How to Cancel a Certification Exam

Whether cancelling a certification exam costs you anything depends almost entirely on when you do it. Cancel more than 24 hours before the appointment and most major providers — CompTIA, Microsoft, AWS — return what you paid or release your voucher for reuse. Cancel inside that window, or simply not show up, and the full fee is gone. A minority of providers charge an administrative fee whenever you cancel: ISC2 takes US$100, and PMI locks the booking entirely within 48 hours of the appointment.

This article is about withdrawing from a booking altogether and what money comes back. If what you actually want is a different date, rescheduling your certification exam is usually free and keeps your payment attached to a live booking — read that first, because for most candidates it is the better move.

First decide: cancel, or just move the date?

Cancelling is the right call in a narrower set of circumstances than most candidates assume. Use this quick framework before you click anything:

• You still intend to take this exam, just later → reschedule, don't cancel. Rescheduling is free at most providers outside the deadline, and with ISC2 it is literally half the price of cancelling ($50 versus $100).
• You no longer want this certification at all — a job change, a shifted specialisation, a switch to a different credential → cancel, and do it as early as possible to protect the refund.
• You cannot commit to any date yet — an open-ended illness, an unpredictable project, a house move → cancelling can make sense, but check your voucher's expiry first. If the voucher will still be valid months from now, cancelling the appointment while keeping the voucher costs you nothing and preserves the option.
• You are inside the no-refund window → cancelling gains you nothing over not attending; the fee is forfeited either way. Your only real options at that point are the narrow exceptions covered in what happens if you miss your certification exam.

What each provider gives back

The figures below reflect published policies as of 2026; wording changes, so verify on the provider's own policy page before acting.

CompTIA. For test-centre appointments, cancel at least 24 hours ahead or the exam fee or voucher is forfeited. CompTIA states that online OnVUE exams can be cancelled any time before the exam starts. Appointments booked with approved accommodations need three days' cancellation notice.

Microsoft. Cancel at least 24 hours before the appointment or the fee — and any company-provided voucher — is forfeited. Some free or promotional exam offers carry their own stricter terms, requiring six or more business days' notice to avoid a fee.

AWS. Cancel at least 24 hours prior or the full fee is forfeited. AWS notes that documented illness or emergency may be treated as an exception.

ISC2. Cancellation carries a flat US$100 administrative fee whenever you cancel, per ISC2's published exam pricing. Given CISSP's US$749 Americas price, that is a real but survivable haircut — far better than forfeiting the lot by not attending.

PMI (PMP). More than 30 days out, changes are free. Within 30 days, PMI charges US$70. Within 48 hours of the appointment you can no longer cancel or reschedule at all, and a no-show forfeits the full fee. One extra wrinkle: PMP candidates operate inside a one-year eligibility window with up to three attempts, so cancelling does not pause that clock — the year keeps running from application approval.

ISACA (CISA). ISACA exams are delivered via PSI rather than Pearson VUE, and this pack's research did not verify ISACA's current cancellation terms — check the candidate guide at isaca.org before assuming any of the deadlines above apply.

What happens to your voucher when you cancel

A voucher is prepayment, not an appointment — and that distinction decides whether cancelling costs you money.

Cancel in good time and the voucher detaches from the appointment and returns to your account, reusable for a fresh booking. Cancel late (or no-show) and the voucher is consumed exactly as if you had sat and walked out: forfeited.

The trap to watch is expiry. CompTIA vouchers are typically valid for 12 months from purchase, and cancelling an appointment does not extend that clock. A candidate who cancels in month ten and then drifts for three months has lost the voucher to expiry rather than to any cancellation fee — the outcome is identical to a late cancellation, just slower. If you cancel while holding a voucher, put its expiry date somewhere you will actually see it, and rebook — or make a deliberate decision to abandon the credential — well before that date.

If your employer bought the voucher, tell them you have cancelled. Company vouchers forfeited by a late cancellation are covered by the same rules (Microsoft says so explicitly), and it is better that the training budget owner hears it from you.