Minnesota real estate CE requirements and license renewal

Minnesota real estate licenses are valid for up to two years and must be renewed by June 30 of the expiration year. Renewal requires 30 hours of approved real estate continuing education (CE) completed during each license period, including a mandatory annual module course, 1 hour of Agency Laws training, and 1 hour of Fair Housing training. The Minnesota Department of Commerce oversees all real estate licensing, CE approval, and renewal through the PULSE Portal at pulseportal.com.

Minnesota real estate license renewal cycle and deadlines

Minnesota real estate licenses expire on June 30 of the renewal year, and all CE must be completed before that date. The first June 30 after initial licensure is exempt from CE, as is the first June 30 after re-licensure following an extended period of inactivity.

Salesperson renewals are filed by the affiliated broker through the PULSE Portal. A salesperson must demonstrate CE compliance before June 15 so the broker can process the renewal, though the statutory CE deadline remains June 30. If a course provider does not upload the student roster by July 10, the license lapses, per the Minnesota Department of Commerce Real Estate License Guide^[1].

State law does not provide grace periods for missed deadlines.

How many continuing education hours are required

Minnesota structures its CE requirement as a biennial cycle with an even split across each license year, so licensees complete coursework in stages rather than all at once.

The license year runs from July 1 to June 30.

The annual required module course

Each license year, the Minnesota Commissioner of Commerce assigns a mandatory general module course that all salespersons and brokers must complete. The module counts toward the annual CE hours, not in addition to them.

For the 2026-2027 license year, the module is "Cybersecurity in Real Estate," a 3.75-hour course that both salespersons and brokers must complete before June 30, 2027, according to the Minnesota Department of Commerce education page^[2]. To receive credit, licensees must pass an exam at the end of the course: 20 multiple-choice and true/false questions drawn from a pool of at least 50, with a passing score of 14 or more correct answers.

Completing the 2026-2027 general module also satisfies the broker module requirement, so no separate broker module course is needed. The module does not satisfy the separate Agency Laws or Fair Housing requirements.

Broker vs. salesperson CE requirements

Brokers must meet the same CE hour totals as salespersons but have one additional obligation: a broker module course each license year, when one is assigned. For 2026-2027, the general module covers both requirements. Limited brokers and closing agents have no CE requirement, per the Minnesota Department of Commerce^[1].

Minnesota real estate license renewal fees

The renewal fee for a salesperson license is $60 plus the technology surcharge, and the broker renewal fee is $120 plus the surcharge, per the Minnesota Department of Commerce^[1]. Both fees include a $20 real estate education, research, and recovery fund charge. The technology surcharge is $10, effective May 1, 2023, under Minn. Stat. § 45.24(f)^[3].

The real estate education, research, and recovery fund portion supports consumer protection and education programs administered by the Department of Commerce.

Taking Minnesota real estate CE courses online

Minnesota permits licensees to fulfill all CE requirements through online and distance-learning formats, including the mandatory annual module. The Department of Commerce, in consultation with a statewide trade association and a private CE provider, determines module topics and credit hours each license year.

For licensees seeking the most flexible scheduling, on-demand options eliminate fixed class times.

Select courses are available at no charge from certain trade associations.

Finding approved CE course providers

Minnesota requires all real estate CE courses to come from providers approved by the Department of Commerce.

Providers typically upload course completions within 10 business days of the course date, according to SPAAR^[4]. Licensees should verify that completions appear on their transcript before the renewal deadline.

Checking your CE transcript

Licensees can verify their completed CE hours through the state's online licensing system.

If a course completion is missing, the licensee must contact the provider directly; the Department of Commerce cannot add credits on the licensee's behalf, per Minnesota REALTORS®^[5].

Commercial-only licensee exemption

Salespersons and brokers who hold a commercial-only designation are exempt from the Agency Laws, Fair Housing, and module course requirements, but must complete all other CE hours. To claim the exemption, commercial-only licensees must apply annually between April 1 and June 30 on the PULSE Portal, as Minnesota REALTORS®^[5] confirms. Paper exemption forms are no longer accepted.

NAR requirements vs. Minnesota state CE

The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) maintains education requirements for members that are separate from state CE obligations.

Minnesota's Agency Laws and Fair Housing CE requirements are distinct from NAR's training and must be completed separately, per Minnesota REALTORS®^[5].

Missed deadlines and license reactivation

A license becomes inactive if CE is not completed, the license is not renewed, association with a broker ends, or the broker's license becomes inactive. Licensees cannot earn credit for more than 8 hours of CE in a single day, according to Minnesota REALTORS®^[5], so catching up on outstanding CE requires planning across multiple days.

The reactivation path depends on how long the license has been inactive and whether the renewal deadline has passed, per the Minnesota Department of Commerce^[1]:

If a license has been inactive for more than two years, the licensee must repeat the entire licensing process from prelicense education through examination.

Next steps for Minnesota licensees

Review your CE transcript well before each renewal deadline to confirm all required hours, including the annual module, Agency Laws, and Fair Housing, are recorded. If any credits are missing, contact your course provider immediately. Complete coursework early enough to ensure providers have time to upload rosters before the July 10 lapse deadline.