Arkansas offers nurses three flexible options to satisfy continuing education requirements: 15 contact hours of practice-focused CE, a current national certification, or a college nursing course. As a Nurse Licensure Compact state, Arkansas also provides multistate licensing benefits. Here's your complete renewal guide.
Arkansas RN License Renewal Requirements Overview
The Arkansas State Board of Nursing requires all nurses to satisfy continuing education through one of three options every 2-year renewal cycle. The most common option is completing 15 contact hours of appropriately accredited practice-focused CE activities.
Arkansas is a Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) member state, allowing nurses with a multistate license to practice across all compact states without obtaining additional licenses.
What Is Required for Renewal?
For RNs (One of Three Options):
- Option 1: 15 contact hours of appropriately accredited practice-focused CE completed within the 24 months preceding renewal
- Option 2: National certification — hold a current nationally recognized nursing certification or recertification
- Option 3: College course — complete at least one college credit hour in nursing with a grade of C or better during the licensure period
- Renewal fee: $100
For LPNs:
- Same three CE compliance options as RNs
- Renewal fee: $90
For APRNs:
- Same three CE compliance options, plus any additional certification-specific requirements
- Renewal fee: $165 (includes RN renewal fee)
Important Renewal Dates
Arkansas nursing licenses are tied to your birthday:
- Deadline: Last day of your birth month every two years
- Renewal window: Opens 60 days before your license expiration date
- Grace period: There is no grace period and extensions are not permitted. Late renewal incurs a late fee and additional CE hour requirements. Practicing on an expired license is prohibited.
Step-by-Step: How to Renew Your Arkansas Nursing License
- Log in to the Arkansas State Board of Nursing portal. Visit healthy.arkansas.gov to access your renewal application (available 60 days before expiration).
- Select your license type and click Renew. Choose RN, LPN, or APRN.
- Attest to completing one of three CE options. You no longer need to list individual courses — simply affirm that you have met the requirement.
- Do not upload certificates unless you are notified that you have been selected for a random audit.
- Pay the renewal fee. $100 for RN, $90 for LPN, or $165 for APRN by Visa, MasterCard, or Discover.
- Submit before the last day of your birth month. Late submissions result in penalties and additional CE requirements.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Forgetting your birthday-based deadline. Unlike states with a fixed calendar date, Arkansas ties renewal to your birth month. It's easy to lose track if you're not paying attention.
- Not keeping CE records for audits. Even though you only need to attest at renewal, the Board may audit you. Keep copies of all CE certificates or certification documentation for at least 4 years.
- Using non-accredited CE providers. Your 15 contact hours must be from appropriately accredited sources. Verify the provider's accreditation before completing the course.
- Assuming the APRN fee only covers APRN renewal. The $165 APRN fee includes the RN renewal fee. You do not need to pay separately for both.
Tips for a Smooth Renewal
- Consider national certification. If you hold a current national nursing certification, you can use it to satisfy the CE requirement entirely — no contact hours needed.
- Mark your calendar 60 days out. The renewal window opens 60 days before your birth month deadline. Set a reminder so you can submit as soon as the window opens.
- Take advantage of compact state benefits. As an NLC state, your Arkansas multistate license lets you practice in other compact states without extra licensing — great for travel nursing or telehealth.
- Let RenewRN track it for you. RenewRN can send you automatic reminders before your birthday-based deadline, track your CE hours, and keep all your credentials organized in one place.
Choosing Among Arkansas's Three CE Pathways
Per the Board, Arkansas recognizes three pathways to satisfy continuing education at renewal. Each is fully accepted on its own:
- 15 contact hours of appropriately accredited practice-focused CE completed within the 24 months preceding renewal
- National certification — hold a current nationally recognized nursing certification or recertification as an alternative to CE hours
- College course — complete a minimum of one college credit hour in nursing with a grade of C or better during the licensure period
How to think about which path fits:
- Most actively-practicing nurses default to the 15-hour CE pathway because it's the most flexible and doesn't require external coordination
- Nurses maintaining current national certification (ANCC, AANP, or equivalent) can use that pathway and skip CE coursework entirely
- Nurses pursuing additional academic credentials can use the college coursework pathway during their study period — even one credit hour qualifies
The pathway you choose at one renewal doesn't lock you in for future cycles. Each renewal is independent.
How CE Broker Affects Your Arkansas Renewal
Arkansas is one of the regulator-of-record CE Broker states. Per the Board, CE Broker is used for CE tracking and the Board may pull compliance data from your CE Broker transcript directly.
Practical implications:
- Most accredited providers auto-report to CE Broker — your transcript becomes the primary record at renewal
- Free CE from professional associations or one-off trainings sometimes requires manual upload to CE Broker
- For nurses using non-CE pathways (national certification, college coursework), separate documentation outside CE Broker is required
Best practice: log in to your CE Broker account a few weeks before your birth month deadline to confirm every course is showing on your transcript. Anything missing requires manual upload.
The Attestation-Only Renewal Process
Per the Board, Arkansas has streamlined its renewal process — nurses no longer need to list individual courses or upload CE certificates at renewal. The renewal is an attestation:
- Confirm you've completed one of the three pathways
- Don't upload certificates unless notified of audit selection
- Pay the renewal fee
This makes Arkansas one of the simpler renewal experiences — but it shifts the documentation burden to audit response time. Save certificates carefully because you may need to produce them within a defined window if audited.
The Birth-Month Deadline and No-Grace-Period Reality
Per the Board, Arkansas has no grace period and extensions of expiration dates are not permitted. Late renewal incurs both a late fee AND additional CE hour requirements (per the gracePeriod text). This is unusual — most states only impose a late fee, not additional CE.
Practical implications:
- The 60-day renewal window opens 60 days before your birth-month expiration — use it to renew early
- Practicing on an expired license is prohibited regardless of how soon after expiration you submit late renewal
- The combination of late fee + additional CE hours makes missing the deadline meaningfully costlier than in most states
How Arkansas Audits Work
Per the Board, Arkansas may conduct random CE audits. Retain CE certificates for at least 4 years. Documentation auditors verify based on your chosen pathway:
- CE pathway: course certificates for all 15 hours, with provider name, course title, hours, and completion date — typically pulled from CE Broker
- National certification pathway: certification verification letter showing current status from a nationally recognized certifying body
- College course pathway: transcripts or course completion documentation showing the course was completed during the licensure period with a grade of C or better
Failed audits can result in license discipline. Save documentation digitally with clear filenames covering the rolling 4-year retention window.
Late Renewal and Reinstatement in Arkansas
Per the Board, Arkansas has no grace period. Reinstatement is required for any license not renewed by the birth-month deadline:
- $50 late fee per the lateRenewalFee field
- Additional CE hours required for post-expiration renewal (per the gracePeriod text — confirm the current additional-hour amount on the Arkansas Board portal)
- $150 reinstatement fee for RN/LPN per the Board (vs. $100 RN / $90 LPN standard renewal)
- You cannot work as a nurse while your license is expired — even briefly
NLC Compact and Arkansas
Arkansas is a Nurse Licensure Compact member state. If your primary state of residence is Arkansas, you can apply for a multistate license through the Arkansas Board portal and practice in any of the other 41 NLC member states without separate applications.
Two practical notes:
- A multistate Arkansas license still requires the CE pathway completion every renewal cycle — multistate status doesn't change CE obligations
- The birth-month deadline applies to multistate licenses too
Arkansas RN Renewal FAQ
Can I switch CE pathways from one renewal to the next? Yes. Each renewal is independent. The pathway you choose at one renewal doesn't bind you for future cycles.
If I hold national certification, do I still need 15 CE hours? No. Per the Board, current national certification is a complete CE pathway on its own — no contact hours needed if you maintain certification.
What does the $165 APRN fee cover? Per the Board, the APRN fee includes the underlying RN renewal fee. APRNs do not need to pay separately for both.
Can I take all 15 hours online? Yes. Arkansas doesn't require any in-person CE.
I'm a first-time renewer. Am I exempt? Per the Board, first-time licensees are exempt for the first renewal cycle.
Track Your Arkansas License with RenewRN
With a birthday-based deadline and no grace period, it's critical to stay ahead of your Arkansas renewal. RenewRN sends reminders at 90, 60, 30, 7, and 1 day before your license expires, tracks your CE completion, and helps you avoid costly late fees.