Updated for 2026

Washington SUDP Continuing Education Requirements

Washington addiction counselors must complete 20 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew their SUDP license, including 4 hours of law & ethics.

20hours every 2 years
Topic minimums, counted within the 20
4law & ethics

The renewal cycle is biennial, and your license renews at the end of your birth month.

Where this comes from
State source
Washington board rule
Last verified
October 2026
Ruleset version
2026.1

Every figure on this page is read from this rule, and the page refreshes when the ruleset changes. How we verify

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Requirements

Washington SUDP requirements

Total

20 hoursYou need 20 hours every 2 years. The renewal cycle is biennial, and your license renews at the end of your birth month.

Topic minimums, counted within the 20

The remaining 16 hours are not tied to a topic minimum.
Law & Ethics
4
You need 4 hours each cycle.

Limits on how the hours are earned

Professional development
max 4 hrs
In-service training
max 7 hrs

Cycle and record rules

Renewal
The renewal cycle is biennial, and your license renews at the end of your birth month.
Approved providers
Washington does not pre-approve CE providers for SUDPs. Continuing education is "a program or course (including distance learning), seminar, workshop, or professional conference approved by an industry-recognized organization or institution of higher learning" (WAC 246-811-010(8)), and "industry-recognized" includes NAADAC, NAATP, IC&RC, the Northwest Indian alcohol/drug specialist certification board, NASW, accredited institutions, the Health Care Authority's Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery and the Addiction Technology Transfer Center network (WAC 246-811-010(15)). Hours count only in the two-year reporting period in which they were earned: "Continuing education hours in excess of the required hours earned in a reporting period cannot be carried forward" (WAC 246-12-230), and "The same course taken more than once during a reporting cycle will only be counted once" (WAC 246-12-240).
Recordkeeping
Keep CE documentation for 4 years after each course's completion date.
Board audit
The board may audit licensees to verify CE compliance.
Late renewal
A late renewal adds a late fee.

To keep your proof in order, see what to keep for a CE audit, which covers every state’s retention period and what the audit notice asks for.

Your hours

Check where you stand

Enter the hours you have completed this cycle to see what is left before your renewal.

Your result appears here as you enter hours.

Open the full Addiction Counselor CE hours calculator

Washington SUDP required trainings and mandates

Beyond the 20-hour CE total, Washington requires specific trainings. Some are due once around initial licensure, and others run on their own recurring schedule.

Recurring mandates outside the 2-year cycle

  • You need 3 hours of suicide assessment, including screening and referral every 6 years.
  • You need 2 hours of health equity every 4 years.
Full board policy details
  • Distance learning: acceptable CE includes "Distance learning programs ... through sources such as internet course work, telecourses, or correspondence courses which require comprehension tests upon completion" (WAC 246-811-250(2)). No distance-learning cap and no live minimum appear in the rule.
  • Acceptable CE "may include, but is not limited to": programs with an industry-recognized instructor, speaker or panel; distance learning; agency sponsored trainings "provided by an agency, but not limited to its employees"; "Course work at institutions of higher learning that are accredited by a national or regional accrediting body"; and in-service training limited to seven hours (WAC 246-811-250). The rule gives no unit-to-hour conversion for academic course work.
  • Credit hours: "A credit hour is defined as time actually spent in a course or other activities ... A credit hour for time actually spent in a course can not be less than fifty minutes" (WAC 246-12-220).
  • Presenting: public presentation is a professional development activity; the SUDP "may accumulate the same number of hours obtained for continuing education purposes by attendees", and "The hours for presenting a specific topic lecture or education may only be used for continuing education credit once during each reporting period" (WAC 246-811-260(1)(c)). Presenting hours fall under the four-hour professional development ceiling; tag them `professional development`.
  • Enhancement plan: every SUDP must also complete "An enhancement plan as described in WAC 246-811-010(7)" (WAC 246-811-220(1)), "a plan listing professional development goals to continue proficiency ... based on core competencies of substance use disorder counseling listed in WAC 246-811-047 and on forms provided by the department" (WAC 246-811-010(7)). It carries no hours and is not tracked by the engine.
  • Suicide training deferral and employer exemptions: an applicant who completed a qualifying three-hour training "no more than six years prior to the application for initial certification" may delay the first required training "for six years after initial certification" (WAC 246-811-280(2)). State or local government employees, and employees of a community mental health agency or certified substance use disorder program, are exempt if they receive at least three hours of suicide assessment training, including screening and referral, from their employer every six years (WAC 246-811-280(4)-(5)). Log the employer training tagged `suicide prevention`; the pre-certification deferral is a manual check the engine does not infer.
  • Health equity content: the training "may be in-person or virtual but must meet the course requirements in WAC 246-12-830, including strategies to reduce implicit bias and assess the provider's ability to apply health equity concepts into practice" (WAC 246-811-290(1)).
  • Dual credentials: chapter 246-811 WAC has no provision sharing or reducing CE for an SUDP who also holds a mental health counselor, marriage and family therapist or social work license; each credential carries its own continuing competency rule. Licensed counselors, therapists, social workers, psychologists and agency affiliated counselors may instead hold a co-occurring disorder specialist enhancement on their own license (RCW 18.205.105), which is not an SUDP certificate and is not scoped here.
  • Retired active and expired credentials: "A certified substance use disorder professional may obtain a retired active credential. Refer to the requirements of chapter 246-12 WAC" (WAC 246-811-081); that status is not modeled. A certification "expired for five years or less" is returned under chapter 246-12 WAC; one "lapsed for more than five years" also requires the applicant to "demonstrate continued competency" and pass an examination if one was not passed for the initial certification (WAC 246-811-080(1)-(2)).
  • Probationary (reciprocity) certificate: an out-of-state applicant may hold a one-year probationary license, renewable once on completion of the WAC 246-811-280(1) suicide training; otherwise "continuing education requirements will apply once a probationary licensee transitions to a full license" (WAC 246-811-300(4)-(5)).

Washington SUDP CE: frequently asked questions

How many CE hours do Washington SUDP licensees need?

Washington requires 20 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew a SUDP license. The renewal cycle is biennial, and your license renews at the end of your birth month.

How many ethics hours are required for Washington SUDP licensees?

Of the total, 4 hours must be in law & ethics.

How often do Washington SUDP licensees renew?

The renewal cycle is biennial, and your license renews at the end of your birth month.

Sources and verification

State source
Washington board rule
Last verified
October 2026
Ruleset version
2026.1

We reviewed this page against the Washington board source, and we refresh it from the compiled ruleset above. Methodology and disclaimer. Compliance data is for guidance only, not legal or board advice. Always confirm requirements with your licensing board before renewing. See something wrong? Report it

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Washington guides & data

What to keep for a CE audit →Learn what boards ask for in a CE audit, how long each state says to keep certificates, and what the notice looks like, then use the printable checklist.Washington mental health workforce data →53,146 active providers, or 664.2 per 100,000 residents, ranked 7 of 51. The page includes a county density map and free CSV downloads.

Other Washington CE requirement pages

Washington LPCWashington LMFTWashington LCSWWashington Psychologist

Addiction Counselor CE requirements in other states