Scheme for Voluntary Certification of Yoga Professionals was implemented by Quality Council of India from June, 2015 to May 2018. Under the scheme, QCI offered 2 levels of certification for Yoga Professionals:

• Level 1 – Yoga Instructor
• Level 2 – Yoga Teacher
  
  The certificates of the Yoga Professionals were valid for 3 years. During this period, the certified Yoga Professionals were required to appear for surveillance within 18-21 months of issuing of the certificate and also had to undergo assessment for renewal of the certificates before the expiry of the certificates.
  
  Meanwhile Ministry of AYUSH had established a Yoga Certification Board (YCB) under the aegis of Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga in March, 2018. The implementation of the scheme for certification of Yoga Professionals and Accreditation of Yoga Institutions was thereafter transferred to YCB in June, 2018. YCB continued the implementation of the scheme till 31st March, 2019.
  
  YCB has now revised the guidelines for implementation of the scheme. Under the revised guidelines Yoga Certification Board has launched 3 levels of certification:
  
• Level 1 – Yoga Protocol Instructor
• Level 2 – Yoga Wellness Instructor
• Level 3 – Yoga Teacher and Evaluator
  
  The certificates for level 1 – Yoga Protocol Instructor will be valid for 5 years and all other levels of certification will be valid for 3 years. YCB has also devised new guidelines for renewal of certificates which includes Continuing Yoga Education Programme (CYEP). CYEP aims at motivating the candidate in career growth of Yoga Professionals and includes 2 components:
  
• Assessment of candidates performance during the period of certification
• Orientation to strengthen the candidate’s skill as Yoga Professional
  
  Any certified Yoga Professional shall have to the CYEP which is a 2-3 days program and is conducted at Leading Yoga Institutions accreditated/ recognised by the YCB.
  
  In view of above, an onetime opportunity is being given to the existing certified Yoga Professionals to align themselves with the new level of certification through attending Special Continuing Yoga education Program (CYEP). Under the special CYEP, existing certified Yoga Professionals of level 1 and level 2 may opt to upgrade their certificates to level 2 and level 3 respectively. CYEP for each level will be conducted separately. The certificate of the certified Yoga professionals who has not attended the CYEP will lose its validity after the validity period. If the certified Yoga Professional fails to or is unwilling to attend the special CYEP, he/she canattend the regular CYEP before the validity of his/ her certificate expires. Under the regular CYEP, the Yoga Professional will be assessed for renewal of the certificate for the existing level.
  
  The candidate has to secure atleast 70% marks in the CYEP assessment process for renewal of the certificate.The qualifying candidate shall be granted upgraded certificate and others will continue with the existing level as per new certification scheme which shall be renewed subject to attending the CYEP before the expiry of validity period of new certificates.
  
  Who are eligible for Special CYEP?
• Existing certified Yoga Professionals of Level 1 and Level 2 who are willing to upgrade to new levels of certification.
• Existing certified Yoga Professionals of Level 1 and Level 2 who are willing to align to new system of certification i.e. willing to continue with existing level of certification
• Existing certified Yoga Professionals of Level 1 and Level 2 whose certificates have already expired or are about to expire
  
  Procedure for attending special CYEP:
  • Special CYEP shall be conducted from 1st April, 2019 to December, 2019.
  • The certified Yoga Professionals can opt for any one of the following for attending special CYEP
    • Attending one special CYEP program of 2 -3 days at Leading Yoga Institutions
    • Participating in virtual special CYEP through Vide Conference or virtual mode which shall include submitting the report on training of persons conducted alongwith supporting documents and appearing for exam before the Committee.
  • The schedule for CYEP shall be available on YCB website. The candidate shall have to select preferred venue for attending CYEP or the virtual mode for attending the CYEP. There shall be separate CYEP for each level.
  • The candidate shall have to register on YCB website. The process is in 2 parts:
    • Enrolment
    • Assessment
    The Enrolment part of the form is one time enrolment where the basic information of the candidate is to be submitted alongwith the enrolment fee. The candidate will be issued one time unique enrolment number.
    On confirmation of enrolment, the candidate has to register for attending special CYEP and select venue and date for CYEP alongwith assessment fee.
  • The candidate shall submit all the requisite documents online on or before the due date as mentioned the schedule of the CYEP. In absence of all the required documents, the marks awarded against the head shall be zero.
  • The candidate will be issued an admit card for attending CYEP.
  • The candidate shall attend the CYEP and appear for the assessment. If for any reason, the candidate in unable to attend the CYEP after the issuance of the admit card, the fee will generally be forfeited.
  • The syllabus for assessment during CYEP will be the syllabus for the level the candidate is willing to align/ upgrade.
  • The mark distribution for assessment for renewal is in 3 parts: