Membership & Dues

Annual membership dues vary by category:

Professional Member: $295/year
Associate Member: $195/year
Student Member: $75/year
Emerging Professional Member: $165/year
Retired Member: $125/year
Corporate Member: $1,295 (5 reps), $2,250 (10 reps), or $3,500 (20 reps)

All memberships operate on a calendar-year basis (January 1 – December 31).

Student membership is $75/year. You must be enrolled full-time in a post-secondary degree or certificate program related to food science, dairy science, culinary arts, or hospitality management.

Full-time means 12+ undergraduate credits or 6+ graduate credits per semester. You must submit proof of enrollment annually at members.intlcheese.org/student-verification.

Yes. ICF student membership is open to full-time students in accredited programs worldwide. International students must provide documentation showing full-time enrollment status in their country’s educational system.

Acceptable documentation includes official enrollment letters, transcripts, or student ID cards showing current semester dates.

Yes, through Corporate Membership. For 5 employees, the Basic tier costs $1,295/year ($259 per person vs $295 individual rate). Each designated representative receives full individual member benefits including certification eligibility, member pricing, and online course access.

Corporate administrators manage their roster through the member portal at members.intlcheese.org.

New members receive prorated dues based on join date:

January – June: 100% of annual dues
July – September: 50% of annual dues for remainder of current year
October – December: Pay full following-year dues, receive remainder of current year free (15 months for 12 months’ price)

Example: A Professional Member joining in November pays $295 and receives membership through December 31 of the following year. Proration only applies to new members. Renewals always pay full annual dues.

Membership dues are non-refundable once membership is activated. However, members experiencing extenuating circumstances may submit a written request for partial refund consideration to memberservices@intlcheese.org.

Requests must include supporting documentation and are reviewed case-by-case. Partial refunds, if approved, are calculated based on unused months of membership and processed within 30 days.

ICF does not charge initiation fees. Former members rejoin by paying current-year dues at the standard rate for their membership category. Your previous membership history, including certification records and CEU transcripts, will be restored upon rejoining.

Submit a new membership application at members.intlcheese.org/join or contact memberservices@intlcheese.org for assistance.

Membership eligibility criteria are reviewed periodically by the Board of Directors. If you were previously denied, contact memberservices@intlcheese.org with details about your situation. Staff can review current eligibility requirements for your membership category and advise whether circumstances have changed.

Professional membership requires 50%+ time devoted to cheese-related work or an active ICF certification. Associate membership is available for those in cheese-related fields who don’t meet Professional criteria.