Updated for 2026

Tennessee LCSW Continuing Education Requirements

Tennessee clinical social workers must complete 30 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew their LCSW license, including 6 hours of professional ethics and 1 hour of TN law and rules.

30hours every 2 years
Topic minimums, counted within the 30
6professional ethics
1TN law and rules

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

What the board saysTennessee board rule
Requirements for licensed advanced practice social worker and licensed clinical social worker. (a) Each licensee shall obtain thirty (30) continuing education clock hours1 relative to social work practice every two (2) calendar years1 preceding the year of renewal. (b) At least six (6) of the thirty (30) hours shall be in social work ethics2. (c) One (1) of the thirty (30) hours3 shall be specific to Tennessee Code Annotated … and the Rules and Regulations of the Tennessee Board of Social Worker Licensure3. … A maximum of fifteen (15) clock hours for academic coursework4 may be earned per two (2) year continuing education period.
What it means
  1. 30 hours every 2 calendar years
  2. 6 hours of social work ethics
  3. 1 hour on Tennessee social work law and rules
  4. No more than 15 hours of academic coursework
Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1365-01-.09Last verified August 2026Ruleset 2026.3How we verify
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Requirements

Tennessee LCSW requirements

Total

30 hoursYou need 30 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 30

The remaining 23 hours are not tied to a topic minimum.
Professional Ethics
6
You need 6 hours each cycle.
TN Law and Rules
1
You need 1 hour each cycle.

Limits on how the hours are earned

Academic coursework
max 15 hrs
First time teaching or presentation
max 75%
Publication or professional paper
max 5 hrs

Cycle and record rules

Renewal
The renewal cycle is biennial, and your license renews at the end of your birth month.
Recordkeeping
Keep CE documentation for 4 years after the end of each cycle.
Board audit
The board may audit licensees to verify CE compliance.

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 LCSW CE hours calculator

Also hold a Tennessee LPC or LMFT license? Each board runs its own CE cycle. See the Tennessee LPC and Tennessee LMFT requirements.

Tennessee LCSW required trainings and mandates

Beyond the 30-hour CE total, Tennessee 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 2 hours of suicide prevention every 4 years.
Full board policy details
  • No more than two-thirds of the credit hours in the two-year CE period may be earned through multimedia courses (Rule 1365-01-.09(7)(e)2): 20 of the LCSW's 30 hours. Synchronous interactive online training is treated as in-person. This fractional cap is checked by hand.
  • The Board does not pre-approve individual CE programs; the licensee is responsible for determining whether content and presenters satisfy Rule 1365-01-.09.
  • First-time teaching allows one preparation hour for each presentation hour, but all first-time teaching/presentation credit is limited to 75 percent of the two-year total.
  • Preparation of a first professional paper for publication or first presentation at a qualifying professional meeting is capped at five hours.
  • The rule limits repeat presenter credit but does not establish a general attendee repeat-course ban. Hours may not be duplicated between separate social-work licenses.
  • An LCSW returning from retirement after more than one year must document 15 hours completed in the preceding 12 months. Different replacement-hour rules apply to a retirement of one year or less and to an expired or revoked license.

Tennessee LCSW CE: frequently asked questions

How many CE hours do Tennessee LCSW licensees need?

Tennessee requires 30 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew a LCSW license. The renewal cycle is biennial, and your license renews at the end of your birth month.

How many ethics hours are required for Tennessee LCSW licensees?

Of the total, 6 hours must be in professional ethics.

How often do Tennessee LCSW licensees renew?

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

Are there subject-specific CE requirements for Tennessee LCSW licensees?

Yes. In addition to ethics, Tennessee requires 1 hour of TN law and rules.

Sources and verification

State source
Tennessee board rule
Profession source
ASWB ACE continuing education guidance
Last verified
August 2026
Ruleset version
2026.3

We reviewed this page against the Tennessee 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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Tennessee 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.Tennessee mental health workforce data →19,801 active providers, or 270.7 per 100,000 residents, ranked 47 of 51. The page includes a county density map and free CSV downloads.

Other Tennessee CE requirement pages

Tennessee LPCTennessee LMFTTennessee PsychologistTennessee Addiction CounselorTennessee PMHNP

LCSW CE requirements in other states