How to become a vet tech in Tennessee

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.

Tennessee vet techs hold a license as a Licensed Veterinary Medical Technician (LVMT), issued by the Tennessee Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners, a state board supported by the Department of Health. Board rules require the license to practice as a veterinary technician and to use the vet tech title. State law still lets other employees of a veterinarian give medication and provide supporting help under that vet's responsible supervision. To get licensed, you graduate from an AVMA-accredited vet tech program, pass the VTNE, complete a criminal background check and apply to the board.

Tennessee vet tech credential at a glance

Item	Tennessee
Title	Licensed Veterinary Medical Technician (LVMT)
Issued by	Tennessee Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners, a state board supported by the Department of Health
Type	State license
Required to work as a tech	Yes, with conditions A license is required to practice as a veterinary technician and to use the title. Unlicensed employees of a veterinarian may give medication and provide supporting help under that vet's responsible supervision.
Education	Graduate of an AVMA-accredited vet tech program. The board also accepts CVMA-accredited Canadian programs after verification. No experience-only route.
Exams	VTNE, passed within the last 10 years for licensure by exam. The board adopts the VTNE as its state exam. The rules list no separate state law exam.
Renewal and CE	License renews every two years. 12 CE hours every calendar year, due December 31; 6 must cover medical, surgical or nursing care; at most 4 online or multi-media.
Moving from another state	License by reciprocity if you graduated from an AVMA-accredited program, hold an active unrestricted license elsewhere and worked as a tech 1 of the last 5 years, averaging 20 hours a week. The board may waive the work requirement.

How to get your LVMT in Tennessee

Graduate from a veterinary technology program accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). The board counts any AVMA-accredited program, whatever the degree or certificate is called. Graduates of programs accredited by the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA) are accepted after the board's designee verifies equivalence.
Register for and pass the VTNE through the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB). Your score must be from the last 10 years, and AAVSB sends it straight to the board. If you apply before passing, the board keeps your file open until you have had the chance to take the VTNE three times.
Apply to the board, online through the Department of Health licensing portal or on paper form PH-0911. The paper application is signed in front of a notary and comes with two recent passport-type photos and a Declaration of Citizenship showing US or Canadian citizenship or lawful presence.
Have your school send an official transcript showing graduation directly to the board office. If you hold or have held a tech license in another state, each of those states must send a verification directly to the board.
Complete the criminal background check through the vendor named in the application materials. Out-of-state applicants are mailed a fingerprint card after the board receives the application.
Pay the fees. As listed by the board in its fee rule and paper application instructions as of October 2026, the application fee is $75 plus a $10 state regulatory fee, $85 in total. Reciprocity applicants also pay an $80 reciprocity license fee, $165 in total.

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

Tennessee does not publish a task-by-task list. Board rule 1730-03-.02 limits LVMTs to procedures the supervising veterinarian assigns or delegates, and bars them from diagnosing, prescribing and performing surgery. The statute (T.C.A. 63-12-135) lets a veterinarian assign tasks to an LVMT the vet regularly employs, under the vet's "responsible supervision" and full responsibility, except procedures that board rule reserves for professional judgment. Board rule 1730-03-.10 says supervision must be in the same hospital, clinic or outpatient office, but the board's 2014 position statement says the vet does not have to be physically on the premises. The few tasks the law does name are below.

Task	Credentialed tech	Veterinary assistant
Diagnose, prescribe or perform surgery	No Board rule excludes these from the technician scope of practice.	No These are the practice of veterinary medicine, and the employee exemption covers only giving medication and supporting help.
Give medication	Yes, with conditions: when delegated by the supervising veterinarian, under responsible supervision.	Yes, with conditions: the law exempts employees of a licensed veterinarian who give medication under that vet's responsible supervision.
Euthanasia at a certified animal control agency	Yes, with conditions: employed by a veterinarian and under the vet's direct supervision.	No, unless the person holds a separate board certificate as a certified animal euthanasia technician.
Chemical capture (darting) of dogs and cats	Yes, with conditions: employed by a veterinarian and under the vet's direct supervision.	No, unless the person holds a separate board certificate as a certified animal chemical capture technician.
Float horse teeth with non-motorized tools	Yes, with conditions: as the vet's employee, under the vet's supervision within a valid veterinarian-client-patient relationship; the vet need not be present.	Yes, with conditions: the same rule applies to any employee of the veterinarian.
Give rabies vaccines to dogs and cats	Yes, with conditions: only by or under the supervision of a veterinarian. The law does not separate techs from other staff.	Yes, with conditions: the same rule, only by or under the supervision of a veterinarian.

For microchips, the board's August 2026 position statement says best practice is implantation by a veterinarian or under a veterinarian's responsible supervision. It also says employees, agents or contractors of shelters, humane organizations and animal control agencies may microchip dogs and cats their organization legally owns.

Veterinary assistants in Tennessee

Tennessee has no state permit, registration or license for veterinary assistants. The Practice Act does not apply to aides and other employees of a licensed veterinarian who give medication or provide supporting help under that vet's responsible supervision. Board rules say no employee may provide professional services without a licensed veterinarian's responsible supervision, and the board reads that to mean the person must be the supervising vet's employee. Under board rules, only licensees may use the titles "veterinary technician," "licensed veterinary technician" or "technician." The board does offer two separate certificates that some shelter and animal control staff hold: certified animal euthanasia technician and certified animal chemical capture technician.

Renewal and continuing education

Your first license lasts at least 12 months. After the first renewal, it expires every 24 months, on the last day of the license month. You can renew online about 100 days before expiration, and the board sends one courtesy notice. Practicing on an expired license violates the law and board rules. To reinstate, you pay the past-due renewal and state regulatory fees plus a late fee and show CE compliance. Under a 2020 board policy, an LVMT who worked more than six months on an expired license faces a fine of $50 for each month worked past that grace period. As listed by the board in its fee rule as of October 2026, renewal costs $90 plus a $10 state regulatory fee every two years, and the late renewal fee is $80.

CE is due every calendar year, not once per cycle. You need 12 hours by December 31 each year. Since January 15, 2026, 6 of those hours must cover medical, surgical or nursing care of animals, and the other 6 may cover other topics such as practice management or regulatory programs. No more than 4 hours may be multi-media, multi-media courses need a written post-course test, and the board counts live webinars as multi-media, not live classes. Courses approved by AAVSB's RACE program, by veterinary associations and by accredited veterinary or vet tech schools count without prior board approval. You are exempt in the calendar year you graduate, and you must keep proof of your CE for four years after the end of the year you took the course.

Recent changes

CE subject split (effective January 15, 2026): the CE rule, 1730-03-.12, now requires 6 of the 12 yearly hours to cover medical, surgical or nursing care of animals. The old rule set no subject split. The board's CE web page still shows the older wording, so check the rule itself.
Canadian graduates (December 4, 2024): the board adopted a policy recognizing graduates of CVMA-accredited vet tech programs as comparable to AVMA graduates.
Board renewed through 2031 (2026): Public Chapter 535 extended the Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners to June 30, 2031.
Microchip position statement (August 21, 2026): the board stated its view on who should implant microchips.
The Department of Health's legislative summaries and the board's 2025 and 2026 minutes list no new law that changes LVMT licensure or scope, creates a "veterinary nurse" title or adds a veterinary professional associate role.

FAQ

Can I work in a Tennessee clinic without an LVMT license?

The law lets employees of a licensed veterinarian give medication and provide supporting help under that vet's responsible supervision, and there is no state assistant credential. Without the license, a person may not practice as a veterinary technician or use the technician titles.

Does Tennessee have a state exam for vet techs?

The rules list no separate one. The board adopts the VTNE as both its state and national exam, and for licensure by exam your passing score must be from the last 10 years.

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

The board offers licensure by reciprocity if you graduated from an AVMA-accredited program, hold an active unrestricted license in another state, territory or Canadian province, and worked as a tech at least one of the last five years, averaging 20 hours a week. You also send a veterinarian's recommendation letter, verifications from every state where you held a license, and a background check. The board can waive the work requirement on written request, and it accepts document packages sent through AAVSB's VAULT service.

Can I become an LVMT through on-the-job experience?

No. Both the exam route and the reciprocity route require graduation from an AVMA-accredited vet tech program, or a CVMA-accredited Canadian program the board has verified.

Can I call myself a veterinary nurse in Tennessee?

Tennessee has no "veterinary nurse" credential, and the veterinary rules do not address that title. The protected titles in board rules are "veterinary technician," "licensed veterinary technician" and "technician," and only board licensees may use them.

Sources

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

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