Arizona Psychologist Continuing Education Requirements
Arizona psychologists must complete 40 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew their Psychologist license, including 4 hours of professional ethics and 4 hours of jurisprudence / state law.
40
total hours / 2 years
4
professional ethics hours
4
jurisprudence / state law hours
Biennial · renewal date depends on the licensee's birth month.
Arizona Psychologist requirements
| Requirement | Notes |
|---|---|
| Total continuing education | 40 hours every 2 years. |
| Renewal | Biennial cycle: renews at the end of your birth month. |
| Renewal fee | $500 board renewal fee every 2 years. |
| Professional Ethics | 4 hours required each cycle. |
| Jurisprudence / State Law | 4 hours required each cycle. |
| New licensees | First renewal is different: new licensees have adjusted first-cycle requirements (proration and/or first-cycle-only rules), which we apply automatically. |
| Recordkeeping | Keep CE documentation for 2 years after the end of each cycle. |
| Board audit | The board may audit licensees to verify CE compliance. |
| Late renewal | A late renewal allows a late fee. |
| Provisional renewal | The board allows a provisional/conditional renewal for up to 12 months before full compliance is required. Arizona provides no conditional/provisional active registration to practice while completing a CE shortfall. The available mechanisms are a good-cause extension of time (up to one year, not renewable beyond the one-year cap; R4-26-207(J)) and a 90-day post-audit cure period (R4-26-205(J)). |
Limits on how the hours are earned
Board caps and floors on where the 40 hours can come from.
- complaint consultantmax 20 hrs
- board meeting attendancemax 10 hrs
- publicationmax 10 hrs
- study groupmax 10 hrs
- symposium paper presentationmax 10 hrs
- poster presentationmax 10 hrs
- elected officer servicemax 10 hrs
Keeping the proof in order: what to keep for a CE audit, with every state’s retention period and what the audit notice asks for.
Full board policy details
- ACCEPTABILITY STANDARDS: No cap on self-study/home study; no minimum live/in-person hours; no per-day cap; no live-interactive-vs-self-study distinction (R4-26-207). To be acceptable, activities under R4-26-207(D)(1)-(4) must focus on the practice of psychology (as defined at A.R.S. § 32-2061(9)) for at least 75% of program hours. The instructor must be readily identifiable as competent by advanced degree, teaching experience, work history, published articles, or prior CE presentation (R4-26-207(F)(2)). A course, seminar, workshop, or home study must provide a certificate of attendance or completion. The Board does NOT operate a board-approved-provider pre-approval regime and does not condition acceptability on APA-approved-sponsor status; it lists acceptable activity/sponsor classes and applies content/instructor standards. There are no lettered provider tiers and no activity category-diversity rule. EXCLUDED CONTENT: the Board will not accept a course, workshop, seminar, or symposium designed to increase income or office efficiency (R4-26-207(L)). Baseline: one clock hour = one CE hour (R4-26-207(A)). The Board's four-hour online jurisprudence education tool ($40 vendor fee, procedural note) satisfies the jurisprudence requirement.
- COURSE REPEAT RESTRICTIONS: The Board will not allow credit more than once in a license period for (1) teaching the same graduate-level course, (2) organizing and presenting a CE activity on the same topic/content area, or (3) presenting the same symposium or paper (R4-26-207(E)(1)-(3)). Study-group credit is allowed only if the licensee maintains the documentation required under R4-26-207(G)(5). No general rule prohibits a mere attendee from repeating a live course within a cycle.
- LICENSE STATUS RULES: Inactive licensees are exempt from CE while inactive and are not part of the audit pool ($85 biennial inactive fee). Retired psychologists (A.R.S. § 32-2073(G)) have stopped practicing; no active-practice CE applies while retired, and a retired person must apply anew rather than reapply to return to practice (R4-26-203.03(D)(7)). REACTIVATION: A psychologist on inactive status for at least two years may reinstate to active status by documenting at least 40 hours of CE meeting R4-26-207 standards (encoded as a conditional requirement). A psychologist on inactive status for LESS than two years reinstates via a prorated amount = 1.67 × number of months from inactive status until the reinstatement application is received, with one ethics hour for every six months of inactive status (R4-26-206(B)) — MANUAL REVIEW: the sub-two-year prorated amount scales with time inactive and is not encoded as a fixed requirement.
- GOOD-CAUSE EXTENSION: A licensee who cannot meet the CE requirement for good cause may request a written extension of time with the timely renewal application (illness/injury, family death, birth/adoption, military service, relocation, natural disaster, financial hardship, or foreign residence ≥12 months). The Board grants no extension longer than one year; a licensee who still cannot complete may apply for inactive status (R4-26-207(J)). This is an extension, not a waiver. On audit, if hours are disallowed, the licensee has 90 days from the mailing date of the notification to complete the requirements and provide an affidavit (R4-26-205(J)).
We turn every category, format limit, and one-time rule on this page into a live checklist on your Arizona Psychologist record, and reapply board changes automatically as they happen.
Track Arizona Psychologist CE free →Arizona Psychologist CE: frequently asked questions
How many CE hours do Arizona Psychologist licensees need?
Arizona requires 40 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew a Psychologist license. Biennial cycle: renews at the end of your birth month.
How many ethics hours are required for Arizona Psychologist licensees?
Of the total, 4 hours must be in professional ethics.
How often do Arizona Psychologist licensees renew?
Biennial cycle: renews at the end of your birth month.
How much does Arizona Psychologist license renewal cost?
The board's renewal fee is $500 every 2 years, per the Arizona board fee schedule. CE course costs are separate and set by course providers.
Are there subject-specific CE requirements for Arizona Psychologist licensees?
Yes. In addition to ethics, Arizona requires 4 hours of jurisprudence / state law.
Is the first renewal different for new Arizona Psychologist licensees?
First renewal is different: new licensees have adjusted first-cycle requirements (proration and/or first-cycle-only rules), which we apply automatically.
Sources & verification
- State source
- Arizona board rule
- Last verified
- August 2026
- Ruleset version
- 2026.1
Reviewed against the Arizona board source and refreshed 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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What to keep for a CE audit
What boards ask for in a CE audit, how long each state says to keep certificates, what the notice looks like, and a printable checklist.
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