Private Applicator Certification | Pesticide Safety and Education Program

A private applicator is an applicator who applies restricted-use pesticides by ground application for the purpose of producing an agricultural commodity on property owned or rented by the applicator or the applicator’s employer. Most private applicators are farmers, greenhouse and/or nursery operators. All other applicators who use restricted use pesticides are considered commercial applicators.

Federal regulations indicate that the minimum age for all pesticide applicators is 18 years including those applying restricted-use pesticides. There is an exception for a minimum age of 16 for noncertified applicators using RUPs on a family-owned farm under the supervision of a private applicator who is a member of their immediate family. However, this exemption does not allow for products to be applied by individuals without certification, if the label specifically requires certification for all who apply it (example, Gramonone 3.0SL). Tennessee’s regulation (TCA 0080-90-02-.05) states that family members 16 or 17 years of age must have valid certification to apply RUPs on property owned by parents and they may not purchase nor apply RUPS on property not owned by their parents..

NEWS

Endangered Species Act (ESA) – (NEW, please read, information added on 02/06/26)

New Release Concerning Insecticides

Certification Standards, Federal Regulations

NEWS and Announcements

Applicants for private applicator certification must successfully complete a specialized training course provided by University of Tennessee Extension on the proper use of restricted use pesticides.

To attend an in-person training session, please contact your county Extension office. See required fees below.

EPA’s new certification & training standards.

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If you are needing a certificate for specific herbicides such as dicamba or paraquat. Visit one of the sites to find out more information. Dicamba or Paraquat

Spanish Language Materials (used by individuals to prepare them for the private applicator training exam) Note: In-person trainings are only offered in English.

Spanish Translation Guide for Pesticide Labeling 2nd Ed.

EPA and Bilingual Labeling

North Carolina State University’s PSEP Chapters 1 and 2 of NC Core manual may not pertain to Tennessee’s regulations. However, the remainder of this manual contains information found in the National Core manual.

National Applicator Core Training Manual for Private Applicators select ES3007KITP/E3007SP for the Spanish language version. A direct link may be found here.

Bilingual App to help keep farm workers safe

Basic information concerning pesticides in Spanish

Protect Yourself and Your Family from Pesticide Exposure:
The Worker Protection Standard (WPS) Agricultural Worker Booklet (English and Spanish versions)

Spanish Translation Guide

Gap Connections video “The Label is the Law“

A book that may be purchased Putting Spanish to Work: Spanish for Agriculture

An online course is available for individuals as an optional method to obtain private applicator certification. Fees are required as mentioned below.

To learn more about the online certification training, visit our K@TE (Knowledge and Training Excellence) site.

There is a $50 fee for initial certification training, both in-person and online. Upon completion of in-person training, applicants must submit to the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) a copy of the three-part form signed by the Extension agent verifying completion of the training course and a payment of $25 to receive a certification card. Individuals who attend online-training should follow directions provided by the online system to obtain their certification card. Paying the required $25 fee to TDA is necessary to purchase restricted use pesticides.

Pesticide certification runs in a three-year cycle. The current certification cycle began on July 1, 2023 and will end on June 30, 2026. Anyone who receives their private applicator certification on or after 1/20/2026 until June 30, 2026 will automatically be moved forward to the next certification cycle ending in 2029. They will not be required to obtain 1 point between 1/20/26 and June 30, 2026. They will receive an applicator card with a June 30, 2029 expiration date.

For private applicator to maintain their certification, they must obtain 3 CUEs during the 3-year certification cycle. The CEU requirement is dependent on when a private applicator obtained certification. If certification was obtained in the first year of the cycle, then 3 points would be required to roll certification into the new 3-year cycle. If certification was obtained in year two of the cycle, then only 2 points would be required to roll certification into the next 3-year cycle. To obtain certification points / CEUs one must attend approved trainings offered by Extension Offices or online through Extension’s Online-Learning Management System, aka K@TE.

A decision was made by TDA on 1/20/2026, that any individuals completing the initial private applicator training between now (1/20/26) and June 30, 2026 will automatically be moved forward to the next certification cycle ending in 2029. They will not be required to have 1 point between now and June 30, 2026. They will receive their card with a June 30, 2029 expiration date.

Private applicators are required to keep records of restricted-use pesticide applications and, if workers and/or handlers are employed, all application records must be maintained for two years. The following document may used to maintain Federal recordkeeping requirements: Pesticide Application Recordkeeping Form, F 808 and SP 363-H. Employers of workers and/or pesticide handlers may want to refer to Worker Protection Standard checklist, found here: WPS Requirements for Employers of Workers. At one time, USDA had a printed version of a recordkeeping manual, but now is only available for download at USDA’s website. More information concerning EPA’s recordkeeping requirements may be found here. A new Private Applicator RecordKeeping Manual PB1917 may be found here or you may contact the Tennessee Department of Agriculture to obtain a printed copy. TDA may be contacted at 615-837-5148.

Knowing the mode of action (MOA) of the product you are using can be of great help to reduce the chances of resistance building up. See below.

I Will Take Action’s Herbicide MOA resource

I Will Take Action’s Insecticide MOA resource

I Will Take Action’s Fungicide MOA resource

Many of the new fumigation labels require users to have specialized training. Please visit the fumigation webpage for more information. A Licensee must be present at the time of all fumigation applications.

Due to new Federal and State regulations, beginning July 1, 2023, private applicators are required to attend 3-hours of approved training to maintain their certification into the 2026-2029 certification cycle. If points/CEUs are not accrued by June 30, 2026, repeating the initial private applicator training and passing an exam would be required to maintain certification into the new 3-year cycle. County Extension Personnel will request points for meetings they hold through the PSEP Office. Remember to attend approved meetings to obtain your points to maintain your certification into the next 3-year cycle. If you need information on the total number of points you have accrued check out TDA’s website. Also, if you receive your private applicator certification from January 20, 2026 through June 30, 2026, your certification card will have a June 30, 2029 expiration date.

Please visit our page concerning aerial application which is listed under licensing..

Resources

Additional Resources