The AAISM exam costs US$459 if you are an ISACA member and US$599 if you are not. That is the fee most people search for, but it is not the whole bill. Passing the exam does not make you certified until you apply and pay a US$50 application processing fee, and keeping the AAISM costs an annual maintenance fee of US$20 for members or US$35 for nonmembers, plus continuing education every year. Along the way there are fees you may never pay, but should know about: US$75 to extend your six-month window, US$75 for a rescore, and the full exam fee again for each retake. This guide lists every fee ISACA publishes, what each one buys, how to lose the exam fee without taking the exam, and what a realistic total looks like.
The short answer: every AAISM fee
| Fee, and when you pay it | ISACA member | Nonmember |
|---|---|---|
| Exam registration, for each attempt | US$459 | US$599 |
| Six-month eligibility extension, once, if you need more time | US$75 | US$75 |
| Rescore, only if you fail and ask for one | US$75 | US$75 |
| Certification application processing, once, after you pass | US$50 | US$50 |
| Annual maintenance fee, every year you hold the AAISM | US$20 | US$35 |
| Reinstatement, only if the credential is revoked and reinstated | US$50 | US$50 |
The exam fee is the one you pay again for every retake, and the maintenance fee is the one you pay for as long as you keep the credential.
The exam fee: US$459 or US$599
The guide is short on this: "Exam registration fees are based on membership status at the time of exam registration", "ISACA Member: US$459" and "ISACA Nonmember: US$599". The difference is US$140. Membership has dues of its own, which the candidate guide does not list, so whether joining saves money depends on those dues and on whether you would use membership for anything else.
Two conditions attach to the fee. "Exam registration fees are nonrefundable and nontransferable", and "the exam registration fee must be paid in full before an exam candidate can schedule and take an exam." Once you have paid, you can book an appointment as early as 48 hours later.
What the fee buys: six months
Paying registers you for one attempt within a six-month window: "Upon registration, exam candidates have a six-month eligibility period." The guide repeats the consequence: "You will forfeit your fees if you do not schedule and take the exam during your six-month eligibility period."
How to lose the fee without taking the exam
The guide lists the ways the fee is forfeited: "the exam eligibility and registration fees will be forfeited in the event the candidate does not take the exam during the six-month eligibility period, if the testing appointment is missed, or if the candidate is more than 15 minutes late for a testing appointment." Two more are spelled out elsewhere:
- Rescheduling too late. You can move your appointment without penalty up to 48 hours before it, but "If you are within 48 hours of the scheduled testing appointment, you must take the exam or forfeit the registration fee."
- The wrong ID. A candidate without an acceptable government-issued ID is turned away and loses the registration fee. Digital and military IDs are not accepted.
Cheating costs the fee too: for remote exams the guide warns that "Any form of cheating will not be tolerated and will result in a voided exam without a refund."
Two situations do not cost you the fee. If the test center closes for severe weather or an emergency, "the exam will be rescheduled at no additional charge." And if you miss the appointment because of a personal hardship, such as illness, a death in the immediate family or a traffic accident, "you may be able to reschedule without forfeiting your exam registration fee", provided you contact PSI "no later than 72 hours following the scheduled appointment" with documentation. If the request is denied, "candidates are required to register and pay the full registration fee again."
The extension: US$75 for six more months
If six months turns out to be too short, "you can purchase a six-month exam extension for US$75." Three rules come with it:
- Timing. "The option to extend the exam eligibility will appear on your dashboard 30 days before and after the expiration of your eligibility."
- A booked exam must be canceled first, "at least 48 hours prior to the exam date".
- Only once. "There is a maximum of one extension on an exam."
At US$75, the extension is far cheaper than forfeiting the exam fee, so if your preparation is running late, extend rather than let the window close.
Retakes: the full fee each time
If you fail, you can try again, but each attempt is paid in full: "candidates must pay the registration fee in full for each exam attempt." "Individuals have four attempts within a rolling 12-month period to pass the exam", with waits between them: 30 days after the first attempt, then 90 days after the second and 90 days after the third.
A second attempt therefore costs another US$459 or US$599. ISACA publishes no discount for retakes. The waits and the scoring are in the AAISM exam format and scoring.
A rescore: US$75
If you do not pass and believe the score is wrong, you can ask for a rescore; ISACA's guide says "Rescores are performed by PSI." The request goes in writing through ISACA's support page "within 30 days following the release of the exam results", and "A fee of US$75 must accompany each request."
After you pass: the US$50 application fee
Passing the exam is not the end of the bill. To become certified you must have an active CISM or CISSP, pass the exam, and "Pay the US$50 application processing fee", then submit the application. ISACA's AAISM page gives you time to do it: "Candidates have five years from passing the exam to apply for AAISM certification."
Keeping the AAISM: the annual fee and CPE
Holding the AAISM has a yearly cost in money and in time.
- The annual maintenance fee. ISACA's maintenance page sets it at "$20 for members, $35 for non-members", and says "This payment is due annually by 1 January". If you hold more than one ISACA Advanced certification, you pay once: "Regardless of how many ISACA Advanced certifications you hold your total annual maintenance for all of your Advanced certifications will be $20/35."
- Continuing education. "A minimum of 10 CPE hours must be reported annually", and "you must earn and report at least 30 CPE hours related to AAISM over a three-year reporting period." ISACA's maintenance page lists ways to earn CPE, some of them free.
- Your CISM or CISSP stays active. "Maintenance requires that AAISM-certified professionals submit proof of their active CISM or CISSP certification." That credential has maintenance requirements of its own.
If the AAISM is revoked for missing the CPE requirements and ISACA later approves an appeal, you pay "any outstanding certification maintenance fees plus a US$50 reinstatement fee before being reinstated."
What the AAISM costs in total
Using ISACA's published fees only, and leaving out membership dues, prep and the cost of keeping your CISM or CISSP:
| Path | ISACA member | Nonmember |
|---|---|---|
| Pass on the first attempt, then apply | US$509 | US$649 |
| The same, with one six-month extension | US$584 | US$724 |
| Pass on the second attempt, then apply | US$968 | US$1,248 |
| Each year after certification | US$20 | US$35 |
The arithmetic: US$459 + US$50 = US$509 and US$599 + US$50 = US$649; an extension adds US$75; a second attempt adds a full exam fee, US$459 × 2 + US$50 = US$968 and US$599 × 2 + US$50 = US$1,248.
The cheapest path is the one in the first row, and the expensive rows come from two things you control: running out of time in the six-month window, and taking the exam before you are ready.
A timeline of what you pay, and when
- Day one: the exam fee. US$459 or US$599, paid in full when you register. Your six months start that day, and you can book from 48 hours after paying.
- Within six months: the exam. If you need longer, the US$75 extension adds six months once, from 30 days before your window closes to 30 days after.
- Within five years of passing: the application. US$50, with proof of your active CISM or CISSP.
- Every year after that: maintenance. US$20 or US$35 by January 1, and at least 10 CPE hours, 30 over each three-year period.
Costs ISACA's fees do not cover
Some costs never appear in ISACA's fee list but belong in the budget:
- Getting to the exam. At a PSI test center, the trip and the time off; the guide asks you to plan "to arrive at least 30 minutes prior to the exam start time".
- Testing at home. A computer and room that meet the remote rules, and a device that passes the compatibility check; on a company device you may need your IT department's approval "to download the secure browser".
- Your CISM or CISSP. The AAISM depends on it, and it has maintenance requirements and fees of its own.
- Study materials and time, whichever you choose.
Questions about AAISM costs
Is there an AAISM voucher, or a price in another currency?
The candidate guide describes registering and paying online and gives every fee in US dollars. It mentions no vouchers and no prices in other currencies, so searches for the cost in rupees or pounds come back to the same US$459 and US$599.
Does ISACA sell its own AAISM prep?
Yes. ISACA's AAISM page lists an AAISM Review Manual in digital and print versions, an AAISM Questions, Answers & Explanations Database, an AAISM Online Review Course and virtual training events. ISACA prices them on its store, and they are not part of the exam fee. We do not use ISACA's prep materials in our course; how to study for the AAISM sets out a plan without them.
Is the exam fee refundable?
No. "Exam registration fees are nonrefundable and nontransferable." The only ways to keep the fee when you cannot take the exam as booked are to reschedule at least 48 hours ahead, to buy the US$75 extension, or to qualify under the personal hardship rules.
Five ways to keep the cost down
The fees that hurt are the ones you pay twice, and most of them are avoidable:
- Register when you are ready to book. The six months start the day you register, not the day you book, so registering early only shortens your runway.
- Reschedule early, never late. Moving an appointment is free up to 48 hours before it; inside 48 hours you take the exam or lose the fee.
- Extend instead of forfeiting. If the window is closing, US$75 buys six more months; letting it close costs the whole exam fee.
- Check the day's rules. An ID that does not match your registration, or arriving more than 15 minutes late, costs the fee as surely as failing does.
- Pass on the first attempt. A retake costs a full exam fee and at least 30 days. Practicing under exam conditions, 90 questions on one 150-minute clock, is the cheapest insurance there is.
That is what our AAISM course is for: 63 lessons mapped to ISACA's outline, practice questions in the exam's format with a rationale for every answer, and a timed mock of 90 questions on one 150-minute clock. A free account opens the first topic, AI governance and regulation, in full, and the AAISM exam guide shows every topic before you pay anything. Our own prices are on the pricing page: one payment, and nothing renews.
By QualExam editorial. Written against the certifying body’s published documents, pinned by hash so a revised edition shows up as a change.