Register a Program

Organisations are invited to submit their training and assessment programs for IMI appraisal and endorsement. Programs recognised by IMI include:

• Qualifying Assessment Programs (QAPs), which assess highly-experienced mediators for the purposes of IMI Mediator Certification—the international gold standard for mediator certification
• Mediation Advocacy QAPs (MAQAPs), which assess experienced mediation advocates for the purposes of IMI Mediation Advocacy Certification
• QAPs assessing IMI Specialisation, which can be undertaken at any point after initial training:
  • Intercultural Competency QAPs (ICQAPs), for the purposes of IMI Intercultural Specialisation
  • Online Dispute Resolution QAPs (ODRQAPs), for the purposes of IMI Online Mediation Specialisation
• Certified Mediator Training Programs (CMTPs), which deliver high-quality mediator training that meets the international standards established by the International Mediation Institute

All programs submitted to IMI are assessed against our independent international criteria by members of the Appraisal Committee. You will find lists of criteria in the website menu under ‘Organisations’.

For further information about IMI certification, see here. All currently-recognised programs may be found here.

Why have our program(s) recognised by IMI?

We are getting a number of leads from countries where we never got leads from before. This must be due to our entry on the IMI website.

Feedback received from the leader of an IMI CMTP, October 2020

Successful appraisal of your organisation’s programs means they meet the independent international standards for mediator training and assessment established through the recommendations of IMI’s independent international taskforces and worldwide stakeholder consultation.  This is a guarantee of quality that can be leveraged by your organisation in marketing; it also helps to ensure that your organisation continues to develop and attain the high standards associated with business success. 

IMI encourages organisations with CMTPs to partner with organisations offering IMI Qualifying Assessment Programs (QAPs), to deliver training that meets QAP requirements for mediator certification.

Having one or more IMI-recognised programs raises the profile of your organisation, and of mediation in your area.  Programs are searchable on the IMI website, so that people looking for training or assessment in a given location are able to locate you to sign up for your programs.  IMI receives many enquiries from people seeking training and assessment, and we only endorse those programs that have been vetted against IMI’s international standards.

How can we submit our program(s)?

All programs are assessed separately, by the applicable subcommittee of the Appraisal Committee.

How long does it take?

The Application Process typically takes 3-6 months depending on whether the submissions require revisions. Complete applications that do not require any revisions typically take 6-8 weeks to process. 

To expedite recognition of your program, we encourage you to ensure that your application is as complete as possible, with all questions addressed directly.

What does it cost?

Both the application and audit processes involve several stages, carried out by IMI’s team and by the independent Appraisal Committee, to ensure compliance with the independent international standards that IMI has developed and established for mediator training and assessment.

Having in mind the development of mediation worldwide, as well as the recognition of the benefits of the appraisal process and trust mark which IMI offers, the demand for IMI’s recognition of training and assessment programs has increased worldwide. IMI has been set up as a non-profit initiative, with a symbolic pricing scheme which enables access to the quality assessment scheme to all. However, the pricing scheme which was set up 15 years ago and which had not been amended since had long ceased to cover IMI’s associated internal costs, hampering its capacity to carry out the process in a timely manner.

All parties involved in appraising the applications do so on a voluntary basis. The organization application processing fees are used to cover IMI’s associated internal costs, mostly related to the upkeep of the IMI website, and to support the further development of mediation standards worldwide. These contributions are therefore vital to IMI’s ongoing work towards the shared vision of Professional Mediation Worldwide: Promoting Consensus and Access to Justice. Learn more about IMI’s funding here.  

Pricing Scheme for Appraisal Process and Implementing Organizations

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In February 2024, the IMI Board of Directors unanimously approved an update to the Application Processing Fees for organizations wishing to have their programs vetted against IMI’s standards.

On 16 September 2025, the Board approved a further adjustment: the CMTP Application Processing Fee was increased to reflect rising demand and operational requirements, and a new Expedited Processing Fee was introduced, applicable across all program types for applications requiring accelerated handling.

The Application Processing Fee for all QAP types (QAPs, MAQAPs, ICQAPs) remains unchanged since 1 March 2024. Both the revised CMTP application processing fee and the new Expedited Processing Fee will take effect on 1 October 2025.

For full details, please download the official document below

All fees are payable via the Support IMI page.  Links are also included at the bottom of this page.

All fees are subject to IMI’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Policy , as well as VAT in accordance with each organization’s location. Please view IMI’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Policy and Fees for applicability of discounted fees based on categories structured according to both a country’s income level and its human development classification.

Auditing fees

All programs are subject to an audit every two years.  A processing fee of 350 EUR is associated with conducting this audit (organisations that do not collect any fees in association with their programs are exempt from this cost).  Programs that do not successfully complete the audit will no longer be recognised by IMI. Learn more about auditing here.

What happens once our program is listed?

Once your program is approved, you will be notified by IMI, and your organisation will receive an automatic email from the IMI website welcoming you.  You will then be able to set your organisation’s password and add some profile information.  IMI will add your qualifying Certified Mediator Training Program or Qualifying Assessment Program to the ‘Find a Program‘ page. This will enable people looking for training or assessment in your city, state, or country, to find you and sign up for your programs.

What if we have an existing IMI profile?

If your organisation has an existing Qualifying Assessment Program or Certified Mediator Training Program, your existing login will be upgraded to give the full capabilities of both a QAP and an CMTP.

Processing Fees

Historical Background

IMI was established in 2007 to set out internationally-applicable quality standards for mediators and an international mediator credentialing scheme. IMI does not certify nor offer mediation training directly. Rather, training and certification is conducted by IMI’s implementing organisations: Certified Mediator Training Programs (CMTP’s) and Qualifying Assessment Programs (QAP’s), respectively. 

The process of becoming IMI Certified moved from the Expertise Qualification Path (EQP) in IMI’s early days to Certification by Assessment. This development reflected extensive consultations with many stakeholders in the field worldwide.  This consultation continues and embraces all Qualifying Institutions for IMI Certification (that is, organisations with QAPs and CMTPS).

IMI Certification is now available only to experienced mediators and mediation advocates/advisors who are qualified through an Assessment Program approved by the Appraisal Committee.

You might find it helpful to use the Annotated Bibliography on Assessing Mediators while preparing your application for mediator certification.