The ABR has a policy on initial radiation oncology (RO) certification that went into effect in January 2009. Under the policy, candidates must attain initial certification within 10 years following completion of residency training. If a RO candidate does not attain certification within the 10-year period, he/she will no longer be considered active in the examination process (some refer to this as "board eligible") and may not claim any such status with the American Board of Radiology for any purpose, such as credentialing, privileging, or advertising.
Candidates with residency completion dates between 2004 and 2013 who have not yet attained initial certification have ten years from the end of training to do so.
If initial radiation oncology certification is not attained within this 10-year period of eligibility, one year of additional training at an institution with an ACGME-accredited or RCPSC-accredited radiation oncology residency program is required before a candidate may re-enter the examination process.