Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) · rules checked October 22, 2026
Renewal every 2 years requires BOTH kinds of proof: at least 8 hours (one documented day) of paid nursing-related services under RN or LPN supervision in the prior 24 months, AND 24 hours of continuing education or in-service training in the same period - including 2 hours of LGBTQ cultural competency / specialized clinical training and 10% (about 2.4 hours) in DC public health priority subjects - plus a new criminal background check clearance. Renewal is filed through your Credentia account.
If you have never worked for pay since certifying, use your certification date.
| Credential | Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) |
|---|---|
| Registry | District of Columbia Nurse Aide Registry (Board of Nursing; registry and testing operated by Credentia) · (877) 672-2174 |
| Training required | 125 hours |
| Exam | Credentia — Not published — confirm with the registry |
| How renewal works | A calendar renewal and a paid-work rule both apply. Renewal fee: Not published — confirm with the registry. |
| Keep-active work rule | Renewal every 2 years requires BOTH kinds of proof: at least 8 hours (one documented day) of paid nursing-related services under RN or LPN supervision in the prior 24 months, AND 24 hours of continuing education or in-service training in the same period - including 2 hours of LGBTQ cultural competency / specialized clinical training and 10% (about 2.4 hours) in DC public health priority subjects - plus a new criminal background check clearance. Renewal is filed through your Credentia account. |
| Continuing education | 24 hours of continuing education or in-service training per 2-year cycle (12 hours per year): must include 2 hours in cultural competency or specialized clinical training focused on patients/clients who identify as LGBTQ, and 10% in subjects the Director publishes as District public health priorities. |
| Who reports your work | You do — nobody files it for you |
Changing soon: DC Health transitioned all licenses, certificates and registrations to a birth-month renewal cycle effective June 16, 2024: credentials issued or renewed since then expire on the last day of the holder's birth month (in the holder's birth-year parity), replacing the old single October 31 odd-year expiration date still printed in the 2019 Chapter 96 text. During the transition, Boards accepted 50% of CE for short first terms, but the 2 LGBTQ hours and 10% public health priorities still applied in full.
Expired certification can be reinstated if you apply within 5 years after it expires and provide: 24 hours of in-service/CE within the past 2 years, evidence of current CNA certification or registration, evidence of at least 8 hours of CNA work within the last 24 months, and a completed criminal background check (17 DCMR 9609).
If you do not apply for reinstatement within 5 years after expiration, reinstatement closes: you must qualify again under the initial certification-by-examination requirements (17 DCMR 9605) - approved training within the past 24 months and passing the NNAAP exam.
Trap: DC is one of the few jurisdictions where the work rule and a real CE rule stack - aides used to states with no CE are caught by the 24-hour requirement, and the 2 LGBTQ-competency hours and the 10% public-health-priorities slice must be inside it. The reinstatement rule as written also asks for evidence of a current CNA certification or registration, which can force an aide whose only credential was DC's to rebuild eligibility through another route. DC also offers an inactive status (no renewal fee, no practice) with its own reactivation requirements - different from an expired certification.
Application fee: Not published — confirm with the registry. Under 17 DCMR 9606 you must show current unencumbered CNA registration or certification in another jurisdiction and meet the general requirements of 9604 (age 18+, criminal background check, application). Chapter 96 publishes no dollar fee for endorsement, and the older $15 figure in secondary checklists could not be confirmed on a current DC Health page — any fee appears inside the Credentia application. Applications and registry enrollment run through Credentia, which DC Health has contracted for CNA testing and registry processes. Fast-track exception: DC Health announced a temporary 90-day certification for Maryland and Virginia CNAs in good standing - $50 fee, background check, review within 5 business days, work allowed under the temporary certificate while verification completes, then full certification by endorsement. That $50 is the fast-track temporary fee, not the standard endorsement fee.
The table below is computed for an active aide in good standing, trained to the origin state's standard hours. Your own hours or status can change your row — run the transfer checker with your real facts.
| Certified in | Verdict for District of Columbia | Fee | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Alaska | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Arizona | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Arkansas | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| California | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Colorado | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Connecticut | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Delaware | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| District of Columbia | Same state — no transfer needed | ||
| Florida | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Georgia | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Hawaii | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Idaho | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Illinois | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Indiana | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Iowa | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Kansas | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Kentucky | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Louisiana | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Maine | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Maryland | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Massachusetts | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Michigan | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Minnesota | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Mississippi | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Missouri | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Montana | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Nebraska | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Nevada | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| New Hampshire | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| New Jersey | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| New Mexico | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| New York | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| North Carolina | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| North Dakota | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Ohio | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Oklahoma | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Oregon | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Pennsylvania | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Rhode Island | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| South Carolina | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| South Dakota | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Tennessee | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Texas | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Utah | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Vermont | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Virginia | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Washington | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| West Virginia | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Wisconsin | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
| Wyoming | Accepted as-is | Not published — confirm with the registry | District of Columbia endorses an active, good-standing certification with no application fee and no retest. Application and background check still apply. |
The kit carries District of Columbia's full recovery path — the forms, the order to file them, the phone scripts — plus transfer checklists for every destination. See the kit →
