It depends,... My shop can register & print the cards right there, in minutes. Some shops & instructors do not have that luxury & the registration must be sent in. This can take 2- 3 weeks. Most instructors are required by their agencies to have the registration within a few days of the course completion. In the mean time, the instructor can issue a temporary card that you can use to dive. The temp cards typically are valid for 30 days. Be aware that with a temp card, some dive operations may ask for additional ID to verify.