How to renew your California LVN license
California LVN licenses renew every two years, expiring the last day of your issue month. Complete 30 contact hours of approved CE, renew through BreEZe, and pay before the expiration date — after it, the BVNPT adds a delinquency penalty of 50% of the renewal fee and you may not work until the renewal posts.
- Cycle
- 2 years · expires last day of the issue month
- CE hours
- 30 contact hours per cycle, approved provider
- Late
- Delinquency penalty of 50% of the renewal fee
- Hard stop
- Delinquent more than 8 years — cannot be renewed
- Portal
- BreEZe (breeze.ca.gov)
- Board
- BVNPT — bvnpt.ca.gov
- Compact
- California is not an NLC state
- Find your expiration dateA California vocational nurse license expires the last day of the month, two years after it was issued or last renewed. The BVNPT mails a notice roughly 90 days out, but the date on your license is the one that counts.
- Complete 30 contact hours of continuing educationThirty contact hours from a BVNPT- or BRN-approved provider per two-year cycle. Keep certificates for four years; the Board audits rather than collects them.
- Renew in BreEZeSign in at breeze.ca.gov, open the Vocational Nursing renewal — not the Psychiatric Technician one — and confirm your address of record.
- Answer the disclosure questionsConvictions and discipline must be reported at renewal. Answer honestly; a missed disclosure is a separate violation from whatever it hid.
- Pay the renewal feePay by card in BreEZe. If the license has already expired, the Board adds a delinquency penalty of 50% of the renewal fee.
- Save the confirmation in TrustStore the receipt, new expiration date, and CE certificates on-device so an audit letter is a two-minute answer.
Requirements
Vocational, not practical. California licenses Licensed Vocational Nurses through the BVNPT — a different board from the RN board (BRN). If you searched for "California LPN renewal", this is the page you want.
The cycle is two years and your license expires on the last day of the month in which it was issued or last renewed — not on your birthday and not on a statewide date. Two LVNs hired the same week can have expirations months apart.
You need 30 contact hours of continuing education each cycle from a provider approved by the BVNPT or the BRN. You attest at renewal and keep certificates for four years in case of audit.
Fees are set by the Board and have moved in recent years, so confirm the current renewal and delinquency amounts in BreEZe before you budget. The structure does not change: a renewal fee, plus a penalty of 50% of that fee if you pay after expiration.
How to renew, step by step
- 01Find your expiration dateA California vocational nurse license expires the last day of the month, two years after it was issued or last renewed. The BVNPT mails a notice roughly 90 days out, but the date on your license is the one that counts.
- 02Complete 30 contact hours of continuing educationThirty contact hours from a BVNPT- or BRN-approved provider per two-year cycle. Keep certificates for four years; the Board audits rather than collects them.
- 03Renew in BreEZeSign in at breeze.ca.gov, open the Vocational Nursing renewal — not the Psychiatric Technician one — and confirm your address of record.
- 04Answer the disclosure questionsConvictions and discipline must be reported at renewal. Answer honestly; a missed disclosure is a separate violation from whatever it hid.
- 05Pay the renewal feePay by card in BreEZe. If the license has already expired, the Board adds a delinquency penalty of 50% of the renewal fee.
- 06Save the confirmation in TrustStore the receipt, new expiration date, and CE certificates on-device so an audit letter is a two-minute answer.
If you're late
There is no grace period in California. The day after expiration you are unlicensed for practice purposes, and the renewal costs the fee plus a 50% delinquency penalty.
The cliff is longer than most states: a license delinquent for more than eight years cannot be renewed at all. At that point the path back is a new application, including current examination and fingerprint requirements.
Frequently asked questions
- Is an LVN license the same as an LPN license?
- Same scope of practice, different name. California and Texas license vocational nurses (LVN); most other states license practical nurses (LPN). If you moved here from an LPN state you renew as an LVN in California.
- How many CE hours does a California LVN need?
- Thirty contact hours per two-year renewal cycle, from a provider approved by the BVNPT or the California Board of Registered Nursing.
- Does California LVN CE include mandatory topics?
- There is no single statewide mandated hour list for LVNs comparable to Florida's. Courses must be relevant to vocational nursing practice and come from an approved provider.
- What happens if my LVN license expires?
- You cannot work. Renewing late adds a delinquency penalty equal to 50% of the renewal fee, and a license delinquent for more than eight years cannot be renewed at all — it has to be re-applied for.
- Is California part of the Nurse Licensure Compact?
- No. California is not an NLC state, so your California LVN license does not travel and out-of-state compact privileges do not cover practice here.
- Can I renew in inactive status?
- Yes. Inactive status keeps the license alive without CE, but you may not practice until you restore it to active and meet the CE requirement.
- Do I need a fingerprint or background check at renewal?
- Licensees who have never submitted electronic fingerprints to the Board may be required to do so as a condition of renewal. BreEZe will flag it during the application if it applies to you.
Last verified against Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians (BVNPT) sources:
Changelog
Every revision to this guide, newest first. Last updated .
- New guide: California LVN (BVNPT) renewal cycle, 30-hour CE rule, and delinquency penalty.
Trust tracks this renewal for you.
Your LVN expiration lands on the last day of your issue month — easy to miss. Trust reminds you at 90, 60, 30, and 7 days, keeps your 30 CE certificates on-device for the four-year audit window, and links straight to BreEZe.
Keep exploring renewals
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