There are four different types of MLBPA Certification: General Certified Agents, Certified Minor League Agents, Limited Certified Agents, and Expert Agent Advisors.
MLBPA General Certified Agents are authorized to represent or advise a Player in negotiating individual terms to be included in a Major or Minor League Uniform Player's Contract and in any other dealings with a Major or Minor League Club or the Commissioner’s Office concerning the administration or enforcement of a Uniform Player’s Contract, the Major League Basic Agreement or Minor League Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Joint Major or Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program, and the Major League Rules. Applicants for General Certification who have passed the background investigation and General Certification Agent Exam may be certified as a General Certified Agent if they submit to the MLBPA a Player Agent Designation form designating them as the agent of a 40-Man Roster Player or a Player preparing to negotiate an individual salary, terms, and/or Special Covenants to be included in a Major League Uniform Player's Contract.
The MLBPA has introduced a new Certification class, Certified Minor League Agents, for individuals who represent Minor League Baseball Players who are employed by a Club in the United States and Canada, and individuals who may become Minor League Baseball Players. Subject to the restrictions and other applicable provisions of the collective bargaining agreement and the MLBPA Agent Regulations, MLBPA Certified Minor League Agents are authorized to represent or advise a Player in negotiating individual terms to be included in a Minor League Uniform Player's Contract for a Player who is employed by a Club in the United States and Canada. MLBPA Certified Minor League Agents are also authorized to represent or advise a Player in any other dealings with a Club or the Commissioner’s Office concerning the administration or enforcement of their Minor League Uniform Player’s Contract, the Minor League Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program, and the Major League Rules that apply to Minor League Baseball Players or those who may become Minor League Players. Certified Minor League Agents may also be authorized to recruit Players and provide client maintenance services on behalf of a General Certified Agent if designated to do so on the appropriate form submitted to the MLBPA.
Applicants for General Certification who have passed the MLBPA’s background investigation and General Certification Agent Exam may be certified as Minor League Agents if they submit to the MLBPA a Player Agent Designation form designating them as the agent of a Minor League Player or a Player preparing to negotiate an individual salary, terms, and/or Special Covenants to be included in a Minor League Uniform Player's Contract and who is to be employed by a Club in the United States and Canada (i.e. excluding Dominican Summer League) within four years of passing the General Certification exam.
A Certified Minor League Agent will be eligible for certification as General Certified Agent if their client is added to the 40-man Major League roster or they sign a Major League Player, as defined by §2 of the Agent Regulations, as a client, within four years of passing the General Certification exam.
Only Limited Certified Agents and Certified Minor League Agents are authorized to recruit Players and provide client maintenance services on behalf of a General Certified Agent.
Expert Agent Advisors are authorized to represent, assist and advise Agents on behalf of a Player regarding or relating to the negotiations of terms to be included in a Uniform Player’s Contract or in any other agreement, and the preparation and presentation of Players’ Salary Arbitration cases.
Please consult the Agent Regulations for a detailed explanation of the type of work that requires MLBPA Certification and the different types of MLBPA Certifications.
An Expert Agent Advisor may not engage in recruiting or Client Maintenance Services, nor be designated on a Player Agent Designation form signed by a Player. An Expert Agent Advisor may also not be a member, partner or employee of a sports agency or business entity that includes other General or Limited Certified Agents.
An Expert Agent Advisor may not engage in recruiting or Client Maintenance Services. Please review §3 and §4 of the Agent Regulations for more information.
The application fee is $2,500. Please do NOT mail your application fee to the MLBPA. Once you have submitted your online application form and the required signed Declaration by Applicant and authorization to conduct a background investigation, please contact Aisha Hope (aishah@mlbpa.org) for further instructions on how to submit your application fee with a Credit Card or ACH payment using the MLBPA’s payment portal. If you have any questions or issues with the payment portal, please contact Aisha Hope (aishah@mlbpa.org) or Robbie Guerra (rguerra@mlbpa.org).
The MLBPA Agent Exam is administered once a year. The 2025 MLBPA Agent Exam will take place on September 25, 2025. The exam will take place online with remote proctoring. The MLBPA will also conduct an online preparatory session prior to the exam on September 19, 2025
Applicants who submit a complete application between January 1 and May 1 of any given year will be eligible to take that year's written exam. An application will not be considered complete, and the applicant will not be eligible to take the next agent exam, unless the applicant has submitted the following by no later than May 1: an online application, a $2,500 application fee, a signed Authorization to Conduct a Background Investigation, and a signed Declaration by Applicant form.
The General Certification, Limited Certification, and Expert Agent Advisor exams are open book and cover the Major League Basic Agreement, the Minor League Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Joint Drug Agreement, Major League Rules, the Agent Regulations, and information concerning the MLBPA’s Group Rights and Licensing Program. Prior to the exam, the MLBPA will provide applicants with information concerning the MLBPA Group Rights and Licensing Program that they are responsible for knowing for purposes of the exam. All other documents are available now for download on the Key Documents section of this webpage. The MLBPA will conduct a preparatory course for the test prior to the exam.
An Applicant who fails the test for MLBPA certification may retake the test the next time it is offered. An applicant who does not take the exam will be considered to have failed that exam. An Applicant who fails the test twice must reapply and complete the entire application process again, and will not be eligible to submit a new application until one year following the date of the second failed test.
No. An applicant who completes the background investigation and passes the General Certification exam may be certified as a General Certified Agent if they are designated on a Player Agent Designation form by at least one Major League Player, as defined by §2 of the Agent Regulations, including 40-man roster Players, Major League Free Agents, and “Foreign Professionals” as defined by the Basic Agreement.
An Applicant who completes the background investigation and passes the General Certification exam may be certified as a Minor League Agent if they are designated on a Player Agent Designation form by at least one Minor League Player or a Player preparing to negotiate an individual salary, terms, and/or Special Covenants to be included in a Minor League Uniform Player's Contract and who is to be employed by a Club in the United States and Canada.
A Certified Minor League Agent will be eligible for certification as General Certified Agent if their client is added to the 40-man Major League roster or they sign a Major League Player, as defined by §2 of the Agent Regulations, as a client, within four years of passing the General Certification exam.
An Applicant for Limited Certification who completes the background investigation and passes the written test will not be certified by the MLBPA until he or she is designated on a Designation of Recruiter or Client Maintenance Service Provider form by a General Certified Agent.
An Applicant for Certification as an Expert Agent Advisor who completes the background investigation and passes the written test will not be certified by the MLBPA until he or she is designated on an Expert Agent Advisor Designation form by at least one General Certified Agent.
These designation forms may be found in the Key Documents section of this webpage.
Applicants for General Certification will have up to four years after passing the written exam to submit the required player agent designation form signed by a Major League Player, as defined by §2 of the Agent Regulations, in order to obtain General Certification. Applicants for Limited Certification will have up to three years after passing the written test to submit the required designation to obtain Limited Certification. If the applicant does not receive the required designation within those timeframes their applications will expire, and they must reapply and complete the entire application process again.
The MLBPA will provide an Applicant with electronic notice of any decision to deny their certification or to impose limits or conditions on the certification granted. The notice shall set forth the action taken, a brief statement of the factual basis for the action taken and the relevant provisions of the Regulations involved in the action taken.
Any dispute between an Applicant and the MLBPA related to the application and Certification process, including without limitation any dispute about whether the Applicant, Agent or Advisor must provide documents, testimony or other information to the MLBPA or about whether such documents, testimony or information are privileged, is subject exclusively to arbitration under §7(B) of the Agent Regulations. Any Applicant aggrieved with any action taken by the MLBPA, including but not limited to a denial of certification or conditions imposed on a certification, may appeal exclusively to arbitration under §7(B).
After any dispute related to certification by the MLBPA is concluded, the MLBPA in its sole, unreviewable discretion may make its decision resolving the dispute public. The MLBPA may also provide notice of the resolution of that dispute to all Players who have a Player Agent Designation form with the Applicant and to any General Certified Agent who has designated the Applicant as an Expert Agent Advisor or Limited Certified Agent. The MLBPA may also notify other Players who may be affected, other certified Player Agents or the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball.
A Certified Agent or Applicant for Certification may not provide or promise to provide, any money or any other thing of value to any Player (including non-40 man roster Players), or any person related to or associated with such Player, including but not limited to loans, advances, or gifts, the purpose of which is to induce or encourage such Player to use or continue to use any person’s or firm’s services as a Player Agent, Expert Agent Advisor, Representative, or Draft Advisor.
A Certified Agent or Applicant for Certification may not make any loans, or promise any loans, money or any other thing of value to a Player they represent (including non-40 man Players), or any persons related to or associated with such Player, without first obtaining the prior written approval of the MLBPA. To request approval of a proposed loan, please e-mail agent.reg@mlbpa.org disclosing the amount, purpose and terms of the loan as well as how long you have represented the Player. A Player Agent or Applicant may only loan or promise to loan money or any other thing of value to a Player or to persons related to or associated with a Player he currently represents. A Player Agent or Applicant must also report to the MLBPA the terms of any third-party loans made to Players in which the agent or applicant has any involvement of any kind, including but not limited to any role in facilitation or arrangement.
In early November of each year, the MLBPA holds a meeting which is designated as mandatory for at least one Player Agent from each firm unless excused. Traditionally only General Certified Agents have been invited to these November meetings. In addition, the MLBPA holds a mandatory session at the November meeting for General Certified Agents that represent a Player who is potentially eligible for salary arbitration in that upcoming offseason.
Please be aware that if you fail to attend a mandatory meeting that you are required to attend, and your absence has not been excused, you will be subject to discipline.
An Agent’s certification may be revoked for failure to update their Registration in a calendar year, failure to pay the annual certification renewal administrative fee, and/or failure to comply with the Agent Regulations, including but not limited to failure to comply with reporting and disclosure requirements.
The annual MLBPA Certification renewal fees are as follows:
General Certified Agents and Expert Agent Advisors renewing their MLBPA Certification: $1,500
Certified Minor League Agents and Limited Certified Agents renewing their MLBPA Certification: $500
Application and certification renewal fees may be paid by electronic check (ACH) or by credit card.
An Agent or Expert Agent Advisor’s certification will also be deemed relinquished if the Agent is in “inactive status.” Any General Certified Agent, who in the immediately preceding three years has not had a current Player Agent Designation form signed by a Major League Player and filed with the MLBPA, shall be notified by the MLBPA that their General Certification will be placed in inactive status. A General Certified Agent may avoid placement in inactive status by providing evidence within thirty (30) days of receiving such notice demonstrating to the MLBPA’s satisfaction that he or she has been appropriately designated within the preceding three years. A General Certified Agent entering “inactive status” may continue to be certified as a Minor League Agent if they are in good standing with the MLBPA and they submit to the MLBPA a Player Agent Designation form signed by at least one Minor League Player or a Player preparing to negotiate an individual salary, terms, and/or Special Covenants to be included in a Minor League Uniform Player's Contract and who is to be employed by a Club in the United States and Canada.
An inactive General Certified Agent that subsequently submits to the MLBPA an appropriate designation signed by a Major League Player, as defined by the Agent Regulations, may reapply for General Certification as set forth in §4 of the Agent Regulations, except that he or she is not required to retake the written test unless their General Certification has been inactive for four or more years.
Any Player Agent with a Limited Certification who in the immediately preceding ninety days has not had a current Designation of Recruiter or Client Maintenance Services Provider form signed by a Player Agent with General Certification and filed with the MLBPA shall be notified by the MLBPA that he or she will be placed in inactive status. A Limited Certified Agent may avoid placement in inactive status by providing evidence demonstrating to the MLBPA’s satisfaction that he or she is currently designated as a Recruiter and/or Client Maintenance Services Provider by a General Certified Agent. If an inactive Limited Certified Agent subsequently receives an appropriate designation, he or she may reapply for MLBPA Certification as set forth in §4 of the Agent Regulations, except that he or she is not required to retake the written test unless he or she is inactive for four or more years.
An Expert Agent Advisor shall be placed in inactive status if in the immediately preceding three years he or she has not submitted to the MLBPA an appropriate designation form signed by a General Certified Agent and/or within the preceding five (5) years has not (a) prepared exhibits for at least three (3) salary arbitration hearings; and (b) argued at least one (1) direct presentation and one (1) rebuttal presentation in a salary arbitration hearing, or at least three (3) rebuttal presentations in salary arbitration hearings.