Florida is one of the strictest states in the country when it comes to mandatory continuing education topics, and the rules trip up nurses who assume "24 hours every two years" tells the whole story. It does not. Each Florida RN and LPN renewal is a stack of topic-specific requirements on overlapping frequency cycles — some every renewal, some every other, some every third biennium, and one that is a one-time hurdle before your very first renewal. Miss any one of them and the Florida Board of Nursing will not process your renewal, regardless of how many general hours you completed. Here is the full 2026 picture, including how CE Broker tracks it for you.
The Top Line: 24 Hours Every Two Years
Both RNs and LPNs renew in Florida on a biennial cycle, and the headline requirement is 24 contact hours of continuing education per biennium. RN renewal months are split: licenses ending in even numbers expire April 30 of even years, odd-numbered licenses expire April 30 of odd years (LPN cycles are similar but on a different month). Of those 24 hours, 16 can be general nursing coursework — the rest are reserved for the specific topics below. Domestic Violence is the one exception: when it is required, it is in addition to the 24 hours, not part of them.
Prevention of Medical Errors — 2 Hours, Every Renewal
Medical Errors is the single most consistent Florida requirement. Two contact hours, every biennium, every renewal, no exceptions, no rotating cycle. The course must be from a Florida Board of Nursing-approved provider — generic patient-safety CE from a non-Florida vendor will not satisfy the requirement, even if the topic overlaps. The board specifies that the course should cover root-cause analysis, error reduction, patient safety, and the specifics of safety standards in Florida facilities. Most major CE vendors (NurseCE, Elite Learning, RN.org, Wild Iris) carry a board-approved version for $10 to $25.
Florida Laws and Rules — 2 Hours, Every Renewal
Two hours covering Chapter 464 of the Florida Statutes (the Nurse Practice Act), Rule 64B9 of the Florida Administrative Code, and the disciplinary framework that the Florida Board of Nursing actually enforces. This too must come from a board-approved provider. It is required every renewal — there is no rotation or exemption.
Human Trafficking — 2 Hours, Every Renewal
Florida added Human Trafficking education as a mandatory CE topic for nurses in 2019, and it is now part of every renewal. Two contact hours covering identification, reporting protocols, and trauma-informed response. Notably, the Human Trafficking course is the only required topic that does not have to come from a Florida Board-approved provider — any qualified CE source counts, as long as it meets the content requirements. This is the cheapest of the mandatory topics; many free courses meet the requirement.
Recognizing Impairment in the Workplace — 2 Hours, Every Other Renewal
This one catches nurses because it rotates. Two hours of board-approved CE covering signs of impairment in colleagues, the Intervention Project for Nurses (IPN), and reporting obligations under Florida law. It is required every other renewal — meaning once every four years, not every two. Track which biennium you completed it in carefully; CE Broker handles this automatically, but if you switch tracking systems mid-career, the cycle is easy to lose.
Domestic Violence — 2 Hours, Every Third Biennium
Domestic Violence is the most-missed Florida CE requirement because of two unusual rules. First, the cycle is every third biennium — so once every six years. Second, when it is required, the two hours are in addition to the 24-hour total, not part of it. That means the biennium where Domestic Violence comes due is a 26-hour biennium, not a 24-hour one. The course must come from a Florida Board-approved provider. Nurses who only spot-check their CE compliance every two years frequently complete 24 hours, mark themselves done, and discover at submission time that this was their Domestic Violence year.
HIV/AIDS — 1 Hour, One-Time Before First Renewal
HIV/AIDS is a one-time-only requirement: one contact hour, completed before your first renewal as a Florida-licensed nurse. It is not required again after that initial cycle. New licensees frequently complete it as part of an exam-prep package or new-graduate CE bundle and never think about it again — which is correct, because it is genuinely once-and-done.
The First-Biennium Exemption for New Graduates
Nurses who obtained their Florida RN or LPN license by examination are exempt from the 16 general hours for their first renewal. They still must complete Medical Errors (2), Florida Laws and Rules (2), Recognizing Impairment (2), Human Trafficking (2), and the one-time HIV/AIDS hour. So the first renewal totals 9 hours for new grads versus 24 for everyone else. Endorsement nurses (those who transferred a license from another state) do not qualify for this exemption — full 24 hours apply from the first Florida renewal forward.
CE Broker: The Mandatory Tracking System
Florida is one of the few states that requires nurses to use a single, named CE tracking platform: CE Broker. Every Florida-approved CE provider reports completed courses directly to CE Broker within 90 days, and the Florida Board of Nursing audits compliance through the platform. CE Broker offers a free Basic account that lets you view your transcript and report status; the paid Professional tier ($29/year) adds the ability to upload your own completion certificates for courses that did not auto-report, and it pre-fills the renewal application by sending compliance status directly to the MQA portal.
The single most important workflow tip: log into CE Broker about 60 days before your renewal date. The dashboard shows a green checkmark or red X next to each required topic for your current cycle, including the rotating ones (Recognizing Impairment, Domestic Violence). If there is a red X, you have time to take a course; if you wait until the renewal application itself, you will not.
How Renewal Actually Submits Through MQA
Florida nursing renewal happens through the Department of Health's MQA Online Services Portal, not through CE Broker directly. CE Broker reports your compliance to MQA; you renew on MQA. The renewal fee is approximately $80 for active status. If CE Broker shows you as compliant, MQA accepts the renewal in minutes. If CE Broker shows a gap, MQA blocks the renewal until the gap closes — even if you paid the renewal fee. Pay attention to the order: complete CE first, verify in CE Broker, then renew on MQA.
Sources: Florida Board of Nursing — Continuing Education; Florida Board of Nursing — Renewals; CE Broker; Florida Department of Health — MQA Online Services; National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN).
Florida CE compliance is not difficult; it is detail-sensitive. The 24-hour topline number hides six topic-specific tracks running on three different cycles, plus a one-time hurdle and a periodic add-on. The good news is that CE Broker does the bookkeeping for you if you log in early enough to read what it tells you. If you are renewing in 2026, the work to do this week is simple — open CE Broker, look at your topic checklist for this biennium, and fill the gaps before the application opens. For the full state-by-state breakdown of nursing license requirements and renewal cycles, see our Florida nursing license guide.
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