Indiana pharmacist CE requirements call for 30 hours of continuing education every two years, and for the license renewal due June 30, 2026, those hours must be completed between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2025.1Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. Pharmacy Home – Section: Continuing Education Requirements The rules sit in 856 IAC 1-26-1, and the categories matter as much as the total.
How the 30 Hours Break Down
At least 24 of the 30 hours must relate directly to pharmacy practice. The remaining six can come from business, management, or computer courses.2Cornell Law School. Indiana Code 856 IAC 1-26-1 – Continuing Professional Education; General Requirements; Definitions That non-clinical allowance is a ceiling, not a target.
A separate rule governs the source of the hours. At least 15 must come from programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE). The other 15 can come from non-ACPE programs, but those have to be evaluated and accepted by the Indiana Board of Pharmacy before they count.1Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. Pharmacy Home – Section: Continuing Education Requirements If a program hasn’t been approved, submit a CE Application to the Board and get confirmation before you rely on those hours. Rejected hours discovered after December 31 leave almost no time to recover.
Newly Licensed Pharmacists
New licensees don’t owe the full 30. If you’re licensed partway through a biennium, you earn 1.25 hours per full or partial month from your licensure date through the end of the biennium. A pharmacist licensed with 12 months left would owe 15 hours.2Cornell Law School. Indiana Code 856 IAC 1-26-1 – Continuing Professional Education; General Requirements; Definitions
There is also a complete exemption: if you become licensed for the first time in any state during the last six months of a biennium, you owe zero hours for that biennium.2Cornell Law School. Indiana Code 856 IAC 1-26-1 – Continuing Professional Education; General Requirements; Definitions The standard 30 hours applies from the next biennium forward.
The Biennium Ends Six Months Before Renewal
Indiana pharmacist licenses expire June 30 of even-numbered years, and the renewal fee is $160. A late renewal adds $50.3Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. Pharmacy Licensing Information
The trap is that the CE biennium closes six months before the license itself expires. For the June 30, 2026 renewal, the biennium runs January 1, 2024 through December 31, 2025.1Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. Pharmacy Home – Section: Continuing Education Requirements Hours earned in the first half of 2026 don’t apply to the 2026 renewal.
Keeping Proof of Your Hours
You don’t submit CE certificates with your renewal. You do have to keep them for four years from the end of the licensing period they applied to, and produce them if the Board audits you.4Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. Pharmacy Home – Section: Continuing Education Certificates of Completion Each certificate should show the provider’s name, program title, number of hours, and completion date. Transcripts from ACPE-accredited providers work too.
The Board points pharmacists to NABP’s CPE Monitor for electronic tracking. Set up an e-Profile through the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, and ACPE-accredited providers report your completed hours to it automatically.5Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. Pharmacy Home – Section: Continuing Education Requirements Non-ACPE hours won’t appear there, so keep separate documentation for those.
If You’re Not Practicing: Inactive Status
Indiana allows pharmacists who aren’t practicing to hold an inactive license. Inactive pharmacists are fully exempt from CE and only pay the license fee to keep the license alive. You cannot practice while inactive. To reactivate, you must meet the current CE requirements and satisfy the Board that you can safely return to active practice.6Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 25-26-13-13 – Active and Inactive Pharmacists
What Happens If You Fall Short
CE non-compliance is a disciplinary matter under Indiana Code 25-1-9. If you can’t produce adequate documentation during an audit, the Board can impose any of the following, alone or combined:
- License revocation.
- License suspension until you meet the Board’s conditions.
- Probation, which may include supervised education or practice restrictions.
- Censure or a letter of reprimand on your permanent record.
- A fine of up to $1,000 per violation, with the Board required to consider your ability to pay.
If a fine is imposed and you don’t pay within the time the Board sets, the Board can suspend your license until you do.7Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 25-1-9-9 – Disciplinary Sanctions