If I travel to another country to play in a FIDE-rated tournament, should I expect my USCF rating will also be affected? It seems sometimes it is and sometimes it isn’t. In the 2025 Reykjavik Open, for example, 42 Americans participated, but only 11 had their USCF ratings adjusted.
The rules for FIDE adjustments were changed by the Executive Board in August. See EB 26-011:
EB26–011–BOARD – The Executive Board moves to update Section 6 of the US Chess Ratings System document
(https://new.uschess.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/us_chess_rating_system_specs-2025-07-26.pdf) as follows:
6. Updating US Chess Ratings from Foreign FIDE Events
Effective January 1, 2026, US Chess will automatically update the US Chess ratings of all members with active memberships based on
their performance in FIDE-rated events held outside US Chess jurisdiction. This change aims to improve the accuracy and consistency of
player ratings.
Only players with an established US Chess regular rating are eligible for updates based on results from foreign FIDE events.
Following each new FIDE rating list, the US Chess office will identify all current members who:
• Appear with a “USA” flag in the FIDE rating list, and
• Have played at least one FIDE-rated game included in that list.
Additionally, the office may include other U.S. residents who are not marked with a USA flag if they are deemed eligible.
Starting with the January 1, 2026, update all eligible players who have participated in FIDE-rated events will have their
results automatically incorporated into their US Chess ratings. The previous opt-in/opt-out process is discontinued. The US Chess
Executive Director must approve any exceptions.
For each identified player, all opponents and their FIDE ratings are recorded; opponents without a FIDE rating are excluded from the
calculation. Opponent FIDE ratings are converted to the US Chess scale using the standard conversion outlined in Section 2.1.
PASSED 8-0