What Are the CLE Requirements for Iowa Attorneys?
Iowa requires attorneys to complete at least 15 hours of accredited continuing legal education every calendar year under Iowa Court Rules chapter 41.
Since January 1, 2021, those hours have had to include at least 1 hour of legal ethics and 1 hour of attorney wellness or diversity and inclusion.
Each attorney files the annual report and fee for the previous year by March 10, and excess general hours can carry over for up to two later years.
Verify before you rely on this
At a glance
The CLE commission named in Iowa Court Rules chapter 41; the rule text we read gives no fuller office name, so confirm the body with the commission itself.
At least 15 accredited hours each calendar year.
The calendar year; the report and fee are due March 10 of the following year.
At least 1 hour of legal ethics and 1 hour of attorney wellness or diversity and inclusion.
Not established in our research — chapter 41 sets no cap in the text we read; any limit may sit in the commission's chapter 42 regulations.
No CLE requirement for the year of admission.
$100 for a report filed after March 10 but before April 12; $250 after June 11.
How many CLE hours does Iowa require?
Iowa attorneys must complete a minimum of 15 hours of legal education accredited by the commission during each calendar year, under rule 41.3 of the Iowa Court Rules.
The compliance period is the calendar year itself, so the hours are earned in the year they count for.
Everything else on this page, from the special credit hours to the late fees, sits in the same chapter 41 rule text.
“Each attorney admitted to practice in this state must complete a minimum of 15 hours of legal education accredited by the commission during each calendar year.”
What specialty credits are required (ethics, bias, wellness, tech)?
Inside the 15 hours, the rule requires a minimum of 1 hour devoted exclusively to legal ethics and 1 hour devoted exclusively to either attorney wellness or diversity and inclusion, a combination in force since January 1, 2021.
Our research did not confirm any other required categories.
The edition we read is the December 2023 one, so confirm the current categories with the commission before you rely on a niche course qualifying.
“must include a minimum of 1 hour devoted exclusively to the area of legal ethics and 1 hour devoted exclusively to the area of either attorney wellness or diversity and inclusion.”
When is the deadline and how do you report?
On or before March 10 of each year, each attorney admitted to practice in Iowa must file the annual CLE report and pay the annual fee, covering the previous calendar year.
The hours you earn in one calendar year are therefore reported by March 10 of the next.
The chapter 41 text we read pairs the report with a fee but does not state the amount, so confirm the current fee and the filing process with the commission.
What are the rules for newly admitted attorneys?
Iowa does not require attorneys to meet the CLE requirement for the year they are admitted, so the first 15-hour year is the one after admission.
Iowa also has a Basic Skills Course rule, but on the chapter 41 text we read it applies only to attorneys admitted by examination after December 31, 2008 and before January 1, 2015, not to today's new admittees.
Because our research read the December 2023 edition of chapter 41, a newly admitted attorney should confirm with the commission that no newer first-year requirement has been added.
Can you complete CLE online or on demand?
Our research could not establish whether Iowa caps on-demand or self-study CLE hours.
The chapter 41 text we read sets no cap, but such limits may sit in chapter 42, the commission's regulations, which we were not able to read; the research records this as an open question.
Ask the commission, or check chapter 42, before you build a reporting year around recorded self-study courses.
Carryover and exemptions
Excess general hours carry over for up to two later years, but only toward the 15-hour general total: carried hours cannot satisfy the special ethics or wellness and diversity-and-inclusion requirements.
The year of admission is exempt, as covered above, but our research did not confirm any other exemptions.
The commission's chapter 42 regulations, which our research did not read, may hold others, so ask the commission before assuming one applies.
“but cannot be carried over for the special legal ethics, attorney wellness, and diversity and inclusion requirements under this rule.”
What happens if you miss the deadline?
Chapter 41's fee schedule prices a late annual report at $100 if it is filed after March 10 but before April 12, rising to $250 for a report filed after June 11.
Our research did not establish what happens beyond the late fees, so anything further for a report that is still outstanding is a question for the commission that administers the rules.
“After March 10 but before April 12 $100”
What This Page Does, and Doesn’t, Cover
This page summarizes the Iowa court rules, board and bar pages and other sources listed below, as read for this state-by-state CLE requirements series, current as of October 2026.
It is not a substitute for the instructions the CLE commission under Iowa Court Rules chapter 41 publishes.
For the rest of the picture in Iowa, see bar admission rules in Iowa.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do the ethics and wellness hours count inside Iowa's 15 CLE hours?
Yes.
Rule 41.3 requires a minimum of 15 accredited hours each calendar year, and since January 1, 2021 that total must include at least 1 hour of legal ethics and 1 hour devoted exclusively to attorney wellness or diversity and inclusion.
The special hours are part of the 15, not additional to it.
How much is the annual Iowa CLE report fee?
The chapter 41 text our research read requires an annual fee alongside the report, due March 10, but the passages we saved do not state the amount.
The commission's regulations in chapter 42 and the commission's office are the places to confirm the current figure before you file.
Does Iowa limit how many online or on-demand CLE hours you can count?
We could not confirm a limit either way.
Chapter 41 sets no cap in the text we read, and our research flagged that any cap would sit in chapter 42, the commission's regulations, which we did not read.
Check chapter 42 or ask the commission before relying on recorded self-study courses.
Is Iowa's CLE reporting cycle annual?
Yes.
The 15 hours must be completed during each calendar year, and the report for that year, with the fee, is due on or before March 10 of the following year.
Excess general hours can ease a later year, because they carry over for up to two years.
More Iowa Resources
Sources
- Iowa Court Rules, chapter 41 (continuing legal education) (retrieved 2026-10-02)
- Iowa Court Rules, chapter 42 (commission regulations) — referenced in our research but not read (retrieved 2026-10-02)
Sourced from the documents listed above.
Verified October 2026.
This is career information, not legal advice.
Confirm current rules with the CLE commission under Iowa Court Rules chapter 41.