Georgia Nurse Practice Act: LPN Scope, Supervision, and Renewal

The Georgia LPN scope of practice, set by O.C.G.A. § 43-26-32 and Board Rule 410-10-.02, lets a Licensed Practical Nurse provide compensated nursing care under supervision, including participating in patient assessment, giving direct bedside care, administering treatments and medications, and helping manage unlicensed staff, with every task tied to what the nurse has been educated and validated to perform.¹²

What Georgia LPNs Can Do

O.C.G.A. § 43-26-32 defines practical nursing as compensated care, provided under supervision, that relates to maintaining health and preventing illness through acts the Board authorizes.¹ Board Rule 410-10-.02 expands on that and adds a catch-all for “other specialized tasks as appropriately educated.”² In practice, that means direct patient care, medication and treatment administration, data collection, and supervision of unlicensed personnel are all inside your lane, as long as you have documented competency for each specific task.

The line that trips people up most often is assessment. An LPN participates in patient assessment and collects data — vital signs, wound measurements, symptom observations — but that data feeds into a nursing care plan managed by an RN. The LPN does not generate an independent nursing diagnosis. Crossing that line is one of the more common ways nurses end up facing a scope-of-practice complaint.

Rule 410-10-.02 also spells out something worth knowing before you accept an unfamiliar assignment: you are personally liable for acts of negligence. If you perform a task you were not prepared for by education or experience, and no supervision was provided, the legal responsibility rests with you as an individual.² “My charge nurse told me to” is not a defense if you weren’t trained to do the thing.

Who Must Supervise You

Every Georgia LPN must practice under the supervision of a registered nurse, physician, dentist, or podiatrist. That requirement sits inside the statutory definition of practical nursing itself, which means no setting or shift exempts you from it.¹

Supervision does not mean the supervisor has to be in the room. It does mean they must be reachable for consultation and able to step in when a patient’s condition changes or a clinical question comes up. What they owe you, in real terms, is oversight: reviewing patient conditions, confirming that delegated tasks match your competency, and being available when you need to escalate. When that relationship is only nominal, both the LPN and the supervisor carry legal exposure.

IV Therapy

Georgia LPNs may administer prescribed IV hydration, nutrient therapies, and IV medications under appropriate supervision from an RN, physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant.³ There is no separate state IV certification, but you must have documented knowledge, skill, and competency before performing any IV procedure. Most employers handle this with an in-house competency validation. The documentation is what the Board looks for if a complaint or audit reaches you, so keep copies of your own records rather than relying on the employer’s file.

Delegating to Unlicensed Personnel

The statute and Rule 410-10-.02 both authorize LPNs to participate in managing and supervising unlicensed personnel, including nursing assistants.² The tasks you can delegate share three features: they do not require licensed nursing judgment, they follow exact and unchanging directions, and their outcomes are reasonably predictable. When a patient is unstable or the task calls for clinical decision-making, delegation stops and the work stays with a licensed nurse.

Practicing in Other States

Georgia has been a member of the enhanced Nurse Licensure Compact since January 2018, and as of 2026 the NLC includes 43 jurisdictions.⁴ If Georgia is your primary state of residence and you hold a multistate license, you can practice in any other Compact state without applying for a separate license there. That matters for travel assignments, telehealth, and any job that crosses a border.

The primary residence rule is strict. Move to another Compact state and your Georgia multistate license goes inactive; you apply for a new multistate license in your new home state. Converting a Georgia single-state license to a multistate license costs $50.⁵

How LPNs Lose a License

O.C.G.A. § 43-26-40 gives the Board authority to refuse, revoke, or restrict an LPN license for a defined list of reasons.⁶ The categories worth knowing:

Criminal convictions, including any felony, any crime involving moral turpitude, or any drug-related offense. A no-contest plea counts.
Prior discipline from another state’s board, which Georgia can act on by itself.
Unprofessional conduct, including improper medication charting and any departure from minimum acceptable nursing standards. No actual patient injury is required.
Violating a state or federal law related to nursing practice, even when the violation is not a crime.
Violating an existing Board order, which becomes an independent ground for further action.
Impaired ability to practice from illness, substance use, or a mental or physical condition. The Board can order a mental or physical examination at your own expense.⁶

Board sanctions range from a public reprimand to full revocation, with fines, probation, practice restrictions, and suspension in between. When continued practice would cause immediate serious harm to the public, the Board can summarily suspend a license before a full hearing. If you are arrested or charged with a crime, self-report to the Board. That process exists for this exact situation, and letting the Board learn about it from another source almost always produces a worse outcome.

Renewing Your License

A Georgia LPN license renews every two years. To qualify for renewal, Board Rule 410-13-.02 requires one of two continuing competency pathways:⁷

Twenty hours of board-approved continuing education during the two-year period, or
Completion of an accredited academic program of study in registered professional nursing recognized by the Board.

Georgia’s LPN requirements sit lower than the RN requirements, which use five pathways and 30 hours. LPNs have two pathways and 20 hours. Keep documentation of whichever pathway you used for at least four years from the renewal date.⁷ The Board runs random audits, and no proof reads the same as no completion. A lapsed license blocks you from practicing until you reinstate it, which costs $90 and requires proof you meet current standards.⁵

1
Justia Law. Georgia Code 43-26-32 – Definitions
2
Legal Information Institute. Georgia Comp. R. and Regs. R. 410-10-.02 – Standards of Practice for Licensed Practical Nurses
3
Georgia Secretary of State. IV Hydration Position Statement
4
National Council of State Boards of Nursing. NLC States
5
Georgia Secretary of State. Georgia Board of Nursing Fee Schedule
6
Justia Law. Georgia Code 43-26-40 – Refusal to Grant License
7
Georgia Secretary of State. Chapter 410-13 Continuing Competency