We have excellent timing with this article because CLIA has just rolled out some major structural changes to help streamline their membership process! It’s so new that’s it not even up on their website yet! Hurray! The intel you’re getting is hot off the press!
Simplifying their membership structure, CLIA now has two levels, accreditation for travel agencies and membership for hosted agents:
- Agency Membership
- Travel Agency Membership
- Premier Membership
- Individual Agent Membership (IAM)
One thing to mention, using a CLIA# doesn’t necessarily mean you’re a CLIA member. Weird. I know. If the agency you work for or your host agency has a CLIA number, that’s at the agency level. You’ll need to get your own members (IAM) if you want the perks of CLIA’s coupon book and access to other goodies that come with CLIA accreditation.
While CLIA’s agency memberships are geared toward vendor recognition, the IAM will not accredit your agency. Rather, IAM’s emphasis is marketing your travel agency to clients and gaining access to CLIA’s education programs and other perks. So if you’re a solo agent who wants the supplier recognition we were talking about earlier, you will want to consider an agency membership.
In total, CLIA has accredited approximately 20,000 agencies and has issued IAM membership to 30,000 agents. Okay! Here’s the scoop on their memberships:
- Who is it for? Travel agencies with >50 agents/ICs who focus on selling cruises or who are interested in growing the cruise faction of their biz.
- Countries Applicants Accepted From: United States, Abrema Brasil, Alaska, Australasia, Belgium & Luxembourg, Europe, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, North America, North Asia, North West & Canada, Southeast Asia, Spain, UK & Ireland. (See international CLIA accreditation requirements.)
- Travel Agency Accreditation Cost: No initiation fee. $395/ annual fee.
- Experience Needed? None required.
- Application Requirements: E&O insurance, and SOT. Applicants must meet all federal, state, and local ordinances about selling travel.
- Notification Time: N/A
- Number of Agencies CLIA Accredited: ~10,000 agencies
2. CLIA’s Premier Membership:
- Who is it for? This is an exclusive membership level for large agencies and consortia (with more than 50 travel agents).
- Countries Applicants Accepted From: United States, Abrema Brasil, Alaska, Australasia, Belgium & Luxembourg, Europe, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, North Asia, North West & Canada, Southeast Asia, Spain, UK & Ireland
- Travel Agency Accreditation Cost: No initiation fee. $5,000/ annual fee.
- Experience Needed? May vary. CLIA suggests that agents earn a minimum of $5,000 in cruise commissions annually to receive their IAM.
- Application Requirements: Applicants must be invited to join. There is no official application process.
- Number of Premier CLIA Agencies: ~29
- Who is it for? To qualify for an IAM through CLIA, the agency you sell travel through must have an agency membership.
- Countries Applicants Accepted From: United States
- Travel Agency Accreditation Cost: $115 annually, if your host agency has an Agency Membership. $65 if they have a Premier Membership.
- Application Requirements: May varies depending on host agency. CLIA suggests that agents earn a minimum of $5,000 in cruise commissions annually to receive their IAM.
- Notification Time: Varies. Agents are approved through their host agency, not directly through CLIA.
- Number of agents with CLIA IAM: 26,269 agents
