Since June 18, 2026, passing or renewing the Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS) exam also renews your Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) certification, even an expired one. The current exam remains a two-hour command-line practical. Watch the version, though: the Linux Foundation's exam page still names Kubernetes v1.35, and Kubernetes has moved on to 1.37.
One exam now renews up to three others
The Linux Foundation's Certification Advancement and Recertification Experience (CARE) program took effect on January 1, 2026. It renews a lower-level certification automatically when you earn or renew a higher one in the same chain. For CKS the chain started with the Kubernetes and Cloud Native Security Associate (KCSA): pass or recertify CKS on or after January 1, 2026, and your KCSA becomes current with its expiry aligned to the new CKS date.
The bigger step came in June. A CNCF announcement, posted on the Linux Foundation's blog on June 17, 2026, added CKA to the chain, effective June 18: a CKS pass or recertification on or after that date reinstates or extends your CKA as well. Because CKA already renews the Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA) under CARE, the Linux Foundation now describes CKS as triggering a full cascade, renewing KCSA, CKA and KCNA. The program page says CARE applies whether the lower certification is current or expired, as long as you earned it at some point, and asks you to allow a few days for the renewals to show.
At the Linux Foundation's $445 exam-only price, one CKS exam every two years now keeps up to four certifications current. Before June 18, keeping CKS and CKA both current meant passing both exams.
The exam, as of October 2026
The Linux Foundation's figures match our CKS study guide. It's a two-hour, performance-based exam with 15 to 20 tasks solved at a command line, a 67% pass mark, two attempts and 12 months to use them. The price is $445 for the exam alone, $625 with a THRIVE-ONE subscription, or $645 with the LFS260 course. Registration includes two Killer.sh simulator sessions. You still need a CKA pass before booking, though since the October 15, 2024 revision that CKA can be expired. Certification lasts two years, and you renew by passing the exam again.
Which Kubernetes version you'll be tested on
The Linux Foundation's CKS page says the exam is based on Kubernetes v1.35 and that the environment moves to the newest minor version within about four to eight weeks of its release. Kubernetes' own release page lists 1.37, 1.36 and 1.35 as the maintained branches, with 1.37 the newest. Two minor releases have shipped since 1.35, so either the exam has moved and the page hasn't caught up, or the exam is running behind its own policy.
The CNCF curriculum repository adds a third signal. Its CKS curriculum file is labeled v1.34, which describes that document rather than proving the version running in the exam environment. The Linux Foundation hasn't announced a CKS curriculum change, and its CKS page gives the same six domain weights as our study guide, with supply chain security, microservice vulnerabilities and runtime security at 20% each.
A minor-version change can alter flags, defaults and the documentation pages you'll open during the exam. Check the version on the Linux Foundation's CKS page in the week you book, and practice on that version.
Where KCSA fits
KCSA is the multiple-choice entry point to the same subject. The Linux Foundation lists it at $250 for a 90-minute exam with no prerequisites and two years' validity, rated beginner, with two attempts and 12 months to take them. It doesn't count toward CKS eligibility; only CKA does. Its value in 2026 is mainly as a first step for someone new to Kubernetes security, and, through CARE, it's renewed for free by any later CKS pass.
What to do this month
If you hold an expired CKA and are thinking about CKS anyway, note that since June one CKS pass reinstates the CKA as well. If your CKS is due within the year, its renewal now carries your CKA with it, so you don't need to book a separate CKA renewal; allow a few days for the cascade to appear in your Linux Foundation account. If you're starting from scratch, CKA comes first and KCSA is optional. Our container security certifications guide covers the alternatives, and the DevSecOps career path shows where Kubernetes skills fit.
Sources
- Linux Foundation: CKS: two hours, prices and bundles, CKA prerequisite, Kubernetes v1.35, four-to-eight-week alignment policy, two-year validity, simulator sessions, checked October 2026
- Linux Foundation: FAQ for CKA, CKAD and CKS: 67% passing score, renewal by retake, checked October 2026
- Linux Foundation: Important instructions, CKS: 15 to 20 tasks, checked October 2026
- Linux Foundation: Now Updated, CKS Exam: October 15, 2024 revision and CKA-at-any-time rule, checked October 2026
- Linux Foundation: Expanding CARE (June 2026): CKS reinstates or extends CKA from June 18, 2026, checked October 2026
- Linux Foundation: CARE program: January 1, 2026 start, KCSA and KCNA paths, CKS cascade, expired certifications covered, checked October 2026
- Linux Foundation: KCSA: $250, 90 minutes, multiple choice, no prerequisites, two-year validity, checked October 2026
- Kubernetes: Release History: maintained branches 1.37, 1.36 and 1.35, checked October 2026
- CNCF curriculum repository: CKS curriculum filename and version label, checked October 2026