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Virginia CME and nursing CE requirements
Continuing education and license renewal rules for physicians, advanced practice clinicians and nurses licensed in Virginia, as recorded by ClinLicense for planning.
Planning aid only. ClinLicense is not legal or compliance advice. Boards change rules between cycles, so confirm every requirement with the board before you rely on it.
- Licensing board
- Virginia Board of Medicine
- License lookup
- Public license verification
- License renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
MD CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-10-31 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-10-31. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Some details below are marked for confirmation, so treat those as unverified until the board confirms them. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
- Total hours
- 60 hours every 2 years, with at least 30 in Category 1 or the equivalent
- License renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
Required topics
| Topic | Hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opioid & controlled-substance prescribing | 2 | Every cycle | DEA registrants | Pain management/proper prescribing of controlled substances; frequency uncertain |
Notes. 60 hours per 2 years, at least 30 Category 1. Virginia may have added implicit bias or other rules; confirm.
DO CME requirements
Not yet verified Not yet verified, confirm with the board. This entry has not been checked against the board’s own published rules.
- Total hours
- 60 hours every 2 years, with at least 30 in Category 1 or the equivalent
- License renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
Required topics
| Topic | Hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opioid & controlled-substance prescribing | 2 | Every cycle | DEA registrants | Pain management/proper prescribing of controlled substances; frequency uncertain |
Notes. Copied from the MD block as a planning default; the osteopathic rules were not separately confirmed. Confirm with the board.
NP CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-11-01 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-01. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Some details below are marked for confirmation, so treat those as unverified until the board confirms them. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
- Total hours
- Not recorded every 2 years
- License renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
Required topics
| Topic | Hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacology | 8 | Every cycle | Some licensees, see the note | Eight hours of pharmacology or pharmacotherapeutics each biennium for NPs with prescriptive authority, in addition to base requirements |
Notes. NPs first licensed on or after May 8, 2002 satisfy competency by holding current specialty certification from a designated certifying agency (no CE hours). NPs licensed before May 8, 2002 may instead complete 40 hours of CE in specialty practice. Keep evidence 4 years. A 2026 Virginia act reportedly adds bias reduction training to renewal CE; not confirmed on the board's pages, so confirm with the board.
PA CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-11-01 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-01. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
- Total hours
- Not recorded every 2 years
- License renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
Required topics
No mandated topics are recorded for this profession in this state. That is not the same as the board having none, so confirm with the board.
Notes. 18VAC85-50-56: PA renewal is biennial in odd-numbered years and requires verification of compliance with NCCPA continuing medical education standards; hours and topics come from NCCPA, not the Virginia regulation. A lapsed NCCPA certification means the PA is not licensed.
CRNA CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-11-01 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-01. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Some details below are marked for confirmation, so treat those as unverified until the board confirms them. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
- Total hours
- Not recorded every 2 years
- License renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
Required topics
No mandated topics are recorded for this profession in this state. That is not the same as the board having none, so confirm with the board.
Notes. The VA Board of Nursing APRN competency page does not address CRNAs. The Board fee page groups CRNAs with APRNs (biennial renewal $80). Confirm with the board.
CAA CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-11-01 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-01. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Some details below are marked for confirmation, so treat those as unverified until the board confirms them. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
- Total hours
- Not recorded every 2 years
- License renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
Required topics
No mandated topics are recorded for this profession in this state. That is not the same as the board having none, so confirm with the board.
Notes. Virginia licenses anesthesiologist assistants through the Board of Medicine (Va. Code 54.1-2957.23). Renewal fee and CE hours are set in board regulations that are not confirmed on a board page; confirm with the board.
Virginia nursing CE requirements
Nursing boards usually count continuing education in contact hours rather than CME credits, and the nursing license renews on its own schedule, which may differ from the medical board dates above. Nurse practitioners and nurse anesthetists have their own sections above.
Nurse Licensure Compact Virginia has implemented the Nurse Licensure Compact. A registered or practical nurse whose primary state of residence is Virginia can hold a multistate license issued by Virginia, which carries the privilege to practice in the other compact states, and a nurse with a multistate license from another compact state can practice in Virginia under that privilege. Renewal and CE for a multistate license follow the rules of the home state that issued it. The compact covers RN and LPN/LVN licenses only, and advanced practice authority is still granted state by state. This compact list was last reviewed on November 3, 2026. Read the compact guide for RNs and LPNs.
Registered nurses (RN)
Reviewed 2026-11-03 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-03 against the source linked below. That date records our own review and is not a board approval.
- Continuing education
- The board requires no continuing education for this license.
- Continuing competency
- 18VAC90-19-160 requires one of nine options each renewal, including current specialty certification, 3 credit hours of post-licensure coursework, a refresher course, 640 practice hours plus 15 contact hours, or 30 contact hours.
- Nursing license renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
- Board
- Virginia Board of Nursing
- Source
- The board page this entry was checked against
Notes. 18VAC90-19-160 requires one of nine options each renewal, including current specialty certification, 3 credit hours of post-licensure coursework, a refresher course, 640 practice hours plus 15 contact hours, or 30 contact hours. The first renewal after initial licensure is exempt.
Licensed practical and vocational nurses (LPN/LVN)
Reviewed 2026-11-03 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-03 against the source linked below. That date records our own review and is not a board approval.
- Continuing education
- The board requires no continuing education for this license.
- Continuing competency
- 18VAC90-19-160 requires one of nine options each renewal, including current specialty certification, 3 credit hours of post-licensure coursework, a refresher course, 640 practice hours plus 15 contact hours, or 30 contact hours.
- Nursing license renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
- Board
- Virginia Board of Nursing
- Source
- The board page this entry was checked against
Notes. 18VAC90-19-160 requires one of nine options each renewal, including current specialty certification, 3 credit hours of post-licensure coursework, a refresher course, 640 practice hours plus 15 contact hours, or 30 contact hours. The first renewal after initial licensure is exempt. Dual RN and LPN licensees meet only one option.
Certified nurse-midwives (CNM)
Not yet verified This nursing entry has not been checked against the board’s own published rules, so confirm it with the board before you rely on it.
- Continuing education
- The board requires no continuing education for this license.
- Continuing competency
- 18VAC90-30-105: APRNs first licensed on or after May 8, 2002 renew biennially by holding current specialty certification; those licensed earlier (and certain clinical nurse specialists with retired certification) may instead complete 40 CE hours in their specialty.
- Nursing license renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
- Board
- Virginia Board of Nursing
- Source
- The board page this entry was checked against
Notes. 18VAC90-30-105: APRNs first licensed on or after May 8, 2002 renew biennially by holding current specialty certification; those licensed earlier (and certain clinical nurse specialists with retired certification) may instead complete 40 CE hours in their specialty. Keep records four years. No bias-training item appears in this section. CNMs are not named in the section and it is not confirmed whether a separate joint-board rule applies, so confirm with the Board.
Clinical nurse specialists (CNS)
Reviewed 2026-11-03 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-03 against the source linked below. That date records our own review and is not a board approval.
- Continuing education
- The board requires no continuing education for this license.
- Continuing competency
- 18VAC90-30-105: APRNs first licensed on or after May 8, 2002 renew biennially by holding current specialty certification; those licensed earlier (and certain clinical nurse specialists with retired certification) may instead complete 40 CE hours in their specialty.
- Nursing license renewal
- Every 2 years, based on end of your birth month
- Board
- Virginia Board of Nursing
- Source
- The board page this entry was checked against
Notes. 18VAC90-30-105: APRNs first licensed on or after May 8, 2002 renew biennially by holding current specialty certification; those licensed earlier (and certain clinical nurse specialists with retired certification) may instead complete 40 CE hours in their specialty. Keep records four years. No bias-training item appears in this section.
See nursing CE requirements by state to compare Virginia with other states.
Plan this renewal
Use the free opioid CME planner to see the controlled-substance rules for Virginia next to other states, or the license cost calculator to estimate fees. Read how multi-state CME works if you hold more than one license.
Nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurse anesthetists and anesthesiologist assistants usually also maintain national certification, which has its own cycle. The recertification basics guide explains how that fits alongside state rules. Nurses who hold licenses in more than one state can read the Nurse Licensure Compact for RNs and LPNs.
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