How to renew your Florida paramedic certificate
Florida paramedic certificates renew on a statewide biennial cycle through the Department of Health's EMS Bureau — current certificates expire at midnight Eastern Time on December 1, 2026. Renewal requires 30 hours of approved continuing education and a current ACLS card. This is a different board, deadline, and portal than the Florida RN license.
- Cycle
- 2 years, statewide — expires midnight ET, December 1, 2026
- CE hours
- 30 hours per biennium, with the topic distribution set by rule
- Also required
- Current ACLS card
- Fee
- Confirm the current amount in MQA Online Services
- Not the same as
- NREMT certification, or the Florida RN license (Board of Nursing)
- Note the statewide expiration: midnight ET, December 1, 2026Florida paramedic certificates run on a statewide biennial cycle. Current certificates expire at midnight Eastern Time on December 1, 2026 — not on your birthday.
- Complete 30 hours of approved continuing educationFlorida requires 30 hours of CE per biennium for paramedics, including the topic distribution set by rule (such as medical, trauma, pediatric, and airway content).
- Keep your ACLS currentFlorida paramedic renewal requires a current ACLS card. If your ACLS expires near December, renew ACLS first — its own renewal course has prerequisites.
- Renew through the Florida Department of Health MQA portalThis is the EMS Bureau under the Department of Health, not the Board of Nursing. Use your MQA Online Services account for the EMT/Paramedic certificate.
- Attest and pay the renewal feeAttest to your CE and ACLS status and answer the disclosure questions. Confirm the current fee in MQA Online Services.
- Store certificates and confirmation in TrustKeep the CE certificates, your ACLS eCard PDF, and the renewal confirmation on-device — agency credential audits ask for all three.
Requirements
Florida paramedics renew through the Department of Health's EMS Bureau, not the Board of Nursing. Different portal, different rule chapter, different deadline — and searching "Florida license renewal" will send you to the wrong one.
The deadline is statewide. Current certificates expire at midnight Eastern Time on December 1, 2026. Every Florida paramedic shares that date, so CE providers and ACLS classes get crowded in the autumn.
You need 30 hours of approved continuing education for the biennium, following the topic distribution in Florida's EMS rule (64J), and a current ACLS card.
Two separate credentials. National Registry (NREMT) recertification and your Florida state certificate are independent. Holding one current does not renew the other, and losing track of which clock is which is the most common reason a Florida medic ends up unable to work.
How to renew, step by step
- 01Note the statewide expiration: midnight ET, December 1, 2026Florida paramedic certificates run on a statewide biennial cycle. Current certificates expire at midnight Eastern Time on December 1, 2026 — not on your birthday.
- 02Complete 30 hours of approved continuing educationFlorida requires 30 hours of CE per biennium for paramedics, including the topic distribution set by rule (such as medical, trauma, pediatric, and airway content).
- 03Keep your ACLS currentFlorida paramedic renewal requires a current ACLS card. If your ACLS expires near December, renew ACLS first — its own renewal course has prerequisites.
- 04Renew through the Florida Department of Health MQA portalThis is the EMS Bureau under the Department of Health, not the Board of Nursing. Use your MQA Online Services account for the EMT/Paramedic certificate.
- 05Attest and pay the renewal feeAttest to your CE and ACLS status and answer the disclosure questions. Confirm the current fee in MQA Online Services.
- 06Store certificates and confirmation in TrustKeep the CE certificates, your ACLS eCard PDF, and the renewal confirmation on-device — agency credential audits ask for all three.
If you're late
After midnight on December 1 the certificate is delinquent and you cannot function as a paramedic. Agencies check status directly with the Department of Health, so a lapse is immediately visible and typically means being pulled from the schedule.
Reinstatement runs through the EMS Bureau with additional requirements and fees that scale with the length of the lapse. The safe move is to complete CE and ACLS by early autumn, not in the last week of November.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Florida paramedic renewal tied to my birthday like the RN license?
- No. Florida RN licenses renew on a birth-month-linked schedule through the Board of Nursing; paramedic certificates renew on a statewide biennial cycle through the EMS Bureau, expiring December 1 of the renewal year.
- Does NREMT certification renew my Florida certificate?
- No. They are separate credentials with separate clocks. NREMT recertification does not renew your Florida state certificate, and vice versa.
- How many CE hours do I need?
- 30 hours per biennium for paramedics, following the topic distribution in Florida's EMS rule. Check the rule for the current breakdown before assuming any 30 hours count.
- Do I really need ACLS to renew?
- Yes — a current ACLS card is part of Florida paramedic renewal. Because ACLS renewal itself requires an unexpired card and usually current BLS, start that chain early.
- What if I miss December 1?
- The certificate becomes delinquent and you cannot work as a paramedic on it. Reinstatement runs through the EMS Bureau with additional requirements and fees, and your agency will pull you from the truck in the meantime.
Last verified against Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Emergency Medical Oversight sources:
Changelog
Every revision to this guide, newest first. Last updated .
- Reviewed and verified requirements, fees, and deadlines against Florida Department of Health, Bureau of Emergency Medical Oversight sources.
Trust tracks this renewal for you.
One statewide December 1 deadline, plus an ACLS card with its own clock and NREMT on a third. Trust tracks all three, reminds you at 90, 60, 30, and 7 days, and keeps the certificates on-device.
Keep exploring renewals
Adjacent boards, specialties, and states most often renewed alongside Florida paramedic certificate renewal.