Colorado Registered Nurse license renewal and CE requirements
Colorado does not require continuing education for RN license renewal.
RN, APN and RXN licenses expire September 30 (the current cycle expires 9/30/26) and can be renewed through November 30 of that year, which is the sixty-day grace period allowed by C.R.S. 12-20-202(1)(e). Renewal is completed in the DORA online services portal. Colorado does not publish a fixed cycle length: under C.R.S. 12-20-202(1)(b) the director sets the renewal schedule and a license is valid for no less than one year and no more than three.
Summary
Colorado does not require continuing education for RN license renewal. RN, APN and RXN licenses expire September 30 (the current cycle expires 9/30/26) and can be renewed through November 30 of that year, which is the sixty-day grace period allowed by C.R.S. 12-20-202(1)(e). Renewal is completed in the DORA online services portal. Colorado does not publish a fixed cycle length: under C.R.S. 12-20-202(1)(b) the director sets the renewal schedule and a license is valid for no less than one year and no more than three.
Colorado Registered Nurse 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 | Not stated |
|---|---|
| Renewal deadline | Same date for every licensee, 09/30 each cycle |
| Continuing education required | No |
The Colorado State Board of Nursing does not require continuing education hours to renew a registered nurse license; the board's FAQ says so and neither the Nurse Practice Act rules nor the board's renewal pages set an hour count. The only continuing education mandate in 3 CCR 716-1 is Rule 1.23, which requires two hours of substance use prevention training per renewal period, and it applies to advanced practice registered nurses with prescriptive authority and certified midwives with prescriptive authority, not to RN or LPN renewal. Continuing education appears elsewhere in the rules only as a way to demonstrate competency when reactivating a license that has been inactive or expired for two or more years, where the program director may accept 20 contact hours for each two years without an active license.
Required CE topics for Colorado registered nurses
The Colorado State Board of Nursing (Department of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations) pages and rules we read do not mandate specific subject areas for this license type. Hours may be in any approved subject.
Documentation and audit
| Proof submitted at renewal | Not stated |
|---|---|
| Keep records for | Not stated |
| Board audits compliance | Not stated |
Common questions
- How many CE hours does a Colorado RN need to renew?
- Colorado does not require continuing education for RN license renewal. The Colorado State Board of Nursing does not require continuing education hours to renew a registered nurse license; the board's FAQ says so and neither the Nurse Practice Act rules nor the board's renewal pages set an hour count. The only continuing education mandate in 3 CCR 716-1 is Rule 1.23, which requires two hours of substance use prevention training per renewal period, and it applies to advanced practice registered nurses with prescriptive authority and certified midwives with prescriptive authority, not to RN or LPN renewal. Continuing education appears elsewhere in the rules only as a way to demonstrate competency when reactivating a license that has been inactive or expired for two or more years, where the program director may accept 20 contact hours for each two years without an active license.
- How often does a Colorado RN license need to be renewed?
- RN, APN and RXN licenses expire September 30 (the current cycle expires 9/30/26) and can be renewed through November 30 of that year, which is the sixty-day grace period allowed by C.R.S. 12-20-202(1)(e). Renewal is completed in the DORA online services portal. Colorado does not publish a fixed cycle length: under C.R.S. 12-20-202(1)(b) the director sets the renewal schedule and a license is valid for no less than one year and no more than three.
Sources
Last verified September 7, 2026. Every value above was read from one of these.
- Colorado Nursing Homepage, Division of Professions and OccupationsState board page, accessed September 7, 2026
- Colorado Nursing FAQ, Division of Professions and OccupationsState board page, accessed September 7, 2026
- 3 CCR 716-1 Nursing Rules and Regulations, official Code of Colorado Regulations PDF effective 03/17/2026Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 7, 2026
- C.R.S. Title 12, section 12-20-202 Licenses, certifications, and registrations: renewal, reinstatement, feesStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 7, 2026
The expiration dates and grace windows were read on the board's own homepage, and the absence of a continuing education requirement was confirmed on the board FAQ and by reading the full official 3 CCR 716-1 rules PDF from the Secretary of State: the only CE mandate there (Rule 1.23, two hours of substance use prevention training) is limited to advanced practice nurses and certified midwives with prescriptive authority. cycle_months is deliberately null rather than assumed: neither the board pages nor the rules state a cycle length, and C.R.S. 12-20-202(1)(b) leaves the schedule to the DORA director within a one to three year range, so no number could be read from a source. The Secretary of State rule server serves this chapter only through a generated-PDF endpoint that rejects ordinary automated requests, so it was fetched and read in a browser. Documentation and audit fields are null because there is no CE requirement to document.
Provided for general reference. Requirements change through legislative sessions and rulemaking, so confirm with the Colorado State Board of Nursing (Department of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations) before relying on them for a renewal. Spot something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.