One Renewal Date, Two Boards
The Virginia Board of Counseling and the Virginia Board of Social Work set the same renewal date across every credential covered here. Every counseling-track licensee, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), Resident in Counseling and Resident in Marriage and Family Therapy alike, submits a renewal form and fee "on or before June 30 of each year" (18VAC115-20-100 A; 18VAC115-50-90 A). Social work licensees renew on the same date: "Beginning with the 2017 renewal, licensees shall renew their licenses on or before June 30 of each year" (18VAC140-20-100 A).
What differs by credential is not the date but the fee and the CE owed behind it. A Registration of Supervision is the one credential in this cluster with no June 30 renewal date at all, covered in its own section below.
Resident in Counseling and Resident in Marriage and Family Therapy Renewal
Both resident licenses renew annually, on or before June 30, for a $30 fee. Two things happen at that renewal. First, the resident attests that a supervisory contract is in effect with a board-approved supervisor for each location where the resident is currently providing services (18VAC115-20-100 C 1; 18VAC115-50-90 C 1). Second, the resident attests to 3 hours of continuing education from an approved provider that emphasizes ethics, standards of practice, or laws governing behavioral science professions in Virginia (18VAC115-20-100 C 2; 18VAC115-50-90 C 3).
| Requirement | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Renewal date | June 30 annually | 18VAC115-20-100 C; 18VAC115-50-90 C |
| Renewal fee | $30 | Bd. of Counseling, 2026 renewal chart |
| Continuing education | 3 hours, ethics/standards/Virginia law, approved provider | 18VAC115-20-100 C 2; 18VAC115-50-90 C 3 |
| Contract attestation | Signed supervisory contract per location | 18VAC115-20-100 C 1; 18VAC115-50-90 C 1 |
| Inactive renewal | $15 | Bd. of Counseling fee schedule (18VAC115-20-20) |
| Late renewal | $10 | Bd. of Counseling fee schedule (18VAC115-20-20) |
| Number of renewals | No limit, since December 18, 2025 | Bd. of Counseling, Dec. 2025 rule-change summary |
The June 30 date is new for residents. The board's renewal chart notes, "Licensed Residents renewal date has changed to June 30th," and labels the resident row "(Beginning 2026)" (2026 Renewal Information chart, Board of Counseling, revised 11/2025). The 3-hour CE requirement itself is listed as unchanged in the Board's December 2025 regulation-change summary.
Before December 18, 2025, a resident license could be renewed only a fixed number of times before it expired outright. That limit is gone: "Licensed Residents may now renew their license and continue practicing under the supervision of a qualified supervisor while completing residency requirements, without a set time limit" (Board of Counseling's December 2025 regulation-change summary, revised 12/05/2025). Renewal now runs annually for as long as the resident remains in supervised practice, which 18VAC115-20-70 D already requires: a resident stays under supervision "until the resident has passed the licensure examination and been granted a license."
LPC and LMFT Renewal
An LPC or LMFT renews on or before June 30 each year for a $130 fee, with 20 hours of continuing competency behind it, at least 2 of those hours in ethics, standards of practice, or laws governing behavioral science professions in Virginia (18VAC115-20-105 A; 18VAC115-50-95 A). A licensee who was licensed by examination is exempt from the CE requirement at the first renewal that follows (18VAC115-20-105 F; 18VAC115-50-95 F).
| Requirement | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Renewal fee | $130 | 18VAC115-20-20; 18VAC115-50-20 |
| Inactive renewal | $65 | 18VAC115-20-20; 18VAC115-50-20 |
| Late renewal | $45 | 18VAC115-20-20; 18VAC115-50-20 |
| Continuing education | 20 hours per annual renewal, at least 2 ethics/standards/VA law | 18VAC115-20-105 A; 18VAC115-50-95 A |
| First renewal after exam | CE exempt | 18VAC115-20-105 F; 18VAC115-50-95 F |
| Documentation retention | Two years following renewal | 18VAC115-20-107 A; 18VAC115-50-97 A |
Up to 2 of the 20 hours may come from unpaid counseling services to low-income clients through a local health department or a free clinic, credited at one CE hour for every three hours of volunteer service documented by the department or clinic (18VAC115-20-105 E; 18VAC115-50-95 E). The board may also grant an extension of up to one year for good cause, or an exemption for circumstances beyond the licensee's control such as temporary disability, mandatory military service, or an officially declared disaster (18VAC115-20-105 B, C; 18VAC115-50-95 B, C).
A licensee dually licensed by the Board of Counseling, holding both the LPC and LMFT for example, does not owe continuing competency twice. "Dually licensed individuals will only be required to provide the hours set out in subsection A of this section" once, rather than separately for each license (18VAC115-20-105 D; 18VAC115-50-95 D).
LCSW and LMSW Renewal
An LCSW renews on or before June 30 each year for a $90 fee; an LMSW renews the same way for $65 (18VAC140-20-100 A; 18VAC140-20-30). Continuing education is not owed every year. It is required "prior to licensure renewal in even years": 30 contact hours for an LCSW and 15 for an LMSW, with at least 6 and 3 of those hours respectively in ethics, standards of practice, or laws governing the practice of social work in Virginia (18VAC140-20-100 B; 18VAC140-20-105 A).
| Requirement | LCSW / LMSW | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Renewal fee | $90 / $65 | 18VAC140-20-30 |
| Late renewal penalty | $30 / $20 | 18VAC140-20-30 |
| CE hours, documented in even years | 30 / 15 | 18VAC140-20-105 A |
| Ethics minimum within that total | 6 / 3 | 18VAC140-20-105 A |
| Category I minimum (formal learning) | 20 / 10 | 18VAC140-20-105 B 1 |
| Category II maximum (individual activities) | 10 / 5 | 18VAC140-20-105 B 2 |
| Documentation retention | Three years following renewal | 18VAC140-20-106 A |
The board's own renewal chart shows the even-year pattern in practice. The 2026 renewal needs "30 hours of CE from 07/01/2024 to 06/30/2026"; the 2027 renewal needs "No CE required to renew license"; the 2028 renewal needs "30 hours of CE from 07/01/2026 to 06/30/2028"; the 2029 renewal again needs "No CE required to renew license" (2026 Renewal Information chart, Board of Social Work, revised 04/2026). A newly licensed social worker is not required to document CE at the first renewal following initial licensure, whichever year that renewal falls in (18VAC140-20-100 B).
A Registration Does Not Renew: Supervisee in Social Work
The credential that precedes the LCSW is not a license, so it carries no June 30 renewal date. The board's approval email for a Registration of Supervision in Virginia "will contain an expiration date which allows you 4 years to complete your supervision" (LCSW Licensure Process Handbook, Revised 09/2024, s. 2).
That four-year window can be extended once. A Supervisee in Social Work "may request an extension of up to 12 months" on written request with evidence of extenuating circumstances (18VAC140-20-50 A 3). If the window closes without a completed application, the process starts over: the applicant must "start the supervised experience process over again and re-apply for Registration of Supervision" (LCSW Licensure Process Handbook, Revised 09/2024, s. 3).
Late Renewal and Reinstatement
Every credential that renews gives a one-year grace period after expiration before the process changes from a late renewal to a reinstatement. On the counseling side, "a person whose license has expired may renew it within one year after its expiration date by paying the late fee" along with the renewal fee for the missed year and evidence of the CE completed (18VAC115-20-110 A; 18VAC115-50-100 A). Social work works the same way: an LBSW, LMSW or clinical social worker "whose license has expired may renew that license within one year after its expiration date by" providing evidence of the CE completed and paying the late renewal penalty plus the renewal fee (18VAC140-20-110 A).
Past that one-year mark, renewal is no longer available; only reinstatement is. A counseling licensee applying for reinstatement pays the reinstatement fee and provides "evidence of having met all applicable continuing competency requirements not to exceed a maximum of 80 hours" (18VAC115-20-110 B). A social work licensee applying for reinstatement instead documents "continued competency hours equal to the number of years the license has lapsed, not to exceed four years" (18VAC140-20-110 B 1).
Practicing on an Expired License
No credential in this cluster may be practiced on once it expires. "No person shall practice counseling in Virginia unless the person holds a current active license," and "practice with an expired license is prohibited and may constitute grounds for disciplinary action" (18VAC115-20-100 B, E). The marriage and family therapy rule reads the same way: "After the renewal date, the license is expired; practice with an expired license is prohibited and may constitute grounds for disciplinary action" (18VAC115-50-90 E). Social work sets the identical bar: "No person shall practice social work or clinical social work in Virginia unless he holds a current active license" (18VAC140-20-100 C).
For a Resident in Counseling, that prohibition reaches the hour count too. "Any hours obtained with an expired license will not be counted towards licensure" (LPC Licensure Process Handbook, Revised 07/2026, s. 3). A lapsed renewal does not just pause the residency; it erases whatever hours accrue while the license sits expired.
Worked Example: An LCSW Licensed in 2025
Take a social worker who became an LCSW at some point in 2025. Virginia exempts a newly licensed individual from documenting CE at the first renewal following initial licensure (18VAC140-20-100 B), and the board's chart names the group that exemption covers: "Newly licensed social workers (those licensed at any time in 2025) are not required to document continuing education on the first renewal date following initial licensure" (2026 Renewal Information chart, Board of Social Work, revised 04/2026). Their first renewal, due June 30, 2026, needs the $90 fee and the renewal form, with no CE to document.
Their 2027 renewal also asks for no CE hours, but for a separate reason: the chart states "No CE required to renew license" for the 2027 renewal, regardless of when a licensee was first licensed (2026 Renewal Information chart, Board of Social Work, revised 04/2026). Their first CE cycle under the chart's pattern lands at the 2028 renewal: 30 contact hours documented from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2028, with at least 6 of those hours in ethics, standards of practice, or Virginia social work law, and at least 20 of the 30 from Category I activities (18VAC140-20-105 A, B 1; 2026 Renewal Information chart, Board of Social Work, revised 04/2026). That progression, exempt in 2026, exempt again in 2027, then 30 hours due by 2028, is the chart's stated schedule working out for this one licensee, not a separate rule of its own.
Common Mistakes on Virginia Renewal and CE
Assuming a resident license still has a five-renewal cap
That limit ended December 18, 2025. A resident license now renews annually with no set number of renewals, as long as supervision continues (Board of Counseling's December 2025 regulation-change summary, revised 12/05/2025; 18VAC115-20-70 D).
Treating the Registration of Supervision like a license that renews every June 30
It is not a license and has no annual renewal date. The board's approval email gives a four-year window to complete supervision instead (LCSW Licensure Process Handbook, Revised 09/2024, s. 2).
Reading "30 hours of CE" as an every-year LCSW requirement
The board's chart requires CE for the 2026 and 2028 renewals and states "No CE required to renew license" for 2027 and 2029 (2026 Renewal Information chart, Board of Social Work, revised 04/2026).
Paying CE for two licenses when dually licensed by the Board of Counseling
A licensee holding both the LPC and LMFT provides one set of continuing competency hours, not two (18VAC115-20-105 D; 18VAC115-50-95 D).
Treating late renewal and reinstatement as the same process
Late renewal is available within one year of expiration; past that mark, only reinstatement applies, and it asks for different documentation (18VAC115-20-110 A, B; 18VAC140-20-110 A, B).
Assuming hours keep counting while a resident license sits expired
They do not. Hours obtained with an expired resident license are not counted toward licensure (LPC Licensure Process Handbook, Revised 07/2026, s. 3).
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More on Virginia licensure
The renewal cycle covered here sits at the end of each track's path. The hours and supervision that come before it run differently by credential: Virginia LPC requirements and Virginia LMFT requirements cover the counseling and marriage and family therapy tracks, Virginia LCSW requirements covers social work, and the forms behind every verification are collected in Virginia supervised experience forms. The full picture across all three tracks starts at how to become a therapist in Virginia.
Related Virginia Guides
Virginia LPC Requirements
The full counseling path: the 2,000 face-to-face hours, the 21-month floor, and the exam.
Virginia LCSW Requirements
The full social work path: the 3,000 hours, the 2-to-4-year window, and the exam.
Virginia LMFT Requirements
The full marriage and family therapy path: the 2,000 hours and the approval code for the exam.
Resident in Counseling in Virginia
The resident license itself: the application, the contract, and what changed December 18, 2025.
Registration of Supervision in Virginia
The registration that precedes the LCSW: the four-year window and the extension.
How to Become a Therapist in Virginia
The full picture across Virginia's counseling, social work and marriage and family therapy tracks.
FAQ: Virginia License Renewal and CE Requirements
What are the Virginia LPC renewal requirements?▾
An LPC renews on or before June 30 each year with a completed renewal form and the $130 renewal fee (18VAC115-20-100 A; 18VAC115-20-20). Renewal also requires 20 hours of continuing education completed in the year behind it, with at least 2 of those hours in ethics, standards of practice, or Virginia law (18VAC115-20-105 A). An LPC licensed by examination is exempt from that CE requirement at the first renewal following initial licensure (18VAC115-20-105 F). A licensee who renews late pays a $45 late fee within one year of expiration (18VAC115-20-110 A; 18VAC115-20-20).
What are the CEU requirements for an LCSW in Virginia?▾
An LCSW documents 30 contact hours of continuing education prior to license renewal in even years, with at least 6 of those hours in ethics, standards of practice, or laws governing social work in Virginia (18VAC140-20-105 A). At least 20 of the 30 hours must come from Category I formally organized learning activities, and no more than 10 may come from Category II individual professional activities (18VAC140-20-105 B 1, B 2). A newly licensed LCSW is not required to document CE at the first renewal following initial licensure (18VAC140-20-100 B).
What are the LCSW renewal requirements in Virginia?▾
LCSW licenses renew on or before June 30 each year for a $90 fee (18VAC140-20-100 A; 18VAC140-20-30). The board's 2026 renewal chart requires 30 hours of CE for the 2026 and 2028 renewals but states "No CE required to renew license" for the 2027 and 2029 renewals (2026 Renewal Information chart, Board of Social Work, revised 04/2026). Original documentation of completed CE must be kept for three years following renewal (18VAC140-20-106 A), and practice with an expired license is not permitted (18VAC140-20-100 C).
What are the CEU requirements for an LPC in Virginia?▾
An LPC needs 20 hours of continuing competency for each annual renewal, with at least 2 of those hours in courses on ethics, standards of practice, or laws governing behavioral science professions in Virginia (18VAC115-20-105 A). Up to 2 of the 20 hours may come from unpaid counseling services to low-income clients through a health department or free clinic, credited at one CE hour per three hours of volunteer service (18VAC115-20-105 E). The board may also grant a one-year extension for good cause, or an exemption for circumstances such as temporary disability or mandatory military service (18VAC115-20-105 B, C).
How does the Virginia Board of Counseling handle license renewal?▾
The Board of Counseling sets one renewal date, on or before June 30 each year, for the LPC, LMFT and both resident credentials (18VAC115-20-100 A; 18VAC115-50-90 A). LPC and LMFT renewals need 20 CE hours; Resident in Counseling and Resident in Marriage and Family Therapy renewals need 3 CE hours plus an attestation that a supervisory contract is in effect for every location where the resident practices (18VAC115-20-100 C; 18VAC115-50-90 C). A license unrenewed for more than a year requires reinstatement rather than simple late renewal (18VAC115-20-110 B).
What are the CEU requirements for the Virginia Board of Social Work?▾
The Board of Social Work requires 30 contact hours of continuing education for an LCSW and 15 for an LMSW, both documented prior to renewal in even years, with at least 6 and 3 hours respectively in ethics, standards of practice, or Virginia social work law (18VAC140-20-105 A). At least 20 of the LCSW's 30 hours, or 10 of the LMSW's 15, must be Category I formally organized learning; no more than 10 or 5 respectively may be Category II individual professional activities (18VAC140-20-105 B 1, B 2). The Registration of Supervision that precedes the LCSW carries no CE requirement, because it is not a license that renews.
How does a Resident in Counseling license renew in Virginia?▾
A Resident in Counseling license renews annually, on or before June 30, for a $30 fee, with no limit on the number of renewals since the Board of Counseling's rule change effective December 18, 2025 (18VAC115-20-100 C; Board of Counseling's December 2025 regulation-change summary, revised 12/05/2025). Each renewal requires an attestation that a supervisory contract is in effect for every location where the resident is currently providing clinical counseling services, plus 3 hours of continuing education in ethics, standards of practice, or Virginia law from an approved provider (18VAC115-20-100 C). The resident renewal fee is $30 active, $15 inactive, or $10 late.
Requirements verified against 18VAC115-20, 18VAC115-50 and 18VAC140-20 of the Virginia Administrative Code and the boards' 2026 renewal charts, current as of September 2026. Regulations, forms and fees can change. Confirm current requirements at the Virginia Board of Counseling or the Virginia Board of Social Work before making decisions about your licensure path. This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice.