To regain your certification in Virginia, you must complete the state requirements for recertification prior to your reentry expiration date and complete the state approved testing process. These requirements include:
Prohibition on Practice
Providers whose Virginia certification has lapsed are considered to be in re-entry status which is a two-year period in which a Virginia provider is not certified and shall not practice at the lapsed level of certification, but may complete all remaining CE requirements and test to regain their certification.
Earning Required Continuing Education Hours
CE requirements can be found on the OEMS website at: 2025 Virginia CE Requirements Model- All CE hours are available online through any of the approved online vendors. Information on taking online courses in Virginia can be found here: CE Resources.
- Courses are offered in a number of locations around your area and through a number of sources. The best way to locate courses would be through our website: Virginia Online CE Course Search. All announced courses, which are open, are listed on our website, usually > 30 days before the start date. You should contact the phone number listed to discuss specifics about the course including days/nights of class and to obtain a syllabus.
- You may also want to contact the Regional EMS Council in your area. You can locate your Regional Council by going to their website and clicking on your area: vaems.org. They may know of courses planned in your area that have yet to be announced through our Office.
- Once you have completed your required continuing education hours and submitted them to our Office, an Eligibility Letter to test will post to your Portal. Follow the enclosed Instructions on how to set up your Psychomotor and Cognitive exams.
Virginia Psychomotor Competency Verification
- Candidates in reentry will be required to have their psychomotor skills verified to ensure their ability to provide safe and effective performance of psychomotor skills. You will need to download and complete form TR-21 – Application for BLS Psychomotor Competency Verification.
- Candidates should bring this completed form to their certified Education Coordinator who will be conducting their psychomotor competency verification.
- For more information on this process click here: BLS Psychomotor Skill Verification Process
National Registry Certification Testing Process
- Once you complete all required CE hours and gain eligibility, you will be required to take and successfully pass the National Registry cognitive and Virginia psychomotor exam before your reentry eligibility date passes.
- Please use the following instructions to complete your National Registry application:
- Go to www.nremt.org. Then
- Role should be ‘Candidate‘
- Click on ‘Create Certification Application’
- “The level of certification you are choosing” will be ‘Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) then click NEXT
- “Can this information be used to validate your identity when entering the exam?”, verify the information listed as accurate, check the box beside ‘The information above is correct and the name displayed matches my government-issued photo identification‘ and then click NEXT
- Criminal Conviction History – Select any that are applicable or None of the above apply, then click NEXT
- On the next page read the criminal history statement and click on AGREE & SUBMIT
- ‘When does your CPR expire? – Enter the month, day and year of your CPR expiration and then click NEXT
- ‘Are you currently enrolled in or have completed a full initial EMT program in the past two years?’, click ‘YES’ (Critical that you answer YES to this question)
- Your course completion date will be ‘the date you gained certification in Virginia’ then click NEXT
- ‘In which state is the EMT program?’ use pull-down menu and select ‘Virginia’
- ‘Which of these is your EMT program?’ use the pull-down menu and select ‘VA – 76000 – Virginia Office of EMS’ and select NEXT
- You will select the examination delivery method on Pearson VUE’s website once you receive your authorization to test (ATT) letter. Click NEXT
- ‘‘Please review and verify the information below’ – Please review that all information is correct. If not you can edit any incorrect information. Read the ‘Attestation Statement’ and check the box beside ‘I agree to abide by these terms.’ and click SUBMIT.
- To make payment, click on ‘View All Certification Applications’
- Click on the blue hyperlink for ‘Application Payment’
- Notify Debbie Akers (Deborah.T.Akers@vdh.virginia.gov) when the application is complete so I can approve your application and verify your psychomotor competency.
Inability to Use National Registry Reciprocity
Last Updated: July 8, 2024