# Virginia

In Virginia the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), under the Criminal Justice Services Board, certifies and decertifies law-enforcement officers, and the Board must decertify an officer when an agency reports a listed conviction or misconduct separation. Since 2023 the State has added impeachment evidence to the mandatory grounds, closed decertification records to FOIA, made experienced officers in good standing eligible for hire at any Virginia agency, adopted statewide conduct standards, and barred officers, including federal officers, from wearing facial coverings on duty, with listed exceptions.

Source: https://uscli.org/officer-certification-tracker/virginia

## At a glance

- **Certifying body:** The Criminal Justice Services Board (policy body) and the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS). The Department, under the Board’s direction, “shall” certify and decertify law-enforcement officers and provide a decertification review process ([Va. Code 9.1-102(36)](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/9.1-102/); 15.2-1706; 15.2-1707). The same system covers jail officers. No separate certifying body for sheriffs’ deputies was found.
- **Statute:** Va. Code [15.2-1705](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/15.2-1705/) (minimum qualifications and prior-employer records), 15.2-1706 (certification through training), [15.2-1707](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/15.2-1707/) (decertification), and 15.2-1708 (decertification notice and review); 9.1-102 (Board and DCJS powers); 9.1-116.01 (universal certification, 2024); 19.2-83.3 to 19.2-83.7 (use of force and duty to intervene); and [19.2-83.6:2](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/19.2-83.6:2/) (facial coverings and ID, 2026). Rules: 6VAC20-20 (entry training), 6VAC20-30 (in-service), and 6VAC20-65 (conduct standards and decertification, 2026).
- **Minimum standards:** Officers entering duty after July 1, 1994 “shall” be U.S. citizens; undergo a background investigation with fingerprint checks of state records and the FBI; have a high school diploma or equivalent; hold a driver’s license if the job needs one; pass a physical exam after a conditional offer; be at least 18; have no felony conviction or guilty or no contest plea to one; and not fail an agency drug screening without a satisfactory explanation. Since July 1, 2013, they also may have no conviction for a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, a misdemeanor sex offense, or domestic assault. The hiring agency “shall” request records of arrests, civil suits, internal investigations of misconduct or excessive force, and job-performance separations from all prior employing agencies, and may not employ the officer until in-state agencies respond. Agencies must answer within 14 days. DCJS may waive the qualifications for good cause (15.2-1705).
- **Decertification:** The agency head or designee “shall” notify the Board within 48 hours of a felony; a moral-turpitude, sex, or domestic assault misdemeanor; failure to keep up mandated training; or a refused or unexplained positive drug test. The agency “shall” also report terminations or resignations tied to pending convictions, drug screens, violations of law, serious misconduct, a pending serious-misconduct investigation, credibility or honesty issues, or acts that are exculpatory or impeachment evidence. On notice the Board “shall immediately decertify.” The Board “may” also decertify current or former officers on its own finding. Review runs through DCJS under the Administrative Process Act. A decertified officer may petition for reinstatement after 5 years (15.2-1707, 15.2-1708).
- **Public decertification list:** None found. Records given to the Board or DCJS for decertifying an identifiable officer “shall not be disclosed” under the Virginia FOIA (15.2-1708(F), added 2024), and Board and DCJS meetings on decertifying an identifiable officer may be closed (2.2-3711(A)(55)). The [DCJS decertification page](https://www.dcjs.virginia.gov/law-enforcement-decertification) lists forms and contacts but no list of officers.
- **National Decertification Index:** None found. No section of Va. Code 15.2-1705 to 15.2-1708, 9.1-102, or 9.1-116.01, no rule in 6VAC20-65, and not the DCJS decertification form (rev. February 2026) names the Index.
- **Continuing training:** 40 hours of in-service training for law-enforcement officers: 2 hours of cultural diversity, 4 hours of legal training, and 34 hours of career development or electives, with no more than 4 for firearms qualification. Officers must finish it by December 31 of the second calendar year after entry training, then every other calendar year ([6VAC20-30-30](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/admincode/title6/agency20/chapter30/section30/), 6VAC20-30-40). By statute, in-service standards must also cover state and federal law, bias-based profiling, de-escalation, disabilities and mental health, and lawful use of force (9.1-102(58)).

## Changes, 2023 to 2026

- Jul 1, 2026 — **Officers, including federal officers, barred from facial coverings on duty and required to display a name or ID and their agency** — 2026 Acts chs. 1131 (HB 1482) and 1132 (SB 352), identical: new Va. Code 19.2-83.6:2; 9.1-102 and 18.2-422 amended. Also 2026 Sp. Sess. I ch. 1 (HB 30, the budget), Item 391.L · Effective July 1, 2026; the approval date could not be checked from official sources on October 19, 2026 — The acts numbered the new section 19.2-83.6:1. The Code publishes it as 19.2-83.6:2, because 19.2-83.6:1 is now the duty to render aid (2026 ch. 583). Under it, “no law-enforcement officer shall” wear a facial covering that conceals, obscures, or covers the face while performing official duties. This covers Virginia officers under 9.1-101 and “any full-time or part-time employee of a federal law-enforcement agency.” A facial covering is an opaque mask, garment, helmet, or headgear that hides a substantial part of the face to conceal identity, such as a balaclava, tactical mask, gaiter, or ski mask. Exceptions: clear shields or masks that do not conceal identity; N95 or surgical masks; protection from toxins, smoke, or severe weather; underwater gear; motorcycle helmets, or other coverings when agency policy allows, while using a vehicle that requires a helmet, lowered or removed before engaging a person; laser-protective eyewear; SWAT or tactical teams on tactical duty; and undercover, drug, gang, or surveillance units where the agency decides identity protection is necessary. — On duty, officers “shall visibly display” a badge or insignia with the officer’s name or a unique identifier, and the agency’s name. The 2026 budget, Item 391.L, exempts from that display rule SWAT and tactical officers on SWAT duty, and officers in undercover, drug, gang, executive protection, or surveillance units where identity protection is necessary. The Code shows this as a version of subsection D effective until June 30, 2028. A violation of the section is a Class 1 misdemeanor “unless” the employing agency has adopted a written facial-covering policy using the DCJS model policy as guidance; that safe harbor covers the ID rule too. DCJS “shall” write the model policy (9.1-102(75)). The general anti-mask law, 18.2-422, now begins “Except as otherwise provided in § 19.2-83.6:1,” a cross-reference that now points to the render-aid section. No court ruling on applying the law to federal officers was found. — **For officers:** On duty in Virginia, display your name or ID and your agency unless the budget exemption covers your unit, and check whether your agency has a written facial-covering policy. — [Va. Code 19.2-83.6:2](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/19.2-83.6:2/)[2026 Acts ch. 1131](https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB1482/text/CHAP1131)[2026 Sp. Sess. I ch. 1, Item 391](https://budget.lis.virginia.gov/item/2026/2/HB30/Chapter/1/391/)
- Feb 1, 2026 — **Statewide conduct standards and a serious-misconduct list for decertification** — 6VAC20-65-10 to 6VAC20-65-40 (new chapter), final regulation, Virginia Register 42:10 · Published December 29, 2025; effective February 1, 2026 — The Register says the chapter is adopted under Chapter 37 of the 2020 Acts of Assembly, Special Session I; the standards duty is now Va. Code 9.1-102(60). Every certified law-enforcement and jail officer “must” comply with eight conduct standards, such as obeying the law and agency policy, treating all people with dignity, preserving life, and upholding public trust. 6VAC20-65-30 lists the serious misconduct that warrants decertification when an officer is terminated or resigns for it and the employer reports it: dishonesty, including failing to report known exculpatory and impeachment information to a superior; abuse of power; discriminatory policing; engaging in, failing to intervene in, or failing to report excessive force; obstructing decertification reporting or investigations; and a pattern or single egregious act of reckless disregard for rights or safety. 6VAC20-65-40 sets the 48-hour deadline for the decertification form and the hearing steps. 2024 ch. 494 shaped only the appeal-hearing and recruit-form provisions. — **For officers:** Failing to tell a superior about known exculpatory or impeachment information can now lead to decertification. — [Virginia Register 42:10](https://register.dls.virginia.gov/vol42/iss10/v42i10.pdf)[6VAC20-65](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/admincode/title6/agency20/chapter65/)
- Jul 1, 2024 — **Decertification overhaul: impeachment evidence added, recruits covered, DCJS review, records closed** — 2024 Acts ch. 494 (SB 88), amending Va. Code 2.2-3711, 9.1-102, 15.2-1707, 15.2-1708, and 19.2-83.7 · Signed April 4, 2024; effective July 1, 2024 — 15.2-1707: the reportable separations now include violations of law where a prosecution ends because the officer resigned; acts “in relation to” duties that compromise credibility, integrity, or honesty; and acts in the performance of duties that are exculpatory or impeachment evidence in a criminal case. Notice is due within 48 hours of the separation or of the completed internal investigation, depending on the ground. Recruits and field trainees who commit a decertifying act “shall be considered decertified.” The Board “may decertify” current or former officers; before, it “may initiate decertification proceedings.” The Board’s option to wait for a final conviction, and the rule that appealed misdemeanors and nonfinal misconduct findings did not count, were repealed. 15.2-1708: review now runs through DCJS under the Administrative Process Act, with appeal to the Board and then to court. The officer stays decertified while charges or appeals are pending, with a manifest-injustice exception for unadjudicated charges. Reinstatement petitions are allowed 5 years after the final decision, and 9.1-102(66) now requires reinstatement standards. New 15.2-1708(F) bars FOIA disclosure of decertification records. — **For officers:** Leaving a job over conduct that is impeachment evidence now leads to decertification without waiting for a final outcome. — [2024 Acts ch. 494](http://legacylis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+CHAP0494)[Va. Code 15.2-1707](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/15.2-1707/)[Va. Code 15.2-1708](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/15.2-1708/)
- Jul 1, 2024 — **Universal certification for transferring officers, with a records check before the offer** — 2024 Acts chs. 542 (HB 1022) and 581 (SB 207), identical: new Va. Code 9.1-116.01 · Signed April 5, 2024; effective July 1, 2024 — A sworn officer with at least one year of experience “shall be eligible for employment” at any Virginia agency if the officer’s training meets current Board standards, the officer meets 15.2-1705 and 15.2-1706, has no break in service over 24 months, and leaves in good standing with no pending investigation or discipline. The Board may require more training on Virginia law. Before any conditional offer, the hiring agency “shall” request the 15.2-1705(B) records from all prior employing agencies, and “shall employ all reasonable means” to get out-of-state and federal records, including a waiver from the applicant. The applicant “shall” then sign a sworn declaration that the records are true and complete. A psychological exam may be required after a conditional offer. — **For officers:** With a year of service and good standing, you are eligible for hire by any Virginia agency, after a records check and a sworn declaration. — [2024 Acts ch. 542](http://legacylis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?241+ful+CHAP0542)[Va. Code 9.1-116.01](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/9.1-116.01/)

## Not yet in force and pending

- **Budget exemption from the ID rule, through June 30, 2028:** the exemption in Item 391.L ends on that date unless extended (see above). [Va. Code 19.2-83.6:2](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/19.2-83.6:2/)

Whether DCJS has issued the facial-covering model policy required by 9.1-102(75) could not be checked from official sources on October 19, 2026. Bills continued from the 2026 session and 2027 prefiled bills were not reviewed.

## Checked and unchanged

- Va. Code 15.2-1705 (minimum qualifications and prior-employer records) and 15.2-1706 (certification): no amendments after 2020 and 2004, respectively.
- Va. Code 19.2-83.5 (deadly force) and 19.2-83.6 (duty to intervene): no 2023–2026 amendments. 19.2-83.7 changed in 2024 only to update a cross-reference.
- 2026 Acts chs. 798 (HB 454) and 828 (SB 690) amended 15.2-1708(B) only to update a cross-reference to renumbered subdivisions of 9.1-102.
- 6VAC20-20-21 (entry-level training) and 6VAC20-30 (in-service): no 2023–2026 amendments.
- Not counted: 2023 Acts ch. 420, which extended a personnel-records rule to EMS, fire, and 911 bodies; law-enforcement personnel records were already covered.