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Licensed Officials

Licensed Officials play an integral role at Federation licensed competitions by ensuring a fair playing field, safe competition environment, and supporting competition participants. Officials can serve as Course Designers, Judges, Para Classifiers, Stewards, and Technical Delegates.

 Become a Licensed Official
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What are licensed officials?

Watch this Learning Center video to learn about the different types of officials and their education requirements. 

Are you interested in becoming a licensed official?

For more information on how to apply for a license, go to our Become Licensed webpage. 

Do you have licensed official questions?

Please email [email protected] to reach the USEF Licensed Officials Department. 

Licensed Official Evaluations

Confidential evaluations allow members to share positive and constructive feedback with the Licensed Officials Department about their experiences with a licensed official at a recent competition. The more detail you can include, the easier it will be for us to follow up with the official if needed. While you can submit evaluations anonymously, it can be difficult to act upon vague information. Regardless of whether your submission is anonymous, your identity won’t be shared with the official you’re evaluating. Click here to fill out an evaluation form.

Resolution Process for Licensed Official Evaluations

  1. Intake: Members have the ability to submit evaluations up to 21 days after the last day of the competition. Our Licensed Officials team processes evaluation forms within 35 days of the competition.
  2. Investigation: If necessary, a member of the team may reach out to the reporting person for more details about what they included on the form. From there, the official’s evaluation record may be assessed, and the official may be contacted for more information on any issues cited in the evaluation.
  3. Resolution: Some evaluations require no additional action (many include positive feedback for the official, which is relayed to them). If any issues are raised with the official’s performance, USEF may:
    1. Remind the official of specific rules, policies, or best practices
    2. Issue a warning
    3. Require the official to undertake specific continuing education
    4. Recommend that the Regulation Department consider suspension, demotion, or revocation of the official’s license

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Additional Resources

Licensed Officials Policies and Procedures - Clean

Updated December 1, 2025 - Version 9.0

Licensed Officials Policies and Procedures - Marked Up

Updated December 1, 2025 - Version 9.0

FEI Licensing Information Document - Clean

Promotion and maintenance requirements for all types and levels of FEI licenses. Updated September 16, 2024.

FEI Licensing Information Document - Marked Up

Promotion and maintenance requirements for all types and levels of FEI licenses. Updated September 16, 2024.

Licensed Officials Code of Ethics

Code of Ethics policy for all USEF licensed officials.

Licensed Officials Social Media Policy

Social Media Policy to provide guidance for licensed officials.

LO Library

Resource repository for Licensed Officials and applicants.

Confidential Competition and Licensed Officials Evaluation Form

The online evaluation form is available for members to evaluate the quality and competence of Federation licensed officials, as well as licensed competitions.

Licensed Official Fees

Fee schedule for licensed official related items.

Extension/Reinstatement Request Form

Complete this form if you did not attend a clinic in the year you were due or have not officiated the required number of competitions to renew your license. This form is reviewed and if approved gives you an additional competition year to meet requirements.

News

2026 Grant Applications for Combined Driving Competitions and Licensed Officials Now Open

by US Equestrian Communications Dept. | 11/17/2025

Lexington, Ky. - US Equestrian reminds competition organizers, licensed officials, and driving professionals that applications for the 2026 USEF Competition Grant for Combined Driving and the Licensed Official Grant for Combined Driving are due January 1, 2026. These annual grants are designed to strengthen the pipeline of opportunities within the U.S. driving community by supporting licensed competitions, developing organizers, and providing education and experience for current or aspiring...

Updates to US Equestrian Vaulting Grants for CVI Organizers, Licensed Officials and Athletes

by US Equestrian Communications Dept. | 10/16/2025

Lexington, Ky. – US Equestrian encourages competition organizers, licensed officials, and athletes in the vaulting community to review the updated grant criteria for the 2026 competition year. The USEF Vaulting Sport Committee recently reviewed the discipline grant programs and made changes to more strategically allocate funding. An overview of the grant applications is outlined below. General Athlete Grants Athletes interested in being considered for a grant for travel associated with...

Your Questions, Answered: How Does US Equestrian Enforce Horse Welfare Rules?

by US Equestrian Communications | 10/14/2025

Earlier this fall, US Equestrian began the rollout of a video series about our Horse Welfare Guidelines. In these videos, Chief of Sport David O’Connor and veterinary chiropractor and osteopath Dr. Christin Flynn explained the stoplight concept for interactions between horses and people, giving viewers specific examples of horse and human behaviors to watch for when trying to decide whether a situation is horse friendly (green), cautionary (yellow), or in need of intervention (red). Now,...
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