How to Become an EMT in California

The short answer. California EMT certification is issued by a Local EMS Agency (LEMSA) or other authorized certifying entity (read 2026-09-03), not by EMSA. Be 18. Finish an approved EMT course, or a listed equivalent. Pass the NREMT cognitive and psychomotor exams within two years of the California application, with a course completion issued within two years. The certifying entity must have the State and Federal background results before it issues the card. The card is valid statewide. You hold one certifying entity at a time. Healthcare-provider CPR is a prerequisite to start the basic course. Renew with 24 hours of approved EMS CE or a 24-hour refresher. This page is the state credential. It is not a city hire window.

Ready to Serve is not an EMSA partner and does not issue the card.

Who issues the California EMT card?

Not EMSA. The EMT/AEMT Certification page (read 2026-09-03): "Certification is issued by the local EMS agency (LEMSA) and is valid statewide. EMSA does not process certification applications directly." "There is no online process through EMSA for initial certification." "You must contact your local EMS agency for application details." "The State of California does not certify, renew or reinstate EMT certifications. This is done by the local EMS agency and other authorized certifying entities."

22 CCR §100068(g) (operative January 1, 2025, read 2026-09-03): "An EMT shall only be certified by one (1) certifying entity during a certification period."

Older copies of this page said the card is issued at the county level and that you may need to apply through that county's LEMSA if you work in a different county than where you trained. EMSA's page contradicts the county-bound reading: the card is statewide. You still apply at a LEMSA or authorized entity. EMSA tells you to use the one in the county where you live or plan to work. That is the application door, not a county-only card.

Cornell's heading for 22 CCR §100068 still reads "Clinical Experience for EMT." The body after Register 2024, No. 36 (filed September 5, 2024, operative January 1, 2025) is initial certification. The heading and the body on that same page disagree. The body is the certification rule.

How old do I have to be?

18 or older. That is 22 CCR §100068(b)(1) (read 2026-09-03). EMSA's certification page this retrieval does not reprint the age. The Code does.

A high school diploma or GED is not in §100068(b). Older copies listed it under basic eligibility. A training program may still require one to enroll. That is the school, not the certification line.

What course do I take?

An approved EMT training program, or one of the equivalents in §100068(a)(2) through (a)(6): an approved out-of-state initial EMT course; a current out-of-state EMT certificate; current NREMT EMT, AEMT, or Paramedic registration; a current out-of-state AEMT or Paramedic certificate; or a current California AEMT certificate or Paramedic license. Course completion records are valid two years for certification (EMSA, read 2026-09-03; §100068(a)(1)).

Hours are not on the EMSA certification page and not in §100067.02. Older copies said 160 to 200+ hours, "2 to 4 week intensive," and "one month." Those clocks are not a state floor. Plan from the program's own calendar. Find approved training programs through EMSA. This page does not rank schools.

Healthcare-provider-level CPR equivalent to the current American Heart Association Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care is a prerequisite for admission to an EMT basic course (22 CCR §100067.02(b)(2), operative January 1, 2025, read 2026-09-03). EMSA's certification page this retrieval does not reprint CPR. The Code does. Older copies listed CPR with the LEMSA application packet. The Code puts it at the start of the course, not at the end.

What exams do I take?

NREMT cognitive and psychomotor, within two years of the California application (§100068(a); EMSA, read 2026-09-03). Passing NREMT does not let you work in California. EMSA (read 2026-09-03): "Until this process is complete, you may not work as an EMT in the State of California." You still apply at a LEMSA, complete the background check, and receive the state card.

The NREMT EMT cognitive exam is computer adaptive: 70 to 120 items, 2 hours (EMR and EMT Certification Examinations, read 2026-09-03). You have six chances to pass the examination. If you fail three times, NREMT requires remedial education (EMT Candidate Handbook, About the Examination, read 2026-09-03). The BLS examinations page this retrieval reprints the April 7, 2025 exam launch. Older copies printed a content-percent table (Airway 18-22 percent and the rest). That table is not the 2025 exam. Do not study from it.

The NREMT examination fee is posted on nremt.org. The California certifying entity sets its own application fee. EMSA prints no statewide EMT dollar.

How do I apply?

Contact a local EMS agency. There is no EMSA online application (EMSA, read 2026-09-03). §100068(b): signed application; State and Federal criminal background results before initial certification issues; fee set by the certifying entity.

The certifying entity issues a wallet-sized certificate card within forty-five (45) days (§100068(c)). Initial expiration is the last day of the month two (2) years from the effective date (§100068(e)). EMSA: "EMT and AEMT certifications are valid for two years."

How do I renew?

Before expiration (EMSA, read 2026-09-03): 24 hours of approved EMS continuing education in the last two years or an approved 24-hour refresher, and a skills competency verification form from an approved training provider. §100067.02(b)(9) is the 24-hour refresher the recertification path uses.

Once you hold a California EMT card, you are not required to keep NREMT to renew that card. If the California certificate lapses over one year and NREMT has lapsed as well, you pass cognitive and psychomotor again to reinstate (EMSA, read 2026-09-03). Older copies implied ongoing NREMT. EMSA contradicts that.

Lapse ladders on EMSA (read 2026-09-03):

• Less than 6 months: 24 hours CE or a 24-hour refresher, plus the skills form.
• 6 months to less than 12 months: 36 hours CE, plus the skills form.
• 12 months or more: 48 hours CE, the skills form, a new background check, and proof of passing the NREMT exams within two years of application, or a current NREMT EMT / AEMT / Paramedic certificate, or a current California AEMT certificate or Paramedic license.

AEMT renewal before expiration is 36 hours of CE (may include a 24-hour EMT refresher). That is the AEMT line on the same EMSA page, not the EMT line.

What this page does not claim

Pay, ranked schools, a 160-to-200-hour state floor, a 2-to-4-week intensive as a state clock, and HS/GED as a §100068 line are not on the EMSA or Title 22 pages this article uses. Older copies also printed a paramedic training-hour range that the state pages do not carry. That figure is not this credential. The California paramedic how-to is the page for that license.

Next step

Open the EMSA EMT/AEMT Certification page. Find an approved training program. Confirm you will be 18. Get healthcare-provider CPR before the basic course starts. After NREMT, apply at a LEMSA, not at EMSA.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does EMSA issue my EMT card?

No. A LEMSA or other authorized certifying entity issues it. There is no EMSA online application. The card is valid statewide. You hold only one issuer per certification period.

How old do I have to be?

18 or older (22 CCR §100068(b)(1)). EMSA's certification page this retrieval does not reprint the age. The Code does.

What exams do I take?

NREMT cognitive and psychomotor within two years of the California application, plus an approved course completion (or a listed equivalent) within two years. Cognitive shape: computer adaptive, 70 to 120 items, 2 hours (BLS examinations page). You have six chances to pass; after three unsuccessful attempts, NREMT requires remedial education (EMT Candidate Handbook, About the Examination). Passing NREMT is not a license to work in California.

Is CPR required?

Healthcare-provider-level CPR equivalent to current AHA Guidelines is a prerequisite to start an EMT basic course (22 CCR §100067.02(b)(2)). Older copies listed it with the LEMSA application. The Code puts it at course admission.

How long does the card last?

Two years, last day of the issue month. Wallet card within 45 days.

How do I renew?

24 hours of approved EMS CE in the last two years, or an approved 24-hour refresher, plus the skills form. NREMT is not required to renew a live California card. If both the California card and NREMT have lapsed over one year, you pass the exams again to reinstate.

What does it cost?

The certifying entity sets the fee. EMSA prints no statewide EMT dollar.