Virginia certifies EMTs through the Department of Health's Office of EMS. If you trained in Virginia, earning National Registry certification triggers your Virginia certification automatically. Everything below comes from the Office's pages and the Virginia Administrative Code, checked October 18, 2026. Confirm with your program before you pay.
Study aid, not a protocol. Nothing on this site replaces your course, your medical director or your agency's protocols. Built by an RN and former EMT. Headed In LLC is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) or any state EMS office; their names appear here only to point you to the real thing.
The national steps, briefly
A state-approved EMT course
Every state approves its own programs, all taught to the National EMS Education Standards. Most run 150 to 300 hours over three to six months.
A healthcare-provider CPR card
AHA BLS or an equivalent your state accepts, usually before clinicals.
The cognitive exam
The National Registry (NREMT) EMT exam: 70 to 120 adaptive questions in 2 hours, $104 per attempt, six attempts within two years of your course.
Your state's license or certification
The card comes from the state, not the Registry. The state's own steps are below.
Age: at least 16 on the first day of the EMT course; under 18 needs a signed parental permission form. You must read, write and speak English and be able to do every EMT skill.
CPR card: current from an Office of EMS-approved course by the end of the course, and still current at state testing.
Exams: the National Registry EMT cognitive exam at Pearson VUE, up to six attempts with 20 hours of remedial education after the third, and Virginia's Psychomotor Competency Verification.
Certification: trained in Virginia? No separate application: once the Registry certifies you, your Virginia certification processes automatically, typically in about 7 days. The Office tells candidates to get a fingerprint background check as soon as possible through Fieldprint (code FPLRR1041ACE); ask your program when yours is due. No certification fee appears on the Office's pages.
Renewal: an EMT certificate lasts four years from the end of the month it was issued. Recertify with 40 hours of continuing education (20 national, 20 local or individual, per form TR-64) before it expires, or keep your National Registry card and use "Recertify Me" in the Virginia EMS Portal.
From another state: legal recognition, EMT level only, for a current certification from another state or territory: no initial test, a certificate good for up to one year or the time left on yours, whichever is shorter; then 40 training hours and the Virginia psychomotor and Registry cognitive exams to stay. Fingerprinting through Fieldprint is required first.