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There has been a lot of confusion about what regulations apply to FIAP Distinctions applications in 2023. Whilst there was detailed information placed in the FIAP Bulletin in the APS e-News in December 2022, this information is also being placed here to make it easy to find over the coming year. If there are new updates, these will be added here.

The Proposed New FIAP Distinctions Regulations Have Been Withdrawn

The implementation of the new FIAP Distinctions regulations that were publicised by FIAP in Jan 2021 was postponed enabling them to be discussed and voted upon at the FIAP Congress. The pandemic prevented this Congress from occurring until Dec 2022. When the FIAP Board met the day prior to this Congress, they made the decision to withdraw the new regulations and discussions then took place with the delegates at the Congress regarding the concerns about those regulations and other things that may need to be considered in future regulations.

What Rules Applied to Applications in 2023

Applications for 2023 have now closed.

The 50% discount to FIAP Card purchases, that was brought in to help people during the pandemic, has been extended to the end of 2023. will continue until the end of this year. This is just card cost. Standard postage still applies. If you are planning to apply for your first FIAP Distinction in the next year or two, or think you might attend a FIAP PhotoMeeting in coming years, you may wish to consider setting up your myfiap account before the end of December this year and purchase your card whilst the discount is applies.

What Rules Apply to Applications in 2024

The existing FIAP Distinctions Regulations document 011/2016, which is the regulations we have used in recent years will apply in full.

The requirement for print acceptances to be included on AFIAP and EFIAP applications will resume as of 1^st Jan 2024.

The fee reductions end at the end of 2023, and the standard FIAP Distinctions application fees and FIAP Card fees will apply from 1^st Jan 2024.

What Rules Will Apply in the Future

During 2023, a new set of FIAP Distinctions regulations will be prepared. This will take into account the feedback from the FIAP Liaison Officers at the Congress and further feedback will be sought from FIAP Liaison Officers worldwide. The new version of the regulations will also take into account some other factors that need to be considered.

We expect these new regulations to be available later in 2023. It is highly likely that some of the features in the now withdrawn regulations document will be in the new one.

 As above, the 011/2016 will apply until the end of 2024. Whilst it may possibly continue beyond this time, it is more likely that the new regulations that will be prepared during 2023 will commence at the start of 2025. We will have at least one full year to prepare for these.

What Should You Do From Now

1. If you are applying for AFIAP or EFIAP in 2024 or beyond, you should be entering some prints sections in salons to meet the requirement shown in FIAP Doc 011/2016.
2. Continue to work towards producing new photographic works and seeking to gain at least five acceptances with each of these as encouraging the production of new works and limiting how many results from each can be shown on an application is likely to be in the new regulations (this is not certain, but very likely as it was one of the major objectives in the revision of the Distinctions regulations).
3. Those of you who have saved titles from use on applications in 2022 are not disadvantaged by the continuation of the old regulations and may still be well prepared for the future depending on details in the new regulations. Don’t lose your records of these past results.
4. Continue to maintain a good record of your salon results and include a column that indicates which titles have been used on your past FIAP Distinctions applications.
5. Having a myfiap login and purchasing a FIAP Card can be done by anyone, but most people don’t do this until they need to have these for a FIAP Distinctions application. As above, the 50% discount on purchasing a FIAP Card applies until the end of 2023, so if you expect to be a FIAP Distinctions applicant for the first time in 2024 or beyond, you should consider setting up your myfiap login and purchasing your card before the end of 2023, whilst the discount still applies. Store your mfiap profile number and password carefully as you need these to login in the future and the myfiap profile number must be cited on all your future FIAP Distinctions application.
6. Ensure you always read the FIAP Bulletin in APS e-News. This will keep you up to date on things such as new regulations.