North Carolina Board of Nursing
North Carolina RNs and LPNs need 30 contact hours of continuing education every 2 years (or another option the board accepts).
At a glance
| Licenses covered | Registered nurse (RN), Licensed practical nurse (LPN) [2] |
|---|---|
| CE required for renewal | Yes [2] |
| Hours per renewal | 30 contact hours [1] |
| CE period | Every 2 years [2] |
| Renewal deadline | Licenses renew every two years and expire on the last day of the nurse's birth month. [2] |
| State-mandated topics | None stated by the board |
| What CE counts | CE taken in a classroom, online, through professional journals, correspondence or independent study from Board-listed providers, including the American Nurses Association or any state nurses association, any state board of nursing, and journal CE approved by bodies such as the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Employer-sponsored CE not accredited by a listed body may make up at most 50% of the contact hours. [3] |
Rules change, and your own license record decides your deadline. Confirm with the North Carolina Board of Nursing ↗ before you renew.
Free courses that count toward the hours
The board accepts continuing education accredited by ANCC [3]. These current free courses state that accreditation. State-mandated topics can require a specific approved course, so check those separately.
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Questions
North Carolina RNs and LPNs need 30 contact hours of continuing education every 2 years (or another option the board accepts). Licenses renew every two years and expire on the last day of the nurse's birth month.
The North Carolina Board of Nursing pages we checked do not list a state-mandated topic for this renewal.
CE taken in a classroom, online, through professional journals, correspondence or independent study from Board-listed providers, including the American Nurses Association or any state nurses association, any state board of nursing, and journal CE approved by bodies such as the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Employer-sponsored CE not accredited by a listed body may make up at most 50% of the contact hours. Free courses accredited by ANCC are listed on this page; a state-mandated topic may need a specific approved course.
Every fact above links to the official page it comes from. We fetched each page on the date shown and confirmed the exact wording below appears on it.
“One of the following eight learning options must be completed:”
“30 Contact Hours of continued education”
“15 Contact Hours of continued education and 640 hours of active practice within previous 2 years.”
“National Certification or Re-certification by a National Credentialing Body recognized by the Board”
“Completion of a Board-Approved Refresher Course”
“Completion of a minimum of two (2) semester hours of post-licensure academic education related to nursing practice”
“15 Contact Hours of continued education and completion of a nursing project as Principal Investigator or Co-Investigator”
“15 Contact Hours of continued education and Authoring or Co-Authoring a nursing-related article, paper, book or book chapter”
“15 Contact Hours of continued education and developing and conducting a nursing continuing education presentation or presentations totaling a minimum of five contact hours”
“All continuing competence requirements must be met before renewal or reinstatement licenses will be issued. No grace periods and no exceptions will be granted.”
“If a nurse cannot demonstrate meeting the continuing competence requirements, the license will be placed on INACTIVE STATUS starting at 12:01 a.m. on the first day after a nurse’s renewal date until compliance with the Continuing Competence requirement is met.”
“CONTINUING COMPETENCE RULE (21 NCAC 36.0232) FOR NORTH CAROLINA REGISTERED NURSES AND LICENSED PRACTICAL NURSES”
“upon application for license renewal or reinstatement, all licensees are required to attest to completion of a self assessment of their practice, development of a learning plan, and completion of one of the approved learning activity options during the preceding renewal cycle”
“On-time renewal of licensure will be for two (2) years and will expire the last day of your birth month.”
“Licenses expire on your birth month. On-time renewal of licensure will be for two (2) years and will expire the last day of your birth month.”
“all licensees are required to attest to completion of a self assessment of their practice, development of a learning plan, and completion of one of the approved learning activity options”
“Acceptable continuing education may be taken in a conventional classroom setting, through on-line courses, professional journals, correspondence, or independent study.”
“American Nurses Association (ANA), or ANY state nurses association”
“North Carolina Board of Nursing (NCBON) or ANY state board of nursing”
“offering continuing education approved by appropriate bodies including but not limited to: American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC)”
“Unless the program is accredited through one of the other bodies mentioned on this document, employer sponsored continuing education may only be used for up to 50% of total contact hours.”
