Virginia Real Estate Salesperson License requirements

Follow these steps in order. Deadlines and affiliation requirements can make a passed exam unusable if they are missed.

1. 1

   Complete the 60-hour Principles of Real Estate course with a Board-approved provider

   Your school uploads PSI eligibility. Requirement per the DPOR Pre-License page and Board FAQ. Maryland's 60-hour course, which includes ethics, is a different course.

2. 2

   Pass the PSI exam ($60): national 80 items/105 min, pass 56; Virginia 40 items/45 min, pass 30 (combined 120/150 min)

   70% national / 75% state. Bulletin 466, Last Revised 2/18/2026. Get fingerprinted at a Virginia PSI site (9 a.m.–1 p.m., no appointment) or through Fieldprint. The Johnson City and Salisbury sites cannot capture electronic prints.

3. 3

   Apply on A490-0225SLIC-v15 ($244.50) within 1 year of the initial examination date and within 90 days of Board receipt of fingerprint results

   For active status: Virginia firm and principal-broker numbers plus the Broker Statement. Inactive status is still a license, but you cannot practice. The high school diploma/GED question is a required yes/no.

4. 4

   Complete the named 30-hour PLE within one year from the last day of the month of issuance to remain active; your first renewal uses PLE, not the 16-hour CE requirement

   Nine named courses totaling 30 (Fair Housing/ADA 2, Law 6, Ethics 3, Issues 2, Agency 3, Contract Writing 6, Risk 3, Escrow 3, Finance 2). Later two-year terms: 16 hours under 18VAC135-20-101 (11 mandatory, including 2 flood/legal-updates). After expiration there is a 30-day window, then reinstatement; the date DPOR receives your renewal, not the postmark, controls.

Minimum age

18 years old

Identification

A Social Security number is required. An ITIN is not confirmed as a substitute.

Residency and identification

PSI bulletin: you must be at least 18 and either complete the required pre-license education or be licensed to practice real estate in another state. Virginia residency is not required. Reciprocity (Board FAQ): pass the Virginia state portion, submit verification of a 60-hour Principles of Real Estate course, and submit letters of certification from other jurisdictions where licensed; you MUST hold a current salesperson license in another state. The application form requires an original Certification of Licensure dated within the last 60 days. A high school diploma or GED is required by statute (§54.1-2105.B.1.a). An SSN or Virginia DMV control number is required on the form.

Qualifying education

According to the DPOR Pre-License page and Board FAQ, you need 60 class/clock hours of a Board-approved Pre-License Course named Principles of Real Estate, then must pass the state and national portions. The school submits your eligibility to PSI. A Maryland 60, a North Carolina 75, or 60 of Tennessee's 90 hours is not this course. Reciprocity applicants still need a substantially equivalent 60-hour Principles certificate plus the Virginia state portion (Board FAQ and application question 10.B). After licensure, the Post-License page requires the named 30-hour PLE (nine courses totaling 30) within one year from the last day of the month of issuance to remain active. PLE courses do not count as CE, and CE courses do not count as PLE. Principles taken for the salesperson license is not acceptable as broker pre-license education (Pre-License page note).

Education or filing deadline

Apply within 1 year of the initial examination date (application form and bulletin); after that, your exam score no longer counts. The application must arrive within 90 calendar days of the Board receiving your fingerprint results. Complete PLE within one year from the last day of the month of issuance to remain active. The license term is two years.

Character review

Application questions 14–16 ask about disciplinary action by any jurisdiction; any U.S. felony; any misdemeanor involving fraudulent or dishonest acts, sexual offense, non-marijuana drug distribution, or battery within the past five years; and any fair-housing law violation in any U.S. jurisdiction. Disclose everything; failing to disclose is disqualifying on its own. Fingerprint results are part of the review. The form also serves as a written power of attorney appointing the DPOR Director as agent for service of process if you are not a Virginia resident or later move out of state.

Background process

Fingerprints are mandatory and go to the Virginia Central Criminal Records Exchange for a state and national fingerprint-based criminal history record check (bulletin and application form). Use a PSI Virginia site or Fieldprint. Your application must arrive within 90 calendar days of the Board receiving your results. DPOR and PSI do not list a fingerprint fee.

Experience

No licensed experience is required for a salesperson license. Active practice requires affiliation with a licensed Virginia firm or sole proprietor (application form). To become a broker later, you must be actively engaged 40 hours per week during 36 of the 48 months immediately preceding the broker application (broker form question 12) and complete 180 broker hours. The Board FAQ still says "actively engaged as a salesperson for 36 out of the 48 months" without the 40-hour-week clause; the broker application form sets the stricter standard, and it is the form you sign.

Broker affiliation

Application question 11 asks whether you are applying for active license status with a licensed real estate firm or sole proprietor. If not, you are issued an inactive license. For active status, you need the firm's Virginia real estate license number and the principal broker's name and number; to affiliate with a branch, you need the branch license number and supervising broker. In the Broker Statement on the form, the principal or supervising broker with signatory authority assumes responsibility under Title 54.1 Chapter 21. Firm licensure is a separate DPOR license. You cannot practice on inactive or expired status (Board FAQ). Transferring an active salesperson license is done through Online Services, not with a new original application.

PSI Services LLC (test-takers.psiexams.com/vare; (855) 340-3910; Candidate Information Bulletin 466, Last Revised 2/18/2026). Your school uploads your eligibility. $60. The portions are scored separately: 70% to pass national, 75% to pass state. · Fee: $60

The fee is $60 per registration (Pre-License page and bulletin), not refundable or transferable. Retake only the failed portion. Apply within 1 year of the initial examination date, or you must retake the exam. Reciprocity candidates take the state portion only, still at $60. Cancel within the bulletin's deadline or forfeit the fee. You cannot schedule a retake on the same day you tested.

These are commission or testing-vendor amounts we can cite. School tuition and optional preparation products are private-market prices.

Form A490-0225SLIC-v15 (rev. 07/01/2026) lists a Fee of $244.50. The application and initialLicense amounts here are that same single $244.50 payment, not two fees. Asterisk: Technology Fee $7.25 per year under 2026 HB 30 (July 1, 2026–June 30, 2030). APPLICATION FEES ARE NOT REFUNDABLE. PSI $60 (Pre-License page and bulletin 466). 18VAC135-20-80 and 18VAC135-20-120 were repealed effective April 1, 2026, so the old $150 original / $65 renewal / $100 reinstatement amounts no longer apply. The 2026 form does not list a renewal fee; confirm it in DPOR Online Services before you pay. The broker original fee is $299.50 (includes Recovery Fund assessment), or $134.50 if a Virginia salesperson is upgrading.

• !

  Assuming a 70% cut on the 40-item Virginia state portion

  PSI's table: pass 30 of 40 (75%). National is 56 of 80 (70%). The percentages differ.

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  Applying more than 1 year after the initial examination date

  The application form requires re-examination. You cannot test now and file whenever you like.

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  Letting 90 days pass after the Board receives fingerprint results

  Application form and bulletin: you must pay to be fingerprinted again. If the CCRE rejects your prints, you have 21 days to submit new ones.

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  Fingerprinting at Johnson City or Salisbury

  Per the Pre-License page, out-of-state sites cannot do electronic fingerprinting. Use a Virginia PSI site (9 a.m.–1 p.m., no appointment) or Fieldprint.

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  Treating a Maryland 60 or 60 of Tennessee's 90 hours as Principles of Real Estate

  Reciprocity still requires a 60-hour Principles certificate, the Virginia state portion, and a current out-of-state salesperson license.

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  Missing the named 30-hour PLE and expecting to stay active

  Per the PLE page, the license goes inactive automatically at one year from the last day of the month of issuance. Your first renewal still requires PLE, not the 16-hour CE. PLE courses will not count as CE.

• !

  Budgeting the repealed $150 / $65 regulation fees

  18VAC135-20-80 and -120 were repealed April 1, 2026. The 07/01/2026 salesperson form lists $244.50. Confirm the current renewal fee.

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  Assuming an IdentoGO fee, or skipping Fieldprint because a blog said PSI-only

  DPOR names PSI sites and Fieldprint. DPOR and PSI do not publish a fingerprint fee.

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  Treating Chesapeake Bay Act, aircraft-noise, or septic disclosure as optional trivia

  They are scored Virginia state items (Disclosure Requirements 10). Maryland and D.C. exams do not cover them.

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  Calling Pearson, or taking Maryland's $44 exam, for a Virginia score

  Virginia real estate exams are given by PSI under bulletin 466 at $60. Maryland reciprocity does not transfer a score.

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  Using Principles of Real Estate toward the broker 180

  Pre-License page note: ANY PRINCIPLES OF REAL ESTATE COURSE TAKEN FOR LICENSURE AS A SALESPERSON IS NOT ACCEPTABLE AS A BROKER PRE-LICENSE EDUCATION COURSE.

According to the Board FAQ, reciprocity salespersons must (1) pass the State portion of the examination, (2) submit verification of completion of a 60-hour course called Principles of Real Estate, and (3) submit letters of certification from other jurisdictions where licensed, and MUST hold a current salesperson license in another state. The exam is not waived, and there is no list of partner states. Universal License Recognition is a separate application on the salesperson forms page. Confirm the current requirements with the Board before you skip the 60-hour course.

Virginia vs neighboring states

Hours are the pre-license total printed in each guide; states that count credits or named courses show “See guide.” Published state fees add the application, exam, initial-license, and fingerprint amounts the guide can cite — tuition is not included.

How many prelicense hours?

Sixty class/clock hours of a Board-approved Pre-License Course named Principles of Real Estate, per the DPOR Pre-License page and Board FAQ. The school uploads your eligibility to PSI.

What is the exam format?

PSI, $60. National: 80 items (80 points) / 105 minutes, pass 56. Virginia: 40 items (40 points) / 45 minutes, pass 30 (75%). Combined: 120 / 150 minutes. Bulletin 466, Last Revised 2/18/2026. Reciprocity candidates take the state portion only. Apply within 1 year of the initial examination date.

Does 70% pass the state portion?

No. PSI's passing-score table lists national 56 (70% of 80) and state 30 (75% of 40). If you assume the 70% state cut used in Maryland or Massachusetts, you can fail this portion.

How much is the original license?

Form A490-0225SLIC-v15 (07/01/2026): $244.50. 18VAC135-20-80 was repealed April 1, 2026, so do not budget the old $150. PSI charges a separate $60. The asterisk on the form covers the HB 30 Technology Fee of $7.25/year.

Do I fingerprint, and where?

Yes. PSI Virginia sites 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m., no appointment, or Fieldprint at fieldprintvirginia.com. Johnson City, TN and Salisbury, MD cannot do electronic fingerprinting. Your application must arrive within 90 calendar days of the Board receiving your results. DPOR and PSI do not publish a fingerprint fee.

What is the 30-hour post-license, and when?

The Post-License Education page requires a named nine-course 30-hour curriculum within one year from the last day of the month of issuance to remain active; if you miss it, the license goes inactive automatically. The Board FAQ says all salespersons (active or inactive) renewing for the first time complete 30 hours of PLE instead of CE. Later terms: 16-hour CE under 18VAC135-20-101. PLE is not CE.

What CE applies after the first term?

18VAC135-20-101 (amended April 1, 2026): 16 hours, of which 11 are mandatory — Fair Housing 2, Ethics 3, Agency 2, Contracts (including escrow) 2, Legal updates and emerging trends including flood zone areas and the National Flood Insurance Program 2 — plus 5 electives from the named list. Brokers later take 24 hours with 8 supervision (2 of which are broker-supervision overview). Inactive licensees are not required to complete CE as a condition of renewal (same section). Carryover: excess hours in the last six months of the term carry into the next two-year period.

Is the exam waived for reciprocity?

No. According to the Board FAQ, you must pass the Virginia state portion, provide a 60-hour Principles certificate and letters of certification from every other jurisdiction, and hold a current salesperson license in another state. Universal License Recognition is a separate application.

Where is the Board and who gives the exam?

9960 Mayland Drive, Suite 400, Richmond, VA 23233. Licensing (804) 367-8526. Education (804) 367-2406. [email protected]. PSI (855) 340-3910, test-takers.psiexams.com/vare. Exam locations: Charlottesville, Richmond, Roanoke, Vienna, Virginia Beach, plus Johnson City, TN and Salisbury, MD (no electronic fingerprinting). Call-center hours on Tuesday/Wednesday are currently limited (noon–2 p.m.).

Which Virginia-specific topics are scored?

Chesapeake Bay Act disclosure, aircraft-noise/crash disclosure, septic disclosure, Megan's Law, HOA/POA delivery timing, Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act, Property Owner's Association Act, and the Transaction Recovery Fund. The Virginia state portion differs from Maryland's 30-item PIFHA state portion and Tennessee's 40-item affiliate-broker exam.

Does an inactive license still renew? Still need PLE?

According to the Board FAQ, yes: an inactive license must be renewed at the same fee, but inactive licensees do not have to meet CE. First-time renewing salespersons (active or inactive) complete 30-hour PLE instead of CE. Per the PLE page, missing the one-year PLE deadline places an active new salesperson on inactive status automatically. You cannot practice on an inactive license.

What happened to the $150 / $65 regulation fees?

18VAC135-20-80 and 18VAC135-20-120 were repealed effective April 1, 2026. The 07/01/2026 salesperson form lists $244.50. Confirm the current renewal fee on DPOR Online Services rather than relying on a 2022 regulations PDF.