Become a PADI instructor even if your current certification is with SSI or another training agency. We can help you find out what you need to do.
PADI IDC REQUIREMENTS
PADI sets seven requirements for entry to an Instructor Development Course: a PADI Divemaster or equivalent leadership certification, 18 years of age, 60 logged dives with documented night, deep and navigation experience, six months as a certified diver, a signed dive medical, and current Emergency First Response training. A separate requirement, 100 logged dives, applies to the PADI Instructor Examination rather than to the course.
The two dive figures are routinely reported as one, and the difference matters when you are booking. This page states each requirement, where it comes from, and which course satisfies it.
The seven PADI IDC requirements
These apply at every PADI IDC, worldwide.
- PADI Divemaster, or a leadership-level certification with another recognised diver training organisation
- 18 years old
- 60 logged dives, with documented experience in night diving, deep diving and underwater navigation
- Certified diver for at least six months, counted from the date of your entry-level certification
- Medical clearance attesting to dive fitness, signed by a physician within the previous 12 months, with no change in medical condition since
- Emergency First Response Primary and Secondary Care, or qualifying training, completed within the last 24 months
- Candidates who are not PADI Divemasters additionally complete the PADI Divemaster course diver rescue skills assessment
Source: PADI Course Director Manual and PADI Instructor Manual. Emergency First Response Instructor is a separate requirement for Open Water Scuba Instructor certification rather than for entry to the course. It is trained during the IDC and is included in every Go Pro Caribbean IDC package.
How many logged dives you actually need
60 to enrol in the Instructor Development Course, and 100 to sit the Instructor Examination.
100 logged dives is a prerequisite for the PADI Instructor Examination, not for enrolling in the Instructor Development Course. Candidates are frequently told otherwise.
The Course Director signs off dive experience at the end of the IDC, so the count is assessed before the examination begins. A Go Pro Caribbean IDC logs two to three dives that count toward it. Arriving with 100 removes the question entirely; anyone close to the figure should confirm it with Will Welbourn before booking, so the shortfall can be planned into the programme rather than discovered in the final week.
A PADI Divemaster satisfies the 60-dive requirement automatically. The Divemaster course carries its own exit requirement of 60 logged dives with documented experience in underwater navigation, night diving and deep diving — the same experience the IDC asks for.
Which course satisfies which requirement
Every professional prerequisite is earned on a recreational course. Each rung below satisfies a specific requirement above.
Open Water Diver — starts the six-month clock
The six-month requirement is counted from the date of your entry-level certification, so the clock starts the day that course finishes. It is the requirement most often discovered too late, because nothing else on the list depends on the calendar.
Advanced Open Water — covers two of the three documented dives
Deep and Underwater Navigation are compulsory Adventure Dives on the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course, so both are covered. Night is elective. A diver can hold Advanced Open Water without ever having logged a night dive, which makes it the one of the three worth checking before booking an IDC.
Rescue Diver — the prerequisite behind the prerequisite
Rescue Diver is required for entry to the Divemaster course, so it sits beneath requirement one rather than alongside it. It is also the foundation of the rescue demonstration assessed in the open water segment of the Instructor Examination.
Divemaster — satisfies requirements one and three together
PADI Divemaster satisfies requirement one directly. Because the course's own exit requirements are 60 logged dives with documented night, deep and navigation experience, a certified Divemaster has already met requirement three as well.
Coming from another training organisation
A leadership-level certification with another recognised diver training organisation is accepted in place of PADI Divemaster. Two additions apply.
- Successful completion of the PADI Divemaster course diver rescue skills assessment
- Documentation of qualifying certifications at entry level, advanced, rescue and leadership level
Entry-level, advanced and rescue certifications from other organisations are accepted as qualifying certifications throughout. Certifying agency makes no difference to eligibility; it makes some difference to how familiar the PADI System feels in the first days of the course.
Completing the pathway in one visit
If you already hold an entry-level certification and have held it for six months, the entire professional pathway fits comfortably into one trip.
Already certified six months. Advanced Open Water, Rescue Diver, Divemaster and the IDC come to roughly 63 training days. That sits inside the 90-day Honduran tourist entry with room to spare, and dives accumulate continuously while you train, which is what carries a diver from 40 logged dives to the 100 the examination requires.
No certification at all. This cannot be done in one visit. The six-month rule runs from the date of your entry-level certification, so the earliest an IDC can start is six months after your Open Water course finishes. The practical route is to certify on a first trip and return for the professional training.
Course durations other than the IDC are recommended rather than fixed, and can be discussed. The IDC is the exception: PADI sets the Instructor Examination dates, so the 14-day programme — 12 days of IDC followed by the two-day examination — runs to a fixed end date and cannot be compressed. It occasionally begins earlier, where a weather forecast or a full cohort makes the extra time useful. PADI's published minimum for an IDC is six days where candidates complete IDC eLearning.
Recent dive experience — not required, and it decides your first week
PADI sets no requirement for recent diving. Will Welbourn, PADI Platinum Course Director, recommends 30 dives in the four weeks before the IDC starts.
Candidates who have been out of the water for several months consistently struggle in the early skill sessions — not because they cannot dive, but because skills that should be automatic require conscious thought under assessment. Thirty dives is where candidates arrive genuinely ready. This recommendation is Go Pro Caribbean's, not PADI's, and it is offered as a recommendation.
Every Go Pro Caribbean IDC package includes 10 fun dives as a baseline. Candidates who want more water time before day one can add Pre-IDC Skills Preparation at $150 per week, for one to four weeks, diving daily alongside working divemasters and refreshing every skill in a working environment.
Common questions about PADI IDC requirements
What are the prerequisites for the PADI IDC?
There are seven. You must hold a PADI Divemaster certification or a leadership-level certification with another recognised diver training organisation; be 18 years old; have 60 logged dives with documented experience in night diving, deep diving and underwater navigation; have been a certified diver for at least six months; hold medical clearance signed by a physician within the previous 12 months; and have completed Emergency First Response Primary and Secondary Care, or qualifying training, within the last 24 months. Candidates who are not PADI Divemasters must also complete the PADI Divemaster course diver rescue skills assessment.
How many logged dives do I need to become a PADI instructor?
60 to enrol in the Instructor Development Course, and 100 to sit the Instructor Examination. The two figures are often reported as one, which is where the confusion comes from. The 100-dive requirement belongs to the examination, not the course. The Course Director signs off dive experience at the end of the IDC, so the count is assessed before the examination begins. A Go Pro Caribbean IDC logs two to three dives that count toward it, so arriving with 100 removes the question entirely.
Do all my certifications need to be with PADI?
No. Entry-level, advanced and rescue certifications from other recognised training organisations are accepted as qualifying certifications. A leadership-level certification with another organisation is accepted in place of PADI Divemaster, with two additions: the candidate completes the PADI Divemaster course diver rescue skills assessment, and submits documentation of the qualifying entry-level, advanced, rescue and leadership certifications held.
How long does the PADI IDC take?
The Go Pro Caribbean programme runs 14 days: 12 days of Instructor Development Course followed by the two-day PADI Instructor Examination. PADI sets the examination dates, so the programme runs to a fixed end date and cannot be compressed. It occasionally starts earlier, where the weather forecast or a full cohort makes more time useful. PADI's published minimum for an IDC is six days where candidates complete IDC eLearning.
How much recent diving should I do before the IDC?
PADI sets no requirement for recent diving. Will Welbourn, PADI Platinum Course Director, recommends 30 dives in the four weeks before the IDC starts. Candidates who have been out of the water for several months consistently struggle in the early skill sessions, not because they cannot dive but because skills that should be automatic require conscious thought under assessment. Every Go Pro Caribbean IDC package includes 10 fun dives as a baseline. Pre-IDC Skills Preparation is available for one to four weeks at $150 per week.
Does Advanced Open Water cover the documented dive experience the IDC requires?
Partly. Deep and Underwater Navigation are compulsory Adventure Dives on the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver course, so both are covered. Night is elective, so a candidate can hold Advanced Open Water without having logged a night dive. It is the one of the three worth checking before booking an IDC.
Can I complete the whole professional pathway in one visit?
Yes, if you already hold an entry-level certification and have held it for six months. Advanced Open Water, Rescue Diver, Divemaster and the IDC together come to roughly 63 training days, which fits inside the 90-day Honduran tourist entry, and dives accumulate continuously while you train. If you hold no certification at all it cannot be done in one visit, because the six-month rule runs from the date of your entry-level certification and starts the moment that course finishes.
What medical clearance do I need for the PADI IDC?
Medical clearance attesting to dive fitness, signed by a physician within the previous 12 months, with no changes to your medical condition since. This is a standard dive medical rather than a specialist assessment, and most general practitioners can complete it. Download the current form from the PADI website before your appointment.
Not sure whether you qualify?
Will Welbourn has certified more than 500 PADI instructors since 2008. Send him your certifications and dive count and he will tell you where you stand.