15 business days of actual transit time for the package. If you are concerned about your materials, contact your Regional Service Center and confirm the status of your shipment.

Charter Members are the pioneering group of individuals who achieve a certification shortly after the certification becomes available. When a Charter Member certification is offered, it will be available to the candidates who achieve the new certification within the first six months following the release date of the certification exam. Charter Members are recognized with the Charter version of the certificate.

You can order your Charter Member kit up to six months after the exam availability date.

United States veterans who take MCP exams may now use their Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) education benefits to cover examination fees. If you are eligible for Montgomery G.I. Bill (Chapter 30), VEAP (Chapter 32), and Dependents Educational Assistance (Chapter 35) benefits, you can receive reimbursement for exam fees of up to US$2,000 per exam.