Arkansas Dental Hygienist license renewal and CE requirements
Arkansas dental hygienists must complete 40 CEUs, which is 40 contact hours, every two years to renew their license with the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners.
Arkansas dental hygiene licenses renew every two years. On January 1 of even-numbered years every dental hygienist must renew with the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners on the board's form and pay the renewal fee; the board mails the form during December of odd-numbered years and not receiving it does not excuse a late renewal. Failing to renew within thirty days after January 1 of an even-numbered year forfeits the license. Continuing education for the two calendar year reporting period that just ended must be reported at the same time.
Summary
Arkansas dental hygienists must complete 40 CEUs, which is 40 contact hours, every two years to renew their license with the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners. Arkansas dental hygiene licenses renew every two years. On January 1 of even-numbered years every dental hygienist must renew with the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners on the board's form and pay the renewal fee; the board mails the form during December of odd-numbered years and not receiving it does not excuse a late renewal. Failing to renew within thirty days after January 1 of an even-numbered year forfeits the license. Continuing education for the two calendar year reporting period that just ended must be reported at the same time. Arkansas also mandates specific subjects. Infection control: 1 CEU every renewal cycle. Healthcare provider level cardiopulmonary resuscitation: required every renewal cycle. Hours do not carry over between cycles.
Arkansas Dental Hygienist renewal and continuing education rules
"Not stated" means the board's pages and rules we read do not address it. We do not fill in typical values.
| Renewal cycle | Two-year (24 months) |
|---|---|
| Renewal deadline | Same date for every licensee, 01/01 each cycleFirst renewal is prorated. |
| Continuing education required | Yes |
| Hours per cycle | 40 CEUs |
| Self-study or online cap | No cap stated |
| Carryover to next cycle | No |
| First renewal exempt | No |
| Other accepted activities | Presenting a continuing education course, six CEUs for each hour of the original presentation and one CEU for each hour of a repeat presentation; Publishing a paper, six CEUs for the first publication only; Full-time or part-time teaching in a CODA accredited dental, dental hygiene or dental assisting program, one CEU per hour of didactic classroom teaching; Clinical instruction or supervision in a CODA accredited program, one CEU for every eight hours; Supervising students on off-campus clinical rotations, one CEU for every eight hours; Full-time enrollment in a dental hygiene related graduate program, internship or residency satisfies the requirement for that reporting period if the board is notified; Home study courses that include a post-test and a certificate of completion |
17 CAR 115-1404(c) sets forty CEUs for every two year reporting period for Arkansas licensed dental hygienists. That figure is stated in its own subsection alongside the fifty CEUs that subsection (b) sets for dentists, and was read as the hygienist figure. The board's unit is the continuing education unit, defined in 17 CAR 115-1402 as a minimum of fifty minutes, so forty CEUs is forty contact hours of at least fifty minutes each; a one-half contact hour equals a minimum of twenty-five minutes. A reporting period is two calendar years and each one starts on an even-numbered year. CEUs earned beyond the minimum are not carried forward. Home study courses are accepted with no stated cap so long as they include a post-test and a certificate of completion, which is why max_self_study_or_online is null. Only courses directly related to the provision of services and patient care count; money management, investments, time with professional or financial consultants and professional organizational business meetings do not. The board does not preapprove courses and CEUs are determined by the course sponsor. New licensees start on January 1 of the calendar year following licensure and the requirement is prorated if that is not the start of a reporting period. A hygienist's local anesthesia permit is governed separately by 17 CAR 115-16 and a collaborative care permit by 17 CAR 115-19; nothing those subparts require is folded into this forty CEU total.
Required CE topics for Arkansas dental hygienists
State-specific subject mandates. Where a mandate applies only to some licensees, the scope is listed.
| Topic | Hours | Frequency | Applies to | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Infection controlAt least one CE hour in each two year reporting period. The rule states this once for all licensees, so the same one hour applies to dental hygienists and dentists; this is one of the few places where Arkansas genuinely sets a single figure for both credentials. | 1 CEU | Every renewal | All licensees | 17 CAR 115-1405(e) |
| Healthcare provider level cardiopulmonary resuscitationEach licensed dentist, dental hygienist and registered dental assistant must take a healthcare provider level CPR course and submit a photocopy of the card or certificate with the renewal form. The rule does not say the CPR hours count toward the CEU total, so no hour value is recorded. The board's hygienist licensure page adds that the board does not accept online CPR. | Not stated | Every renewal | All licensees | 17 CAR 115-1409 |
Documentation and audit
| Proof submitted at renewal | No, attestation only |
|---|---|
| Keep records for | 3 years |
| Board audits compliance | Yes |
| Approved providers | The Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners does not preapprove courses. CEU values are determined by the course sponsor, and the licensee is responsible for choosing courses that are directly related to the provision of services and patient care. |
Common questions
- How many CE hours does a Arkansas RDH need to renew?
- Arkansas dental hygienists must complete 40 CEUs, which is 40 contact hours, every two years to renew their license with the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners. 17 CAR 115-1404(c) sets forty CEUs for every two year reporting period for Arkansas licensed dental hygienists. That figure is stated in its own subsection alongside the fifty CEUs that subsection (b) sets for dentists, and was read as the hygienist figure. The board's unit is the continuing education unit, defined in 17 CAR 115-1402 as a minimum of fifty minutes, so forty CEUs is forty contact hours of at least fifty minutes each; a one-half contact hour equals a minimum of twenty-five minutes. A reporting period is two calendar years and each one starts on an even-numbered year. CEUs earned beyond the minimum are not carried forward. Home study courses are accepted with no stated cap so long as they include a post-test and a certificate of completion, which is why max_self_study_or_online is null. Only courses directly related to the provision of services and patient care count; money management, investments, time with professional or financial consultants and professional organizational business meetings do not. The board does not preapprove courses and CEUs are determined by the course sponsor. New licensees start on January 1 of the calendar year following licensure and the requirement is prorated if that is not the start of a reporting period. A hygienist's local anesthesia permit is governed separately by 17 CAR 115-16 and a collaborative care permit by 17 CAR 115-19; nothing those subparts require is folded into this forty CEU total.
- How often does a Arkansas RDH license need to be renewed?
- Dental Hygienist licenses in Arkansas renew every two years. Arkansas dental hygiene licenses renew every two years. On January 1 of even-numbered years every dental hygienist must renew with the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners on the board's form and pay the renewal fee; the board mails the form during December of odd-numbered years and not receiving it does not excuse a late renewal. Failing to renew within thirty days after January 1 of an even-numbered year forfeits the license. Continuing education for the two calendar year reporting period that just ended must be reported at the same time.
- What specific CE topics are required for Arkansas dental hygienists?
- Infection control: 1 CEU every renewal cycle. Healthcare provider level cardiopulmonary resuscitation: required every renewal cycle. Citations: infection control (17 CAR 115-1405(e)) and healthcare provider level cardiopulmonary resuscitation (17 CAR 115-1409).
- Do Arkansas dental hygienists have to submit CE certificates at renewal?
- Licensees attest to completion at renewal rather than submitting certificates, the board audits a sample of renewals and asks for documentation, and records must be kept for 3 years. The Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners does not preapprove courses. CEU values are determined by the course sponsor, and the licensee is responsible for choosing courses that are directly related to the provision of services and patient care.
- Is the first Arkansas RDH renewal exempt from CE?
- No. Arkansas applies the continuing education requirement to the first renewal as well.
Sources
Last verified September 8, 2026. Every value above was read from one of these.
- Code of Arkansas Rules, 17 CAR Part 115 Subpart 14, Minimum Continuing Education for Dentists and Dental Hygienists (sections 115-1401 to 115-1409)Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
- Hygienists Licensure Information, Arkansas State Board of Dental ExaminersState board page, accessed September 8, 2026
- Arkansas Code 17-82-310, Annual renewal, Procedure (2025)Third-party summary, accessed September 8, 2026
- Arkansas Code 17-82-311, Renewal, Penalties for noncompliance (2025)Third-party summary, accessed September 8, 2026
Arkansas runs one Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners for both credentials and 17 CAR 115-1404 gives each its own subsection, dentists fifty CEUs and dental hygienists forty. The forty was read from subsection (c) and is not a fraction of the dentist figure. Every other continuing education term in Subpart 14, including the one hour of infection control, the CPR condition, the three year retention and the end of period audit, is written once for all licensees and so applies identically to both credentials; that is stated here rather than assumed. The Code of Arkansas Rules at codeofarrules.arkansas.gov is the official codification under Arkansas Code 25-15-218 and served the rule text as HTML. The board's own pages on healthy.arkansas.gov return HTTP 403 to automated clients but rendered in a browser; they carry no CE hour figures, and the board's rules and FAQ documents there are PDFs that were not fetched. The renewal date of January 1 of even-numbered years comes from Arkansas Code 17-82-310 and 17-82-311 read on Justia, since Arkansas does not publish its statutes as free HTML on a state host. topic key cpr_bls is not on the canonical list; it is used because no canonical key covers CPR.
Provided for general reference. Requirements change through legislative sessions and rulemaking, so confirm with the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners before relying on them for a renewal. Spot something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.