If you want a national credential as a Spanish medical interpreter in the United States, two organizations come up first: the Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters (CCHI) and the National Board of Certification for Medical Interpreters (NBCMI). They test similar skills in different formats. This guide summarizes what each publishes about its Spanish credential, as we read it on their official sites in October 2026.
Requirements, fees and testing options change. Treat this as a map, then confirm every detail in the official candidate handbook before you pay for anything.
The two credentials at a glance
CCHI's credential for Spanish is the CHI. NBCMI's is the CMI (Certified Medical Interpreter), with an earlier step called Hub-CMI that you earn by passing the written exam.
| CCHI: CHI (Spanish) | NBCMI: CMI (Spanish) | |
|---|---|---|
| Exams | CoreCHI (knowledge) plus a bilingual CHI performance exam | Written exam (earns Hub-CMI), then a Spanish oral exam |
| Order and timing | CHI exam must be passed within 12 months of passing CoreCHI | After Hub-CMI you have 2 years to complete the oral exam |
| Minimum age | 18 | 18 |
| Education | High school diploma or GED, or equivalent from another country | At least a high school education level |
| Training | At least 40 hours of healthcare interpreter training | A medical interpreting course of 40+ hours, or 3+ college credit hours of medical interpreting |
| Language proficiency | Proficiency in English and Spanish, documented | English and Spanish oral proficiency, shown by one of several routes (degree, school diploma, accepted test score and others) |
CCHI: what the CHI exams look like
- CoreCHI: CCHI describes 100 multiple-choice questions in English, 15 of them unscored pretest items, with 2 hours of exam time. Results are pass/fail and shown after you submit.
- CHI performance exam: computer-based and bilingual, 60 minutes, taken at a secure, proctored test center in the U.S. during quarterly testing windows. CCHI lists the score weights as consecutive interpreting 70%, simultaneous interpreting 17%, sight translation 11%, and a translation multiple-choice item 2%.
- Scoring: the overall scale runs from 300 to 600, and the passing score is 450. Oral responses are scored by human raters on three equally weighted scales: lexical content and accuracy, grammar, and quality of speech. Official results come about six to eight weeks after the testing window closes.
A change to watch: CCHI states it will stop awarding the standalone CoreCHI certification on January 1, 2027, and that candidates who pass the CoreCHI exam on or after that date must pass an English-to-English interpreting skills exam (ETOE) within one year to earn the CoreCHI-Performance credential. CCHI's exam-preparation page still lists passing the CoreCHI exam as required for the CHI, so read the current handbook for how the change affects a Spanish CHI candidate.
NBCMI: what the CMI exams look like
- Written exam: English only, multiple choice, 75 minutes, with 51 scored questions plus 5 to 10 unscored pretest items. The passing score is 75%, and results are available immediately. NBCMI's candidate handbook weights the content as about 61% medical terminology and specialties, 15% medical interpreter ethics, and 24% interpreter roles, cultural competence, standards of practice and legislation.
- Oral exam (Spanish): role-play scenarios that you record. NBCMI lists a 70% passing score for Spanish and says results are emailed within six to eight weeks. The handbook weights the content as about 35% medical terminology and specialties, 30% linguistic mastery of English and the target language, 25% interpreting knowledge and skills, and 10% cultural competence. NBCMI's oral-exam preparation document describes consecutive role plays in both directions and two short sight translation passages from English into the target language.
- Scheduling: NBCMI's handbook says both exams are given year-round, at a test center or through live online proctoring. NBCMI allows only one online attempt at the written exam; later attempts are at a test center. Check which options apply to each attempt.
Fees as published
These are the figures on each organization's pages when we checked. Both reserve the right to change them. NBCMI's current fees took effect January 1, 2025.
| Listed fee | |
|---|---|
| CCHI initial CoreCHI (includes a $40 non-refundable application fee) | $231 |
| CCHI CHI performance exam | $302 |
| NBCMI registration (non-refundable, valid for one year) | $40 |
| NBCMI written exam | $190 |
| NBCMI oral exam | $300 |
How to choose
There is no universal winner, so decide on practical factors.
- Employer and state requirements. Ask which credential your target employer or language-services vendor accepts or prefers.
- Your testing preference. CCHI folds consecutive, simultaneous and sight translation into one timed performance exam. NBCMI separates a written exam from an oral role-play exam.
- Your calendar. CCHI uses quarterly windows; NBCMI describes year-round scheduling.
- Your training status. Both list a 40-hour training prerequisite or equivalent. Confirm that your course is accepted before you register.
What to practice for either exam
Both credentials reward the same foundations: medical terminology in both directions, the interpreter's code of ethics and role boundaries, and the three interpreting modes. A six-week structure helps, and our 6-week study plan for the Spanish medical interpreter exam lays one out.
If you want a single study set, the Spanish medical interpreter study guide has a 693-term English-Spanish glossary, ethics scenarios, sight translation passages and consecutive role plays, designed by a family medicine physician & certified medical interpreter. It is an independent study aid: it is not affiliated with or endorsed by CCHI or NBCMI, it does not guarantee a passing result, and it does not count toward the required training hours. A practice simulator is planned; you can join the waitlist on the interpreters page, and more resources are in the Medical Spanish collection.
Official sources
- CCHI: cchicertification.org (eligibility, fees, CHI exam structure, and the CoreCHI sunsetting notice)
- NBCMI: certifiedmedicalinterpreters.org (prerequisites, written exam, oral exam, candidate handbook)
Related guides
- For the sight translation portion: Sight translation practice
- For ethics practice: Medical interpreter ethics scenarios
- For the difference between bilingual staff and qualified interpreters: Can a bilingual nurse interpret?
Phrase lists and study aids support learning and do not replace training, certification, or qualified interpreters in clinical care. This article summarizes publicly available information and is not legal or career advice. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by CCHI or NBCMI.