EMT Utah is a separate entity from Utah Bureau of Emergency Medical Services and Preparedness (BEMSP) and the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT). To check the status of your license, CME requirements, license expiration, information about state-to-state reciprocity, and all other license-specific questions, please contact the Utah Bureau of EMSP (BEMSP) at 801-273-6666 and not EMT Utah.

This page is meant to be used as a quick reference, but you should always use the NREMT and BEMSP websites as official guides. Recertification guidelines may change without notice and while we will do our best to keep this page updated, EMT Utah does not guarantee that it will always contain the most up-to-date information.

AEMT Recertification Guide

Utah AEMT PatchEach new EMS professional in the state of Utah is required to maintain their NREMT* and Utah EMT certifications, which are each on a two-year recertification cycle. It is important that you pay close attention to the expiration dates on both accounts, as they may be different from each other depending upon when you received your AEMT certification.

AEMT providers must obtain and submit 50 hours of approved CMEs every two years before their expiration date in order to recertify with both the NREMT and Utah BEMSP. Utah BEMSP now utilizes NREMT in order to track and verify CME hours, so you must be current on NREMT in order to recertify your Utah license. See below for instructions on completing your NREMT and BEMSP applications.

*State License User Only (SLO) providers who obtained Utah AEMT certification prior to Utah’s transition to NREMT may not be required to obtain NREMT certification, but they still are required to submit CME hours through a state license user only NREMT account. More information can be found on Utah BEMSP’s website or by calling Utah BEMSP at (801) 273-6666 or emailing them at ems@utah.gov.

NREMT Recertification

NREMT certifications expire every two years on March 31st. The application period for NREMT recertification opens on October 1st each year and remains open until the March 31st due date. This six month period is when each expiring provider is required to input their hours and submit their recertification application. All continuing medical education (CME) hours must have been obtained within your most recent two-year cycle and they must be submitted before this deadline, along with an approval from your Training Officer and Medical Director if you are aligned with an agency. If you are not aligned with an agency, you may recertify without Training Officer and Medical Director approval and your recertification application will be approved with an inactive status.

During your recertification application period (October 1st through March 31st), you must input your 50 hours of CMEs into your NREMT account. To do this, follow these steps:

  1. Go to nremt.org and log in to your account.
  2. Make sure your current role is listed as “My Certification” (the page should say “Certification Dashboard” at the top).
  3. Click “Add a Course” on the left side of the screen.
  4. Input the information for the CME hours you completed. Specific information for this step will vary depending on how you obtained your 50 hours. You may need to input several different courses if you did your 50 hours by taking multiple classes.
  5. Once all your hours are in, click “Manage My Education” on the left side of the screen.
  6. Click on each topic area and assign your CME hours to each topic by selecting the appropriate course from the drop-down menu. See below for a breakdown of how many hours you need for each topic.
  7. Once each topic area is complete, the box next to it will turn green. Once all boxes are green, click “Recert Application” on the left side of the screen.
  8. Complete each step of the recertification application, pay your recertification fees, and submit your application.

Late Applications: If you submit your NREMT application later than March 31st for any reason, you will be subject to a $50 late application fee. Late applications may only be submitted up until April 30th and all submitted CME hours must have been completed prior to March 31st.

Application Audits: Each year, NREMT randomly selects 10% of submitted recertification applications for audit. If this happens to you, don’t fret, the process is simple. They will just require that you submit proof of completion for each of your CME courses from the previous cycle, including certification cards (for courses like ACLS or PALS), official transcripts, or certificates of completion. Typically, if you are going to be audited, you will receive notice within a few days of submitting your NREMT application.

Recertification by Exam: NREMT also allows students to recertify by taking the cognitive exam (usually taken at the end of an EMT course to become certified for the first time) over again. To utilize this option for recertification, you must submit a Recertification by Exam application on your NREMT account between April 1st of the year prior to your expiration date and the date of your expiration. You will then be issued an Authorization to Test (ATT) letter and will have one attempt to pass the cognitive exam. You must pass the exam prior to your expiration date and will still need to fill out the remainder of the recertification application as explained above, including the criminal conviction statement, verification of skills, etc.

Utah BEMSP Recertification

AEMT providers must submit a recertification application and pay associated fees every two years before their expiration date (March 31st, June 31st, or September 31st). 50 hours of CMEs are required every two-year period and are entered through NREMT by following the steps in the previous section. Since your BEMSP license expiration date may fall before or after your NREMT expiration date, as long as your NREMT certification is up-to-date with CME hours for your current recertification cycle at the time that you submit your Utah recertification application, you will be able to obtain recertification.

To recertify with Utah BEMSP, you must submit an application by following these steps:

  1. Go to emslicense.utah.gov and log in to your provider account.
  2. Click “Applications” from the menu on the left side of the screen.
  3. Click “Apply Now” next to “EMT Application”.
  4. Select “Renew” from the options at the bottom of the first page of the application.
  5. Fill out all required pages of the application, including providing photocopies of your government-issued ID, a passport-style photo, BLS certification information, and PALS/PEPP or equivalent certification information.
  6. Sign and submit application.
  7. Pay application fees.

Late Applications: If you fail to submit your Utah BEMSP application by your expiration date, you will need to reach out to Utah BEMSP for further instruction. They can be reached by phone at (801) 273-6666 or by email at ems@utah.gov.

CME Topic Area Breakdown for AEMT:

The NREMT and Utah BEMSP require that you complete a certain number of CAPCE- or state-approved course hours for each of the topics below. Official courses that are put on by your designated agency typically count, as do CAPCE-approved refresher courses, NCCP refresher courses, and EMS-related college courses. Simply working in the field or volunteering as an EMS provider, however, does NOT count toward your CME hour requirement. You also may NOT count hours from a Paramedic course that you intend to use to gain Paramedic certification. All hours must also cover advanced-level provider topics (i.e. EMT refresher courses will not count).

National Component (25 hours): maximum of 8 Distributive Education* hours allowed

  • Airway/Respiration/Ventilation – 2.5 hours
  • Cardiovascular – 7 hours
  • Trauma – 3 hours
  • Medical – 7.5 hours
  • Operations – 5 hours

State Component (12.5 hours): maximum of 8 Distributive Education* hours allowed

  • 8.5 hours in three of the following categories:
    • Patient Advocacy
    • Protocol Review
    • Documentation
    • Disaster Preparedness
  • 4 hours in Pediatric Care (must obtain PALS, PEPP, or equivalent certification)

Individual Component (12.5 hours): maximum of 12.5 Distributive Education* hours allowed

  • 12.5 hours in any topic (courses must be CAPCE- or state-approved)

*Per NREMT, Distributive Education (DE) is defined as a method of delivering EMS education where the educator and student are not able to interact in real time. Examples include online courses, journal article review, and videos.

Lapsed Certifications:

If your Utah AEMT license has lapsed, but you still have a current, non-expired NREMT certification, reach out to Utah BEMSP for further instructions. They can be reached by phone at (801) 273-6666 or by email at ems@utah.gov.

If your NREMT certification has lapsed, but you still have a current, non-expired Utah certification, you will need to regain your NREMT certification prior to your next Utah expiration date. If both your NREMT and Utah certifications have lapsed, you will need to regain your NREMT certification before Utah will allow you to become licensed again. This requires you to complete the following:

  • Obtain 50 CME hours, following all the CME requirements listed above
  • Obtain a current CPR-BLS for Healthcare Provider certification or equivalent
  • Take and pass the NREMT cognitive examination for AEMTs
  • Take and pass the NREMT psychomotor examination for AEMTs

See NREMT’s AEMT Re-Entry Pathway page for more information.