BCBA Fieldwork Changes January 1: 7.5% Concentrated Supervision, 160-Hour Months

The 2027 rules cut concentrated supervision from 10% to 7.5%, raise the monthly cap to 160 hours and count observation in minutes. Hours don't convert cleanly in both directions.

Our August 17 piece covered the pathway change and the December 31, 2026 deadline to apply under today's rules. The fieldwork rules change on the same date, and they're what a supervising BCBA signs every month. The BACB's transition guidance, updated January 2026, sets them out.

The turn: the rules don't convert both ways

"All supervised fieldwork must meet the requirements in place at the time you submit your certification application." A trainee whose application date is uncertain has to log hours that satisfy both sets of rules. Some 2027-compliant months fail the 2022 test.

What changes on January 1, 2027

  • Supervised fieldwork (2,000 hours, 5% supervision): the monthly range goes from 20–130 to 20–160 hours. Client observation changes from one per month to 60 minutes per month.
  • Concentrated fieldwork (1,500 hours): supervision drops from 10% to 7.5%. The monthly range goes from 20–130 to 20–160 hours. Observation becomes 90 minutes per month.

Where hours stop counting

  • Concentrated hours supervised at 7.5% "cannot count… as concentrated fieldwork under the 2022 requirements."
  • Hours supervised at 10% under the 2022 rules do count toward 2027, because they meet or exceed 7.5%.
  • A trainee logging 160 hours a month who then applies under the 2022 rules "will need to adjust your submitted hours to 130 or fewer per month."
  • The BACB recommends "completing both the 2022 and 2027 M-FVFs each month with your supervisor." Tracking should record "both the number of client observations (contacts) and the duration (in minutes) of each contact per month."
  • Trainee and supervisor must keep all fieldwork documentation, including M-FVFs, "for at least seven years."

The limits

The exam and the 6th edition Test Content Outline aren't changing. Continuing education rules for current certificants are unchanged. The BACB's portal known-issues page, last updated September 1, still lists an open problem: Pathway 2 coursework attestations submitted by a program contact aren't appearing in applicants' accounts. That matters for anyone trying to get a complete application in by December 31.

What you must know or do

  • Supervisors: for every trainee, write down whether they intend to apply by December 31. If the answer is "maybe," keep concentrated supervision at 10% and months at 130 hours or fewer until they decide.
  • Owners and training coordinators: add an observation-minutes field to your fieldwork tracker this quarter. Record contacts and minutes for every observation.
  • Trainees applying by December 31: log in to the BACB portal now and confirm your coursework attestation is showing. If it isn't, report it before December, not during it.
  • Everyone signing M-FVFs: complete both the 2022 and 2027 forms each month until the trainee's application route is settled.