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California Nursing CE Courses

Last updated Jun 30, 2026

California Nursing Continuing Education Requirements

RN Requirements

  • 30 hours of continuing education every 2 years
  • Implicit Bias (one-time for newer licensees): one-time
  • Courses must be from a CE provider recognized by the Board (provider number appears on your certificate).
  • Retain course certificates for at least four years in case of audit.

LPN Requirements

  • 30 hours of CE within the two years immediately preceding the date of renewal of continuing education each renewal period
  • RN/LVN: Generally every 2 years.
  • Implicit Bias requirement; NP with >25% patients age 65+ must complete 6 of the 30 hrs in gerontology/dementia/older-patient care

APRN Requirements

  • 30 hours of continuing education every 2 years
  • 6 of those hours must be pharmacology
  • Pharmacology (furnishing): 6 contact hours

Show me the course list for my licence

A Filipina woman nurse and a male nurse in blue scrubs preparing supplies in a hospital supply room

California RN required courses

32 contact hours in this list, included with your yearly pass. Always confirm with your board before you renew.

A diverse team of nurses and a patient participate in a respectful bedside discussion while a qualified interpreter supports communication.2 contact hours
Cultural Competency

Build practical skills to recognize and interrupt implicit bias in clinical decisions, communication, staffing, and systems of care.

Updated Sep 19, 2026
$10.00($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course

Elective courses

Pick from these to finish your hours. Every one is included with the yearly pass.

Registered nurse assessing an adult with heart failure in a hospital room, listening to lung sounds while reviewing cardiac rhythm, oxygen saturation, blood pressure, and fluid-balance findings.5 contact hours
Clinical Practice

Build practical nursing skills to assess, stabilize, educate, and coordinate care for adults with acute or chronic heart failure across care settings.

Updated Sep 19, 2026
$25.00($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course
An intensive care nurse and respiratory therapist assess an intubated adult patient, reviewing airway security, ventilator waveforms, oxygenation, and bedside safety equipment.6 contact hours
Clinical Practice

Build practical nursing skills to recognize acute respiratory failure, support noninvasive and invasive ventilation, prevent complications, and promote safe liberation.

Updated Sep 19, 2026
$29.99($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course
A registered nurse sits at eye level with an adult patient in a private behavioral health room, using an open posture during a calm, trauma-informed assessment.2 contact hours
Behavioral Health

Build nursing competence in recognizing, assessing, triaging, and supporting evidence-based treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder across care settings.

Updated Sep 19, 2026
$10.00($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course
A nurse's gloved hands disinfecting a bedside surface in a hospital room.4 contact hours
Infection Control

The role of infection control is to reduce and prevent the risk for hospital-acquired infections. To practice effective infection control practices, the healthcare professional must be knowledgeable of methods to prevent infection transmission. This training provides an overview on infection control and barrier precautions and covers the most current and scientifically accepted practices in infection control as recommended by the Center for Disease Control (CDC).

Updated Mar 28, 2026
PA
WA
$19.00($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course
Registered nurse assessing an acutely ill adult in a critical care room while reviewing arterial pressure, cardiac rhythm, oxygen saturation, intravenous therapy, and peripheral perfusion.5 contact hours
Clinical Practice

Build rapid assessment and nursing management skills for distributive, cardiogenic, hypovolemic, and obstructive shock in adults and children.

Updated Sep 19, 2026
$25.00($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course
A registered nurse and a licensed practical nurse speaking with an adult patient and chosen support person in an accessible clinic room, with a qualified interpreter joining by video and culturally inclusive educational materials visible.3 contact hours
Cultural Competency

Build practical skills to deliver respectful, equitable, legally compliant nursing care across cultural, linguistic, religious, disability, military, age, racial, and identity differences.

Updated Sep 19, 2026
$15.00($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course
A registered nurse speaks privately with an older adult in a quiet examination room, seated at eye level while completing a respectful safety assessment.2 contact hours
Mandatory Reporting

Build skill in recognizing, assessing, documenting, reporting, and responding to suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation of older adults.

Updated Sep 19, 2026
$10.00($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course
Registered nurse assessing an adult patient with kidney failure by checking blood pressure and examining a mature forearm arteriovenous fistula in a bright outpatient clinical setting.3 contact hours
Clinical Practice

Current nursing care for adults with kidney failure, including assessment, urgent complications, kidney replacement therapy, and person-centered care planning.

Updated Sep 19, 2026
$15.00($5 per contact hour) or included with All-AccessView course
Browse every course for this state

California nursing CE questions

Straight from the California board

What the board publishes
Verified Sep 17, 2026
Renewal period
RN/LVN: Generally every 2 years.
RN requirement
30/2 yrs
LPN / LVN requirement
30/2 yrs
Mandatory topics
Implicit Bias requirement; NP with >25% patients age 65+ must complete 6 of the 30 hrs in gerontology/dementia/older-patient care
Required courses
RN: 30 contact hours every 2 years, plus 1 hour implicit-bias training within the first 2 years of licensure. (California Board of Registered Nursing) LPN/LVN: Do not automatically copy the RN wording; LVN requirements should be sourced from the BVNPT. Source: California Board of Registered Nursing / BVNPT.
Good to know
RN: 30 contact hours of CE are required for active renewal through a Board-recognized provider. There is a first-two-years exemption from the general CE requirement, but the 1-hour implicit-bias requirement still applies. (California Board of Registered Nursing) LPN/LVN: Verify against the California Board of Vocational Nursing & Psychiatric Technicians for the LVN-specific renewal rules before final publication. Source: California Board of Registered Nursing for RN requirements.
California Board of Registered Nursing
APRN, NP, CRNA and CNM requirements
Verified Sep 15, 2026
Advanced practice CE
30 hours through RN renewal
Renewal period
2 years
Pharmacology
6 gerontology hours for qualifying NPs
Who it applies to
NPs with Schedule II furnishing privileges
Controlled substances / opioids
Yes, for Schedule II authority
Pain and opioid content
Yes — addiction risks associated with Schedule II drugs
Prescriptive authority
Yes
Who approves the course
California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN)
Accepted providers
BRN-approved CEPs; qualifying state/regional/national professional associations; ANCC-approved regional accrediting bodies for out-of-state courses

Placeholder citation: 16 CCR §1451 et seq. (admin-managed field). Reviewed Jun 30, 2026. User self-report at renewal; retain certificates 4 years

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Ask about requirements, a course, pricing or your license. Answers come from our own course list and state notes.

Ask about your license or a course

Answers come from Fast CE For Less's own course list and our notes on state requirements. Always check your board's own rules before you count hours.