Minnesota Pharmacist license renewal and CE requirements
Minnesota pharmacists must complete 30 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy.
A pharmacist license expires on March 1 every year. The renewal application and fee are due on or before February 1, and a renewal application received after March 1 carries a late filing fee equal to 50 percent of the renewal fee. Continuing education is counted over a separate two year period rather than over the one year licence term.
Summary
Minnesota pharmacists must complete 30 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy. A pharmacist license expires on March 1 every year. The renewal application and fee are due on or before February 1, and a renewal application received after March 1 carries a late filing fee equal to 50 percent of the renewal fee. Continuing education is counted over a separate two year period rather than over the one year licence term. Minnesota also mandates specific subjects. Continuing education specified by the board to maintain pharmacist prescribing authority: required (pharmacists who prescribe self-administered hormonal contraceptives, nicotine replacement medications, opiate antagonists, or drugs for preventing the acquisition of HIV); the board does not state how often.
Minnesota Pharmacist 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 | Annual (12 months) |
|---|---|
| Renewal deadline | Same date for every licensee, 03/01 each cycle |
| Continuing education required | Yes |
| Hours per cycle | 30 contact hoursCounted over a two-year window, separate from the renewal cycle. |
| Self-study or online cap | No cap stated |
| Carryover to next cycle | Not stated |
| First renewal exempt | Not stated |
| Other accepted activities | Participation in an instructional program for pharmacist preceptors developed or approved by the board; Programs not previously submitted to the board, if the pharmacist files a continuing education program approval form within 90 days after completing the program; Correspondence study courses, journal readings, programmed learning courses, study groups and other formats accepted by educators as legitimate adult educational activities, when board approved or offered by an approved provider |
Minnesota Rules part 6800.1500, subpart 2 requires at least 30 hours of approved continuing education during the previous two year period before an annual renewal is issued, and evidence is submitted every two years, so the licence renews annually while the continuing education is counted over 24 months. The rule states that participation is reported by September 30 of each even-numbered year. The board counts hours, not CEUs, and states no live minimum, no home study cap, no carryover rule and no subject requirement. The board may grant an extension of up to one year on application, which does not relieve the pharmacist of the requirement for any other two year period. Pharmacists exempted from renewal fees and renewal applications under Minnesota Statutes section 326.56, subdivision 2 are exempt from continuing education for the same period, a pharmacist on inactive status does not have to meet continuing education requirements, and an emeritus pharmacist is exempt (part 6800.1210). Reactivating an inactive licence requires 15 hours for each year of inactive status up to a maximum of 75 hours, or proof of compliance with another state's requirements if the pharmacist held an active licence there, plus the jurisprudence examination after five years inactive. Pharmacy technicians are a separate registration requiring 20 hours per two year reporting period ending July 31 of odd-numbered years, and technicians who administer vaccinations need two of those hours in immunization education; neither total is included here.
Required CE topics for Minnesota pharmacists
State-specific subject mandates. Where a mandate applies only to some licensees, the scope is listed.
| Topic | Hours | Frequency | Applies to | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continuing education specified by the board to maintain pharmacist prescribing authorityEach of these prescribing authorities requires the pharmacist first to complete a training program from a college of pharmacy, an ACPE accredited provider, or a board approved program, and then states that to maintain the authority the pharmacist shall complete continuing education requirements as specified by the board. The statute sets no hour count, and the board's own website could not be read because mn.gov blocks automated clients, so the number of hours the board specifies is not recorded. No canonical topic key covers this, so the key prescriptive_authority is used. | Not stated | Frequency not stated | Pharmacists who prescribe self-administered hormonal contraceptives, nicotine replacement medications, opiate antagonists, or drugs for preventing the acquisition of HIV | Minn. Stat. 151.37, subdivisions 14, 15, 16 and 17 |
Documentation and audit
| Proof submitted at renewal | Yes |
|---|---|
| Keep records for | Not stated |
| Board audits compliance | Not stated |
| Approved providers | Continuing education must be approved by the board or made available by an approved provider. A provider is approved either by meeting the board's own criteria under part 6800.1500, subpart 3, or by being recognized by the board as approved by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE). Approved providers keep records of program content, evaluation and attendance for at least three years and give participants a certificate of completion. A pharmacist may seek credit for an unapproved program by filing a board form within 90 days of completing it. A provider may advertise board approval only in the form the rule prescribes. |
Common questions
- How many CE hours does a Minnesota RPh/PharmD need to renew?
- Minnesota pharmacists must complete 30 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy. Minnesota Rules part 6800.1500, subpart 2 requires at least 30 hours of approved continuing education during the previous two year period before an annual renewal is issued, and evidence is submitted every two years, so the licence renews annually while the continuing education is counted over 24 months. The rule states that participation is reported by September 30 of each even-numbered year. The board counts hours, not CEUs, and states no live minimum, no home study cap, no carryover rule and no subject requirement. The board may grant an extension of up to one year on application, which does not relieve the pharmacist of the requirement for any other two year period. Pharmacists exempted from renewal fees and renewal applications under Minnesota Statutes section 326.56, subdivision 2 are exempt from continuing education for the same period, a pharmacist on inactive status does not have to meet continuing education requirements, and an emeritus pharmacist is exempt (part 6800.1210). Reactivating an inactive licence requires 15 hours for each year of inactive status up to a maximum of 75 hours, or proof of compliance with another state's requirements if the pharmacist held an active licence there, plus the jurisprudence examination after five years inactive. Pharmacy technicians are a separate registration requiring 20 hours per two year reporting period ending July 31 of odd-numbered years, and technicians who administer vaccinations need two of those hours in immunization education; neither total is included here.
- How often does a Minnesota RPh/PharmD license need to be renewed?
- Pharmacist licenses in Minnesota renew every year. A pharmacist license expires on March 1 every year. The renewal application and fee are due on or before February 1, and a renewal application received after March 1 carries a late filing fee equal to 50 percent of the renewal fee. Continuing education is counted over a separate two year period rather than over the one year licence term.
- What specific CE topics are required for Minnesota pharmacists?
- Continuing education specified by the board to maintain pharmacist prescribing authority: required (pharmacists who prescribe self-administered hormonal contraceptives, nicotine replacement medications, opiate antagonists, or drugs for preventing the acquisition of HIV); the board does not state how often. Citations: continuing education specified by the board to maintain pharmacist prescribing authority (Minn. Stat. 151.37, subdivisions 14, 15, 16 and 17).
- Do Minnesota pharmacists have to submit CE certificates at renewal?
- Proof of completion must be submitted with the renewal. Continuing education must be approved by the board or made available by an approved provider. A provider is approved either by meeting the board's own criteria under part 6800.1500, subpart 3, or by being recognized by the board as approved by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE). Approved providers keep records of program content, evaluation and attendance for at least three years and give participants a certificate of completion. A pharmacist may seek credit for an unapproved program by filing a board form within 90 days of completing it. A provider may advertise board approval only in the form the rule prescribes.
Sources
Last verified September 11, 2026. Every value above was read from one of these.
- Minnesota Rules part 6800.1500, Continuing Education (Office of the Revisor of Statutes)Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 11, 2026
- Minnesota Rules part 6800.1150, Annual Renewal, Fees, and PostingStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 11, 2026
- Minnesota Rules chapter 6800, Board of Pharmacy, full chapter text (inactive status, emeritus licence, reactivation hours)Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 11, 2026
- Minn. Stat. 151.13, Renewal Fee; Continuing EducationStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 11, 2026
- Minn. Stat. 151.37, Legend drugs, pharmacist prescribing authorities and their training requirementsStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 11, 2026
- Minn. Stat. 151.01, Definitions, practice of pharmacy and vaccine administrationStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 11, 2026
- Minn. Stat. 214.12, Continuing Education, general limits on licensing board requirementsStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 11, 2026
The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy website at mn.gov is behind a Radware bot wall that returns a captcha page to every automated client, so no board page could be read and renewal_url is left null. Both core values come instead from the state's official code host, www.revisor.mn.gov: Minnesota Rules part 6800.1150 states that a pharmacist license expires on March 1 each year and is renewed by filing on or before February 1, and part 6800.1500, subpart 2 requires at least 30 hours of approved continuing education during the previous two year period, reported every two years. That mismatch between a one year licence term and a two year continuing education period is recorded in continuing_education.cycle_months. The rule's September 30 even-numbered year reporting date and its $105 renewal fee date from earlier amendments (the fee is now set by Minn. Stat. 151.065), and the board's current reporting instructions could not be checked against the board site, so a licensee should confirm the reporting date with the board. Minn. Stat. 151.13 leaves the hour count to the board's rules. No statewide subject mandate for pharmacists was found: Minn. Stat. 214.12 sets only an outer limit on board continuing education requirements and its named topics reach the medical and nursing boards, and the two hour immunization requirement in Minn. Stat. 151.01, subdivision 27, clause (6) applies to pharmacy technicians who administer vaccines, not to pharmacists. Record retention, audit practice, carryover and any first renewal exemption are not stated in the rule.
Provided for general reference. Requirements change through legislative sessions and rulemaking, so confirm with the Minnesota Board of Pharmacy before relying on them for a renewal. Spot something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.