Guide · vendor rules · checked October 22, 2026
North Carolina states the family's signature rule: pass both parts within 24 months of completing training, or 3 attempts — whichever comes first. The clock starts at training completion, not at your first test. Candidates who drift for a year before testing have quietly spent half their attempts window doing nothing.
North Carolina: written $40, skills $100 (first attempt $140 combined). Georgia: written $35, skills $95 ($130 combined). Pennsylvania: written $50, skills $85 ($135). Failing skills costs roughly two to three times failing the written part everywhere Credentia publishes a split — which is why the always-graded elements matter (handwashing and indirect-care behaviors are graded in every skills evaluation, whatever skills are drawn; see the exam-day guide).
In Tennessee, Credentia is the name on the renewal reminder email (sent about 120 days before expiration) — the vendor and the registry are different systems wearing similar logos. Your renewal itself runs on work documentation filed with the state, not on anything Credentia sells.
Fees are first-attempt combined totals from the dataset, checked October 22, 2026. Rules summarized from state and vendor pages; your state page carries the sources.
