Licensing by state / West Virginia

Court reporter licensing in West Virginia

West Virginia does not require a state license to work as a court reporter. Our source for this page is a secondary summary; treat it as a lead, not the rule.

State credential required

No

Credential

West Virginia Court Reporter Certification (Supreme Court of Appeals certification test); voluntary for freelance work

Issued by

Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, Administrative Office (Court Reporter Coordinator)

How you qualify

The West Virginia Court Reporter Certification test is given each April and October: a 100-question written knowledge test (1 hour, 70 percent to pass) and three five-minute dictations at 180 wpm literary, 200 wpm jury charge and 225 wpm Q&A, with 1 hour 15 minutes to transcribe each at 95 percent accuracy. Sections already passed need not be repeated.

NCRA RPR accepted

Yes

Fees

Test fee $200.00; $50.00 per section to repeat sections not previously passed (Supreme Court test information sheet created 2017, last modified 2021).

Renewal

None

Continuing education

None required by the state

West Virginia has no licensing statute for court reporters; Court Reporter Act bills (SB 608 in 2016, SB 638 and HB 3029 in 2019 and 2020) were introduced but no enactment was found, and the NCRA table lists the state as Voluntary. The certification test matters mainly for court employment: a November 2025 circuit court reporter posting from the Administrative Office says the applicant must have state and/or national certification or make satisfactory progress toward certification, so an NCRA credential is accepted in place of the state test for official positions. Freelance reporters need no state credential. Renewal and CE rules for the state certification were not found on the pages read.

Exam speeds and legs for the national credentials are on the certifications page; the path from school to the exam is in how to become a court reporter.