I have used them. You get max of $800 off of the dealer price, which is much less than MSRP. It generally works out such that you get 50% off MSRP or maybe a little more when you buy one of their more expensive optics. In my experience, it is definitely worth it if you buy any of their scopes that MSRP for 2800 or more (assuming you spend 200 on the cert). I got a razer Gen 2 for hunting about a month ago using one of these certs. Think it came out to 1499 without the tremor reticle. Took about a month to get the scope. No requirement for law enforcement or military that I'm aware of, but you do have to go directly through Vortex and be sure to submit it before the expiration. Hope that helps