Checked 30 September 2026. The CLDP mode and fees have changed three times since March 2025 by circular; check ICSI's training notifications before you book. Continuation of registration and the TCC process are stable. ICSI's membership fees were not in the documents we read.
Your CS Professional result is the last examination, not the last step. To become an Associate member (ACS) you also need the Corporate Leadership Development Programme (CLDP), which you can take only after passing Professional and finishing your practical training, and then a single Training Clearance Certificate (TCC) to attach to the membership application. If your student registration expires in the meantime, you keep it alive by continuation of registration. This guide covers all four, with the dates on which ICSI last changed each rule. The EDP and the 21 months of training that come before are in our EDP and practical training guide. ProSyllabus is an independent study site. We are not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI); every rule below is quoted or summarised from ICSI's published documents, and ICSI decides every individual case.
ICSI circulars of 27.09.2025, 14.11.2025 and 04.08.2026; continuation of registration guidelines.
The steps after your result
| Step | What | How | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Keep your registration valid | If it has expired, apply for continuation of registration on SMASH | Rs 1,000 a year |
| 2 | CLDP Phase I | 15 days, classroom, non-residential, at a Regional Office or eligible chapter | Rs 10,000 |
| 3 | CLDP Phase II | 15 days, classroom, residential, at a CCGRT or ICSI headquarters, Noida | Rs 20,000 |
| 4 | Upload training certificates | All training completion certificates on the Stimulate portal | – |
| 5 | Training Clearance Certificate | Auto-generated on Stimulate once the Directorate of Training approves | – |
| 6 | Apply for ACS | Application with proof of passing Professional, the TCC and the other documents in ICSI's ACS checklist | Not in the documents we read |
Sources: continuation of registration guidelines and process note (09.09.2026); CLDP guidelines; circulars of 27.09.2025 and 14.11.2025; TCC announcement (31.10.2020); Regulation 46BD. A student granted exemption from training, or eligible for an alternative CLDP route, follows the routes below instead of steps 2 and 3.
The CLDP in two phases
Regulation 46BB(1)(c) says the CLDP must last "not less than thirty days but not exceeding sixty days" and is taken after passing the Professional Programme. How those days are delivered is set by circular, and has changed:
| Document | What it says | Who it affects |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 15 December 2025 | 15 days online or by webinar, then 15 days in a classroom | The 15-day webinar CLDP was discontinued on 15 December 2025; the 15-day online CLDP of the old structures ended on 1 April 2024 |
| 27 September 2025 circular | Phase I: 15 days classroom, non-residential. Phase II: 15 days classroom, residential at the CCGRTs. Stated to apply from 1 October 2025 | Covers every student switched to the New Training Structure who had not finished the CLDP |
| 14 November 2025 circular | The same two phases, with the start date extended to 15 December 2025, and fees fixed at Rs 10,000 (Phase I) and Rs 20,000 (Phase II) | A student who finished only the 15-day online or webinar part by 14 December 2025 does Phase II only |
Sources: circulars of 27.09.2025, 14.11.2025 and 15.12.2025. The Regulations book we used is amended only to April 2023, so the two-phase structure appears only in these circulars.
A date conflict. The September 2025 circular says the two phases apply "w.e.f. 01.10.2025"; the November 2025 circular extends the date of implementation to 15 December 2025. We follow the later circular. Either way, anyone starting the CLDP now does it in two phases unless an alternative route applies.
Phase I and Phase II in detail
- Phase I eligibility: a Professional pass, the 30-day EDP (15 days online and 15 days classroom) and the 21 months of practical training, all complete.
- Phase II eligibility: the completion certificate for Phase I.
- Phase I venues: Regional Offices and Diamond grade chapters; Platinum and Gold chapters on approval. Sessions between 9 AM and 6 PM, at least 6 hours a day.
- Phase II venues: the CCGRTs and ICSI headquarters at Noida, and other locations a panel approves. The fee includes stay, meals and the CLDP kit.
- CCGRT Mumbai runs both phases until its renovation is complete, and only Phase II after that.
- Batch size: ideally 30 to 50 students.
- Cancelling: the fee can be carried forward to a later batch, or refunded with a 10% deduction.
- Hardship: students who have lost both parents, or are differently-abled, and face financial constraints can request a 100% fee concession.
CLDP guidelines, sections 2 and 6; circular of 27.09.2025.
Routes for working professionals and exempted students
ICSI has opened two sets of alternatives to the classroom CLDP. They are narrower than they look: each is tied to a specific group of students, and the September 2025 circular says Phase I and Phase II do not apply to students who take the CLDP through the Alternative Method.
| Route | Who is eligible | Mode | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alternative Method (4 Aug 2026) | Passed Professional and granted full exemption from training under the New Training Structure | 30 days online on ICSI's e-learning portal | Rs 50,000 |
| Alternative Method (4 Aug 2026) | Passed Professional at least 5 years before applying, with short- and long-term training done under the New Training Structure | 30 days online | Rs 50,000 |
| Alternative Method (4 Aug 2026) | Passed Professional at least 5 years before applying, with long-term training done or exempted under the Earlier or Modified structure | 30 days online | Rs 50,000 |
| Alternative Method (4 Aug 2026) | Living abroad, with 21 months of training in a foreign company registered with ICSI | 30 days online | Rs 50,000 |
| Working professionals, option 1 (26 Mar 2025) | Exempted from EDP and training, or passed 5+ years earlier with EDP and training done; AND had completed or registered for the 15-day online or webinar CLDP, but not the classroom CLDP, as on 11 March 2025 | 15 days online, or 15 days classroom on weekends (non-residential), in place of the classroom CLDP | Rs 30,000 |
| Working professionals, option 2 (26 Mar 2025) | The same two groups, having done neither half of the CLDP | 30 days online | Rs 50,000 |
Sources: circulars of 26.03.2025 and 04.08.2026. "Five years" runs from the declaration of the Professional result (25 February or 25 August) to the date of application. The e-CLDP login on ICSI's LMS is valid for 180 days (CLDP guidelines).
Our reading of the Regulation against these routes. Option 1 of March 2025 is the only route in which a student does 15 days after the change, and it applies only to students who already had 15 days of online or webinar CLDP behind them, so the total still reaches 30. We found no circular that lets anyone else complete the CLDP in 15 days. The August 2026 circular adds its four groups "in addition to the existing options"; it does not withdraw the March 2025 options.
Which CLDP routes are open to you?
Answer four questions. The result lists the CLDP routes whose published eligibility matches your answers, from ICSI's circulars of 26 March 2025, 27 September 2025, 14 November 2025 and 4 August 2026. It is our reading of those circulars, not a ruling: ICSI checks eligibility on the Stimulate portal and decides every case.
Keeping your registration alive: continuation of registration
ICSI's FAQ says registration for the Professional Programme is valid for five years. Since 3 February 2020, under the Company Secretaries (Amendment) Regulations 2020, a student who has passed Professional must keep the registration valid until admitted as a member. A registration that expires during training or the CLDP is renewed by continuation of registration, which applies to students who passed Professional in the December 2019 session or later.
| Point | What ICSI says |
|---|---|
| Fee | Rs 1,000 a year (general). Physically handicapped students pay 25% and SC / ST students 50%: Rs 250 and Rs 500 by our arithmetic |
| How long at a time | On a per-year basis, for up to five years at one go |
| From when | From the date the former registration expired; accumulated arrears are payable |
| Arrears cap | Ten years (guidelines; FAQ answer 7). The FAQ's answer 6 says five years |
| What it does not cover | Fees for any training programme, including the CLDP |
| Who does not need it | Students who passed Professional before 3 February 2020 (in practice, the June 2019 session or earlier) |
| How | SMASH portal: Module, then Student Services, then Apply for Continuation of registration; pay online and keep the receipt |
Sources: guidelines for continuation of registration; process note (09.09.2026); student services FAQ Part 6; fee schedule.
Conflict on arrears. ICSI's FAQ answers the same question two ways: answer 6 says arrears apply "for a maximum period of five years", while answer 7 and the guidelines say ten. The guidelines are the governing document, so we give ten, but the difference only matters to someone whose registration lapsed more than five years ago; ask ICSI through the support portal before you pay.
The Training Clearance Certificate and the ACS application
Since 1 November 2020, instead of attaching separate certificates for each piece of training, you attach one Training Clearance Certificate that records the entire history of your training. To get it:
Getting the TCC
- Log in to the Stimulate portal (stimulate.icsi.edu) with your SMASH user ID and password.
- Upload the completion certificate for every training programme you have done: EDP, practical training, CLDP, or the exemption letter where one was granted.
- Once the Directorate of Training approves them, the TCC is auto-generated on the portal.
- Submit the TCC with your ACS application, together with proof of passing the Professional Programme and the other documents in ICSI's ACS checklist.
TCC announcement (31.10.2020); Regulation 46BD (proof of practical training).
Regulation 46BD requires the membership application to carry proof that you have completed the required training, or been exempted from it. ICSI's membership application and admission fees were not in any document we read for this guide, so we do not quote them. Your Professional pass certificate itself is on DigiLocker for every session from June 2021, which is a convenient source for the proof of passing.
A realistic order of events
Our reading, not an ICSI timeline. For a student who did the EDP and the 21 months while still preparing for Professional, the CLDP can follow soon after the result: Phase I once the training is complete, Phase II once Phase I is certified, then the TCC and the application. For a student who starts training only after passing, the 21 months come first, and the registration may expire along the way; that is the case continuation of registration exists for. The pass percentages that decide how long the examination part takes are in our pass-percentage history.
What is CLDP in the CS course?
The Corporate Leadership Development Programme, taken after passing the CS Professional examination and finishing practical training. It is now delivered as Phase I (15 days classroom, non-residential) and Phase II (15 days residential).
What is the CLDP fee?
Rs 10,000 for Phase I and Rs 20,000 for Phase II under ICSI's circular of 14 November 2025. The 30-day online Alternative Method costs Rs 50,000.
Can I do CLDP online?
Only through an alternative route. The 30-day online Alternative Method is open to students with full exemption from training, students who passed Professional at least five years before applying and finished their training, and students abroad who trained in a registered foreign company.
Can I do CLDP Phase II without Phase I?
Phase II needs the Phase I completion certificate, except for students who had finished the old 15-day online or webinar CLDP by 14 December 2025; ICSI says they do Phase II only.
What is the Training Clearance Certificate?
A single certificate, generated on ICSI's Stimulate portal after the Directorate of Training approves your uploaded training certificates, that records your whole training history. You submit it with the ACS application.
What is continuation of registration in CS?
A renewal of your student registration after it expires, for students who passed Professional in December 2019 or later but are not yet members. It costs Rs 1,000 a year, applied for on SMASH.
Does continuation of registration pay for the CLDP?
No. ICSI says the continuation fee does not cover the fee for any training programme.
What is the ACS membership fee?
We did not find it in the documents we read for this guide. Check ICSI's ACS checklist before you apply.
More in this series
- CS Professional papers and the 11 open-book electives
- Passing CS Professional: group rules, exemptions and fees
- CS training: the 30-day EDP and 21 months of practical training
- CS Professional pass percentage, group by group, since 2022
- ICSI CS Professional notice board — official updates
- CS Executive papers and groups
- CS Executive passing marks and the 60% paper exemption
- CS Executive exemptions for LLB and CMA graduates
- CS Executive registration fee and eligibility
- CS Executive pass percentage history
- CSEET exam pattern: papers and marks
- Who is exempt from CSEET
- CSEET registration fee and last dates
- CSEET passing marks and pass percentage
- CSEET as a centre-based exam: what changed
Sources
- official — Company Secretaries Regulations, 1982, as amended up to 3 April 2023 (Regulations 21 to 23, 42, 46BB to 46BD)
- official — ICSI — Corporate Leadership Development Programme (CLDP) guidelines and annexures
- official — ICSI — Revision in the mode of the 30-day CLDP: Phase I and Phase II (27.09.2025)
- official — ICSI — Extension of the date of implementation of the revised CLDP to 15 December 2025, with fees (14.11.2025)
- official — ICSI — Compulsory switchover to the New Training Structure (15.12.2025)
- official — ICSI — Alternative options for working professionals to complete the CLDP (26.03.2025)
- official — ICSI — Alternative Method (Online Mode) of CLDP: wider eligibility (04.08.2026)
- official — ICSI — Guidelines for continuation of registration (effective 3 February 2020)
- official — ICSI — Continuation of registration for Professional pass students: process on SMASH (09.09.2026)
- official — ICSI — Student services FAQ (updated 17.09): switchover, registration, continuation of registration, exemptions
- official — ICSI — Schedule of fee for CS course students (registration, examination, de novo, continuation, concessions)
- official — ICSI — Training Clearance Certificate for applying to associate membership, w.e.f. 1 November 2020 (31.10.2020)
- official — ICSI — Professional Programme pass certificates on DigiLocker (22.05.2024)
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
