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How many CE hours does a nurse need to renew in Virginia?

If you hold an active Virginia RN or LPN license and no nurse practitioner license, you renew by completing at least one of nine listed learning activities, so CE hours are only one choice. One choice is thirty contact hours of courses relevant to the practice of nursing. Another is fifteen contact hours plus 640 hours of active practice as a nurse. Your first renewal is exempt.

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The rule, fact by fact

Course hours
Thirty contact hours of courses relevant to the practice of nursingThis is one choice. The rule lists nine.
Verified. law.lis.virginia.gov (opens state website) · checked Nov 13, 2026
Rule
18VAC90-19-160, continued competency requirements for renewal of an active licenseThe Board posts the rule's text on its continued competency page for RNs and LPNs.
Verified. www.dhp.virginia.gov (opens state website) · checked Nov 13, 2026
Who needs it
The first renewal after initial licensure by examination or endorsement is exemptThe exemption covers the whole continued competency requirement for that renewal.
Same source and date as above

How to get it done

  1. Step 1. Check what applies to you. To renew an active license, you complete at least one of nine listed learning activities or courses. Your first renewal after initial licensure is exempt.

  2. Step 2. Pick a provider that counts. For the fifteen-hour and thirty-hour choices, the course must come from a provider that one of thirteen listed bodies recognizes or approves. Among them are the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing and any state board of nursing.

  3. Step 3. Complete the choice you made. Thirty contact hours is one choice. Fifteen contact hours plus 640 hours of active practice as a nurse is another. Among the others are a refresher course the board approves and teaching CE courses.

Before you pay

We haven't confirmed a course price or how the Board checks your proof. Before you pay, check that one of the listed bodies recognizes or approves the provider, because the rule sets that test for the fifteen-hour and thirty-hour choices.

Questions

Can I get more time to finish?

For good cause, the board may grant up to one year more if you ask in writing 60 days before the renewal date. The extension does not relieve you of the requirement.

Can the board exempt me?

The board may exempt you from all or part of the requirement for circumstances beyond your control, such as temporary disability, mandatory military service, or officially declared disasters.

I hold both an RN and an LPN license. Do I do it twice?

No. People dually licensed by the board as a registered nurse and a licensed practical nurse meet only one of the requirements.

Does a course the board ordered count?

No. Activities or courses that a board order requires in a disciplinary proceeding do not count toward licensure renewal.

I am an RN with a nurse practitioner license. Which rules apply?

The nine-activity list does not apply to you. An RN who also holds an active nurse practitioner license meets only the requirements of 18VAC90-30-105 and, with prescriptive authority, 18VAC90-40-55.

What to do next

Start with the Virginia Board of Nursing page on continued competency for RNs and LPNs. It shows rule 18VAC90-19-160. Check it before you pay for a course.

www.dhp.virginia.gov

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