How to become a vet tech in Delaware

Last checked October 25, 2026 against the sources listed below. Information, not legal advice: confirm with the board before you apply or take on a task.

Delaware vet techs hold the Licensed Veterinary Technician (LVT) credential, a state license issued by the Delaware Board of Veterinary Medicine. You need the license to use the LVT title and to do the tasks the Board's rules reserve for LVTs, such as inducing anesthesia. Unlicensed support personnel may do a shorter list of tasks under a veterinarian's supervision. To get licensed, you graduate from an AVMA-accredited veterinary technology program and pass the VTNE.

Delaware vet tech credential at a glance

Item	Delaware
Title	Licensed Veterinary Technician (LVT)
Issued by	Delaware Board of Veterinary Medicine, a state board within the Division of Professional Regulation
Type	State license
Required to work as a tech	Yes, with conditions A license is required to use the LVT title and to do LVT-only tasks such as inducing anesthesia. Unlicensed support personnel may do a shorter list of tasks under supervision.
Education	Degree from an AVMA-accredited veterinary technician program, or a foreign program approved by the AVMA. No experience-only route found.
Exams	VTNE. The Board must approve you to sit for it. No separate state exam.
Renewal and CE	Every two years. Board pages say licenses expire July 31 of even years; the rule text still says odd years. 12 CE hours per full renewal period.
Moving from another state	Reciprocity for techs with a current license in good standing elsewhere, AVMA-accredited education and a passing VTNE score. Narrow VTNE exception for pre-1990 graduates who stayed licensed.

How to get your LVT in Delaware

Graduate from an AVMA-accredited veterinary technician program, or a foreign veterinary technician program approved by the AVMA. Your school sends your official transcript directly to the Board.
Apply through DELPROS, the state's online licensing system, and get Board approval to sit for the VTNE. Final-year students may apply before graduating with a letter from the school confirming good standing and the expected degree date.
Pass the VTNE, which is run by the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB). If you passed it earlier, have your score report sent from the Veterinary Information Verification Agency (VIVA).
If you hold or have held a license in another state, have each state send a license verification directly to the Board.
Answer the application questions on criminal history, impairment and past discipline. The law lets the Board review these and, for some criminal records, grant a waiver.
The Board issues the license once it has your passing score and has confirmed that you meet all requirements. The Board needs your final transcript before it approves licensure.

If you apply more than two years after passing the VTNE, the Board's application page asks for proof of 18 CE hours completed within the past three years. The Board's rule says within four years, so check the current period with the Board. No minimum age or fingerprint check was found for vet tech applicants.

A first-time applicant who is eligible for the exam may get a temporary license. You must send a letter from a Delaware-licensed veterinarian confirming your employment and supervision, and you may not work as an LVT before it is issued. The rules require direct supervision for temporary licensees. The temporary license ends automatically if you fail the exam or do not take it at the earliest opportunity.

What a credentialed tech can do, and what an assistant can do

Delaware's rules list tasks by supervision level. The veterinarian must first examine the animal, set a treatment plan and authorize the work, except for listed emergency care. Immediate supervision means the veterinarian is within direct eyesight or hearing range. Direct supervision means the veterinarian is on the premises and readily available. Indirect supervision means the veterinarian is off the premises but reachable.

Task	Credentialed tech	Veterinary assistant
Induce anesthesia	Yes, with conditions: immediate supervision.	No The law and the rules bar support personnel from inducing anesthesia.
Intubate	Yes, with conditions: direct supervision.	Yes, with conditions: immediate supervision.
Maintain anesthesia	Yes, with conditions: direct supervision.	Yes, with conditions: direct supervision.
Perform cystocentesis	Yes, with conditions: direct supervision.	No, outside emergencies. The rules bar support personnel from centesis other than venipuncture.
Clean and polish teeth	Yes, with conditions: direct supervision.	Yes, with conditions: direct supervision.
Simple dental extraction	Yes, with conditions: direct supervision, with no periosteal elevation, no sectioning of the tooth and no bone removal.	Yes, with conditions: immediate supervision, with the same limits.
Give a rabies vaccine	Yes, with conditions: only to a shelter-owned dog or cat, under indirect supervision (3 Del. C. 8204). The Board's rule still lists rabies vaccination as barred for LVTs.	No The rules bar support personnel from giving rabies vaccines.

Neither LVTs nor support personnel may diagnose, give a prognosis, prescribe, perform surgery, perform operative dentistry or oral surgery, euthanize except as the euthanasia rules allow, or issue health certificates. LVTs may tack or suture IV and urinary catheters and nasal cannulae to the skin, and may place arterial and urethral catheters under direct supervision.

Veterinary assistants in Delaware

Delaware has no state permit or registration for veterinary assistants. The law calls them support personnel and lets any person do support activities under a Delaware-licensed veterinarian's supervision, within the Board's rules. Under immediate supervision they may intubate, place a urethral catheter (not in a known urinary blockage or existing urethral or bladder disease) and do a simple dental extraction within the limits above. Under direct supervision they may maintain anesthesia and clean and polish teeth. They may not induce anesthesia, give rabies vaccines or do the other barred tasks listed above. Only licensed people may use a title suggesting they are a licensed veterinary technician.

Renewal and continuing education

Licenses renew every two years through DELPROS. The Board's renewal page says veterinary licenses expire on July 31 of even years, and its CE pages describe a renewal period running August 1 through July 31 of even years. The Board's rule text still says licenses expire in odd years, so confirm your date in DELPROS. You may file a late renewal for up to one year after expiration, with a late fee.

12 hours of approved CE per full two-year renewal period. You attest to completing them when you renew.
Your first renewal may need fewer hours, depending on when your license was issued. The Board's CE page lists 6, 3 or 0 hours by issue date.
The Board runs random CE audits. Do not upload certificates to DELPROS unless you are selected.
Inactive licenses can be renewed without CE, but reactivating one requires proof of CE and a fee.

Recent changes

Mandatory reporting training (2026 law): House Substitute 1 for House Bill 415, approved July 23, 2026, requires veterinarians to report suspected animal cruelty and to complete one hour of mandatory reporting training. It applies to licenses issued or renewed after December 31, 2026. The training rule names veterinarians and does not mention technicians, but the amended renewal section says each application under the chapter must include an attestation. LVTs should check with the Board whether this applies to them.
Proposed, not yet in force: the Board published proposed rule changes in May 2026, with comments due June 1, 2026. They would add a telemedicine section, including a provision letting a licensed vet tech provide some telemedicine services within their scope, plus technical and style edits. No final adoption was found as of October 2026.
No final change to vet tech education, exams, scope, title or CE hours was found for 2024 through October 2026.

FAQ

Can I work in a Delaware clinic without an LVT license?

Yes, as unlicensed support personnel, within the tasks and supervision levels the Board's rules allow. You may not call yourself a licensed veterinary technician or do LVT-only tasks such as inducing anesthesia.

Can a Delaware LVT induce anesthesia?

Yes, under immediate supervision, meaning the veterinarian is within eyesight or hearing range. Support personnel may not induce anesthesia.

Can an LVT or assistant extract teeth?

Only simple extractions, with no periosteal elevation, no sectioning of the tooth and no bone removal. An LVT needs direct supervision and support personnel need immediate supervision. Oral surgery and operative dentistry are barred for both.

I am licensed in another state. Can I transfer to Delaware?

Delaware offers reciprocity if your current license is in good standing, you graduated from an AVMA-accredited program and you passed the VTNE. You also send license verifications from every state where you hold or held a license.

Can a Delaware LVT give rabies vaccines?

The state rabies law allows an LVT under indirect supervision to vaccinate dogs and cats owned by a shelter. Ferrets must be vaccinated by a veterinarian. The Board's rule still lists rabies vaccination as barred for LVTs, so check with the Board for any other setting.

Sources

Rules change and boards apply them case by case. If your situation is unusual, ask the Delaware Board of Veterinary Medicine directly.

We are adding vet tech, assistant and veterinarian jobs state by state. Leave your email and state, and we will write when jobs in your state go up or your state's rules change. One email a week at most.