Home to some of the top-rated healthcare facilities, the Midwestern state of Ohio is a popular state among registered nurses (RN) who want to build great careers. That said, Ohio faces a staffing shortage of nurses like any other state in the United States.
The Ohio Board of Nursing (OBN) is the regulatory body responsible for issuing registered nurse licenses in the state of Ohio. While it encourages more professionals to join the ranks to uphold the healthcare system, it must also ensure that existing nurses are fully qualified to continue quality care delivery.
If you are a registered nurse in Ohio, you must get recertified during the renewal period. If you fail to apply for and renew your registered nurse license in Ohio on time, you may be subject to penalties on top of standard fees. Until you have the renewed credentials, you cannot practice as a registered nurse in the state.
For those unaware of nursing license renewal requirements in Ohio, Fast CE For Less can help. We have created a guide to explain the process. If you must renew your registered nurse license in Ohio and want to know the details, this guide can streamline the process for you.
Steps to Renew Your Registered Nurse License in Ohio
To keep pace with the latest developments in healthcare, nursing boards throughout the country require nurses to renew their licenses every two to three years. Each state’s nursing board sets its license renewal period duration. In Ohio, you must renew your registered nurse license every two years.
To renew your credentials, you must fill out and submit an application to the Ohio Board of Nursing. In addition to ensuring you complete the application for license renewal within the deadline, you must also fulfill nursing continuing education requirements defined by OBN.
This section of the guide will cover the steps to renew your registered nurse license in Ohio.
Step 1: Determine the Deadline to Submit Your License Renewal Application
To ensure you have no issues with your license, you must identify your deadline. While the Ohio Board of Nursing requires RNs to apply for license renewal every two years, it is important to know when your license expires.
In Ohio, the OBN renews licenses every odd-numbered year. The board has defined two renewal application periods. The first period is from July 1 to September 15 of every odd-numbered year. The second renewal period is from September 16 to October 31 in the same odd-numbered year.
If you fail to renew the license by September 15, you can apply in the second period but with a late processing fee added to standard charges. If you miss the October 31 deadline, your registered nurse license in Ohio will lapse on November 1.
For nurses who miss the deadline and their licenses lapse, they must submit a Reinstatement Application to continue working as nurses. You can learn more about the license renewal application deadlines set by the Ohio Board of Nursing on its official website here.
Step 2: Fulfill Your Nursing Continuing Education Requirements
In addition to completing and filing the application within the deadline, you must also fulfill nursing continuing education requirements for license renewal in Ohio. To qualify for license renewal as a registered nurse in Ohio, you must complete at least 24 contact hours of nursing continuing education courses. When you applied for your initial license, the board required you to complete two contact hours on the Ohio Nurse Practice Act.
When renewing your license, you must complete at least one hour on the Ohio Nurse Practice Act to qualify for renewal.
Step 3: Complete Your Registered Nurse License Renewal Application
Once you fulfill your nursing continuing education requirements, the process of applying for license renewal in Ohio is pretty simple. You must log into to the Ohio eLicense portal. On the portal, you will find the section to apply for a license renewal. Simply follow the prompts, answer all the questions asked by the eLicense portal, and provide all the requested documents.
After completing the application, you can pay with a credit or debit card. The charges for license renewal can vary. Depending on the time you renew your license within the renewal period, the cost can be considerably lower. It should not be a surprise that applying earlier means paying less to renew your credentials.
Understand Nursing Continuing Education Requirements to Renew Your Registered Nurse License
If this is the first time you are renewing your license since taking the National Council of Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN), you do not need to fulfill nursing continuing education requirements. You can simply apply and leave the section where you must fill in your continuing education data.
For every renewal period afterwards, you must complete at least 24 contact hours through nursing continuing education courses. While fulfilling the continuing education requirements, you must complete at least an hour on the Ohio Nurse Practice Act. For your initial license, you must complete two contact hours of the course, but just an hour in every license renewal period after. Additionally, the board does not request you to send your continuing education documents. However, you are required by law to hold onto proof of your nursing continuing education documentation for at least six years.
If you would like to learn more about Ohio’s continuing education requirements and access course bundles made for Ohio registered nurses, visit www.fastceforless.com/nursing-ce-ohio.
If your application deadline is near, and you need to take nursing continuing education courses, online nursing CEUs like those offered by Fast CE For Less are available at www.fastceforless.com. With convenient and affordable course bundles you can access anywhere, www.fastceforless.com is one of the best solutions to fulfill your continuing education requirements.
