How to Track Your NMC Revalidation: A Free Step-by-Step Guide

Revalidating every three years is far easier when you record your evidence as you go, instead of searching for it in the final month. This guide walks through each NMC requirement, shows what to record, and explains how our free NMC revalidation tracker can keep it all in one place.

The eight NMC revalidation requirements at a glance

Nurses, midwives and nursing associates all revalidate against the same requirements:

1. Practice hours: 450 hours over the three-year period (900 if you renew two registrations, 1,350 for three).
2. CPD: 35 hours, including at least 20 hours of participatory learning.
3. Practice-related feedback: five pieces.
4. Written reflective accounts: five, each linked to the Code.
5. Reflective discussion: with another NMC registrant.
6. Health and character declaration.
7. Professional indemnity arrangement.
8. Confirmation: from an appropriate confirmer.

For more detail on each one, read our essential NMC revalidation requirements guide.

Step 1: Find your revalidation date

Log in to your MyNMC account to check when you are due to revalidate. MyNMC replaced NMC Online in February 2026, so older guides that mention NMC Online are out of date. Add your date to the revalidation tracker and it will show how many days you have left.

Step 2: Record your practice hours

You need 450 practice hours over the three-year period, or 900 if you renew as both a nurse and a midwife. The NMC recommends keeping a practice hours log. Note the dates, the setting and the hours as you work them, rather than trying to reconstruct them at the end. You can find the NMC's recommended templates on its forms and templates page.

Step 3: Keep a CPD log

You need 35 hours of CPD in your three-year period, and at least 20 of those hours must be participatory. Participatory learning means learning that involves other people, such as a live webinar with discussion, a workshop or a study group. The 20 hours are part of the 35, not extra. Reading or private study can count towards your 35 hours, but not towards the 20.

For each activity, record:

• the method of learning
• a short description of the topic and how it relates to your practice
• the date
• the number of hours, and how many were participatory
• the part of the Code that is most relevant
• the evidence you hold, such as a certificate or attendance record

The CPD log in our free online tracker has a field for each of these and adds up your total and participatory hours automatically.

Step 4: Collect five pieces of practice-related feedback

Feedback can be written or verbal, formal or informal, and can come from patients, service users or colleagues. When you record it, leave out anything that could identify a person. Keep a note of what the feedback said and what you took from it, because you can use it as the basis for a reflective account.

Step 5: Write five reflective accounts

Each reflective account is about a piece of CPD, practice-related feedback, or an event or experience in your practice, and must link to the Code. The NMC's form asks four questions:

1. What was the nature of the CPD activity, feedback, event or experience?
2. What did you learn?
3. How did you change or improve your practice?
4. How is this relevant to the Code?

The NMC does not set a word count, so short and specific is fine. The reflective accounts form is mandatory, so your final accounts must go on the NMC's form. Many nurses draft first and copy across. The Reflect tab in our tracker has four boxes that match these questions, and you can type or dictate your answers. For ideas on how others approach it, browse our reflective practice examples and the Reflective Practice in Nursing blog.

Step 6: Arrange your reflective discussion and confirmation

Your reflective discussion must be with another NMC registrant, and the NMC's reflective discussion form is mandatory. For confirmation, the NMC says your confirmer should, where possible, be your line manager, who does not need to be an NMC registrant. If you do not have a line manager, it recommends another NMC-registered nurse, midwife or nursing associate. If you have neither, you can seek confirmation from another UK-regulated healthcare professional. Family and close friends cannot act as your confirmer. Read the NMC's own guidance on confirmation before you choose.

Step 7: Check for identifying details before you share anything

Reflections, feedback and CPD notes must not identify patients, colleagues or workplaces. Before you send a document to a reflective discussion partner or confirmer, read it through for names, dates, wards and similar details. The Privacy tab in our NMC revalidation tracker scans a Word or text document on your own device and lists anything that looks identifying. It is a helper, not a guarantee, so always read your documents yourself as well.

Step 8: Keep your evidence safe and back it up

Keep certificates, attendance records and completed forms in one folder you can find easily. The tracker saves your entries in your own browser only, so use its Save my data button to download a backup file, and download your full portfolio as a PDF to share with your confirmer.

How the free tracker helps

• It follows all eight requirements with a progress bar and a countdown to your due date.
• It records CPD with the details the NMC recommends.
• It guides your reflective accounts with the four NMC questions.
• It checks documents for identifying details on your own device.
• It needs no account, and nothing is uploaded.

It is not approved by the NMC and does not replace the NMC's forms. Open the free NMC revalidation tracker to start.

When to get a second pair of eyes

If you would like support from an NMC-registered practitioner, Reflect & Revalidate offers a few options:

• A portfolio pre-check call (£18) to see how close you are and what to book next.
• The reflective discussion service (£52) if you need an NMC registrant for that step.
• The NMC revalidation confirmer service (£52) if your portfolio and reflective discussion are complete and you need the Confirmer Statement.
• The full support package (£99) with a detailed portfolio review, a reflective discussion and both required NMC signatures.

Frequently asked questions

Is the NMC revalidation tracker really free?

Yes. It is free to use, with no account and nothing to download.

Can I use it instead of the NMC forms?

No. The reflective accounts, reflective discussion and confirmation forms are mandatory. Use the tracker to prepare, then copy your answers onto the official forms.

What counts as participatory learning?

Learning that involves interaction with other people, for example a live webinar with discussion, a workshop or a study group. Reading or private study does not count towards the 20 participatory hours.

Will the requirements change?

The NMC is consulting on changes to the Code and to revalidation, with updated requirements expected from October 2027. This guide was last checked against NMC guidance in October 2026. Always check the NMC website and your MyNMC account for the latest rules. You will find more answers in our revalidation FAQs and our forms and templates page.

Reflect & Revalidate is an independent service and is not part of, or approved by, the NMC. This guide is general information and cannot guarantee your revalidation.