Updated for 2026

Arkansas Psychologist Continuing Education Requirements

Arkansas psychologists must complete 20 continuing education hours per year to renew their Psychologist license, including 3 hours of ethics.

20hours per year
Topic minimums, counted within the 20
3ethics

Next deadline: June 30, 2027The renewal cycle is annual, and CE is due by June 30 each year.

What the board saysArkansas board rule
Each licensee must complete a minimum of twenty (20) hours1 of (CE) activity during each license renewal period, of which three (3) hours are to be ethics hours2. The defined accrual period is July 1 through June 30 each year.1 … Home study programs3, i.e., from scholarly journals or books, that are approved by the American Psychological Association or other relevant professional organizations. … Activities in this category may not account for more than ten (10) CE hours3.
What it means
  1. 20 hours each year, July 1 through June 30
  2. 3 hours of ethics
  3. No more than 10 hours of home study
Arkansas Psychology Board Rules 9.1Last verified August 2026Ruleset 2026.2How we verify
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Requirements

Arkansas Psychologist requirements

Total

20 hoursYou need 20 hours per year. The renewal cycle is annual, and CE is due by June 30 each year.

Topic minimums, counted within the 20

The remaining 17 hours are not tied to a topic minimum.
Ethics
3
You need 3 hours each cycle.

Limits on how the hours are earned

Home study / self-study
max 10 hrs
In-service training
max 10 hrs
Academic coursework
max 10 hrs
Teaching
max 10 hrs
Publication
max 10 hrs
First time presentation
max 5 hrs
Board meeting attendance
max 5 hrs

Up to 10 hours may be completed through home study / self-study.

Cycle and record rules

Renewal
The renewal cycle is annual, and CE is due by June 30 each year.
Renewal fee
The board renewal fee is $300 per year, and a late (delinquent) renewal adds a $100 fee.
New licensees
The first renewal is different. New licensees have adjusted first-cycle requirements, such as prorated hours or first-cycle-only rules, and we apply them automatically.
Board audit
The board may audit licensees to verify CE compliance.
Late renewal
A late renewal adds a $100 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 June 30, 2027.

Your result appears here as you enter hours.

Open the full Psychologist CE hours calculator

Also hold a Arkansas LPC license? Each board runs its own CE cycle. See the Arkansas LPC requirements.

Full board policy details
  • Section 9.1.A(1) lists acceptable "professional activities relevant to the practice of psychology" with per-activity maximums: in-service training with demonstrable psychological content (10h; no cap if the employer is an APA-accredited doctoral/internship/post-doc program); formal academic coursework of >=3 credit hours at a regionally accredited institution (10h); developing and teaching a NEW course at a regionally accredited institution (10h); publishing a peer-reviewed journal article, scholarly book, or research monograph (10h); preparing and presenting a FIRST-TIME poster, workshop, or in-service (5h); attendance at Board meetings (5h, up to 1 ethics hour per meeting); home-study programs, APA/professional-org approved with exam and certificate (10h). APA-approved educational experiences and in-person/online training by a qualified professional from a state/nationally recognized professional organization (e.g. AMA, NASW, ACA) carry no stated cap. Volunteer hours under the Arkansas Volunteer Health Care Act are governed by that Act's provisions.
  • FORMAT CONSTRAINTS: CE hours shall not be obtained exclusively by home study or online means (Rule 9.1.A). Home-study programs are capped at 10 CE hours. Board guidance references a one-hour in-person expectation (waived only for the 2020-21 accrual period during COVID). Live-interactive online / instructor-led training by a qualified professional is treated as live training (not self-study) and is uncapped.
  • ACCEPTABILITY STANDARDS: The Board does NOT pre-approve providers or programs; all CE is evaluated on individual merits, typically at audit. The Board accepts courses from any APA-approved provider. Home-study programs must be APA/professional-org approved and include an exam plus completion certificate. Academic coursework must be at a regionally accredited institution and >=3 credit hours. NOT acceptable for CE credit (Rule 9.1.A(3)): supervision required for routine licensure purposes; reading books or journal articles; writing newsletters or non-peer-reviewed articles; and any experience the Board determines does not meet its standards.
  • COURSE REPEAT RESTRICTIONS: Teaching credit is allowed only for developing and teaching a NEW course (Rule 9.1.A(1)(e)); presentation credit only for preparing and presenting a FIRST-TIME poster, workshop, or in-service (Rule 9.1.A(1)(g)). Repeating the same course or presentation is not creditable. The Board reserves the right to determine whether any particular CE experience meets Board standards. The rule does not expressly prohibit a general attendee from taking the same course twice in a cycle.
  • LICENSE STATUS RULES: Persons with voluntarily inactive licenses are not required to accumulate CE during inactivity (Rules 9.2.B, 13.7). To reactivate, the licensee must provide evidence of having completed 20 CE hours during the previous license year, pay the inactive placement fee (one-half the current renewal fee), and the Board may require an oral examination if deemed necessary. Retirement is offered only if the licensee will not be reactivating and is treated as terminal for CE purposes; the rule sets no CE path back from retirement.
  • WAIVERS/EXTENSIONS: First-year waiver (Rule 9.2.A) - CE is waived for licensees who have been licensed in Arkansas less than one calendar year on the June 30 due date; there is no proration. Good-cause time extension (Rule 9.1.D) - a licensee unable to meet CE for good cause (licensee illness, family illness, natural disaster, military service, or foreign residence >=12 months of the license period) may request an extension with written explanation and the renewal fee; maximum one year except in the case of extended military service. Military deployment (Rule 10.3.D-E) - full or partial CE exemption and 180-day extension of the license expiration for a deployed uniformed service member or spouse until 180 days after return from deployment. There is no conditional/provisional registration for a CE shortfall; a renewal will not be considered without the required CE.

Arkansas Psychologist CE: frequently asked questions

How many CE hours do Arkansas Psychologist licensees need?

Arkansas requires 20 continuing education hours per year to renew a Psychologist license. The renewal cycle is annual, and CE is due by June 30 each year.

How many ethics hours are required for Arkansas Psychologist licensees?

Of the total, 3 hours must be in ethics.

How often do Arkansas Psychologist licensees renew?

The renewal cycle is annual, and CE is due by June 30 each year.

How much does Arkansas Psychologist license renewal cost?

The board's renewal fee is $300 per year, per the Arkansas board fee schedule. Renewing late adds a $100 delinquency fee on top. CE course costs are separate and set by course providers.

Can Arkansas Psychologist licensees complete CE online or by home study?

Up to 10 hours may be completed through home study / self-study.

Is the first renewal different for new Arkansas Psychologist licensees?

The first renewal is different. New licensees have adjusted first-cycle requirements, such as prorated hours or first-cycle-only rules, and we apply them automatically.

Sources and verification

State source
Arkansas board rule
Last verified
August 2026
Ruleset version
2026.2

We reviewed this page against the Arkansas 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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Arkansas 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.Arkansas mental health workforce data →11,122 active providers, or 357.1 per 100,000 residents, ranked 35 of 51. The page includes a county density map and free CSV downloads.

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