When is my Tennessee license due for renewal?

On the last day of your birth month, every two years. Tennessee uses the biennial birthdate renewal system (Rule 1200-10-1-.10): the license expires on the last day of the month in which your birthday falls, and the board pages state the renewal year tracks your birth year (even birth year renews in even years, odd in odd).

How and when can I renew online?

Through the LARS portal at https://lars.tn.gov/datamart/login.do, starting 60 days before your expiration date. Paper renewal is also allowed using the form mailed to your address on file. Renewal notices go out roughly 90 days before expiration, by email if you opted in, otherwise by mail.

How much does renewal cost?

MD: $300 renewal fee plus a $10 biennial state regulatory fee, $310 total (Rule 0880-02-.02). DO: $200 renewal fee plus the $10 state regulatory fee, $210 total (Rule 1050-02-.02). Renewing late adds a $200 late licensure renewal fee for either license.

Do I send CME certificates with my renewal?

No. You attest to completion at renewal; the Board is not a records keeper of CME. Keep your documentation, because the Board may audit any licensee after renewal, and only audited physicians are asked to submit proof (BME FAQs).

What happens if I miss my expiration date?

The day after expiration your status shows as lapsed on the public verification page and the $200 late fee applies. You can still renew with the late fee through the last day of the month following expiration. After that no renewal is accepted; you must apply for reinstatement (form PH-3556), pay past-due and late fees, possibly explain the lapse to the Board, and for MDs document 20 CME hours per 12-month lapsed period up to 80 hours. More than two years out of clinical practice can trigger re-entry requirements.

I am retiring. Do I have to keep renewing?

No. File the affidavit of retirement (form PH-3460); there is no fee to retire the license. If you later reactivate, you pay the renewal fee and document 20 CME hours per 12 months since retirement up to 40 hours, and being out of clinical practice more than two years subjects you to the Board's re-entry policy (Rule 0880-02-.10).

Tennessee Medical License Renewal 2026: $300 fee, 40 hours CME, birth-month deadline

When it is due

Birth month. Rule 0880-02-.09(1)(a) (identical for DOs in 1050-02-.07): the due date is the license expiration date, which is the last day of the month in which the license holder's birthday falls, under the Division of Health Related Boards biennial birthdate renewal system (Rule 1200-10-1-.10). The board site states everyone renews every two years in their birth month, with the renewal year keyed to birth year (even birth years renew in even years, odd in odd). Online renewal opens 60 days before expiration; renewal notices go out roughly 90 days ahead (paper, or email for opted-in licensees).

Fee

MD: $300 Licensure Renewal Fee plus $10 biennial State Regulatory Fee, so $310 total per 2-year cycle (Rule 0880-02-.02(1)(f) and (g), June 2025 revision). DO: $200 Licensure Renewal Fee plus $10 biennial State Regulatory Fee, so $210 total per 2-year cycle (Rule 1050-02-.02(1)(b) and (c), December 2025 revision).

Late fee

$200 Late Licensure Renewal Fee for both MDs (Rule 0880-02-.02(1)(h)) and DOs (Rule 1050-02-.02(1)(d)), imposed starting the day after the expiration date, on top of the regular renewal fees.

If you miss the deadline

There is a one-month late window, not a practice grace period: a renewal received after the expiration date but on or before the last day of the month following expiration is accepted with the $200 late fee (Rule 0880-02-.09(1)(c); 1050-02-.07(1)(c)). Practicing on an expired license is a violation of law and board rules, and the public verification page shows the license as lapsed the day after expiration. After that one-month window, no renewal application is accepted at all (Division Rule 1200-10-1-.10(2)) and the physician must reinstate: submit the reinstatement application (form PH-3556), pay the past-due renewal fee plus the $200 late fee, possibly appear before the Board or submit a notarized good-cause statement, and for MDs document 20 hours of CME per 12-month period (or portion) preceding the request, up to 80 hours (Rule 0880-02-.09(2)). More than two years out of clinical practice can trigger the Board's re-entry requirements. An alternative during the late window: file an affidavit of retirement by the last day of the month after expiration and the license is retired effective on its expiration date, with no fee to retire.

Processing time

null reason: the Board does not publish a renewal processing timeframe. It states only that renewals must be successfully processed by the expiration date and that incomplete applications, incomplete payment, or holds delay processing (BME FAQs).

MD vs DO

This state runs separate MD and DO requirements. MD: 40 hours per 2-year cycle: at least 40 hours in Category 1, 2 hours of opioid prescribing, required topics: Pain Management. DO: 40 hours per 2-year cycle: at least 40 hours in Category 1, 2 hours of controlled substances.

Tennessee Medical License Renewal, 2026

Email me this guide

i Deadlines, fees, and what happens if you are late

1 Step-by-Step: Renewing Your Tennessee Medical License

2 Tennessee CME Requirements

3 Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Track your Tennessee license, CME, and DEA in one place

4 Frequently Asked Questions

✓ Where this comes from

Take this guide with you