CHHA Certification in New Jersey
If you are looking for home health aide certification in New Jersey, CHHA is the word you need. It stands for Certified Homemaker-Home Health Aide, and it is the same job you have read about everywhere else as an HHA. New Jersey just gives it a different name, which is why searching for one does not always turn up the other.
The short version. 76 hours of Board approved training, a competency evaluation, a background check and a job offer, then renewal every two years. New Jersey is one of the minority of states that issues its own home health aide credential.
How to get your CHHA
- 1
Finish a Board approved training program
New Jersey requires 76 hours: 60 hours of classroom instruction and 16 hours of supervised clinical training. The program has to be approved by the New Jersey Board of Nursing. There is no way to skip the program and sit the exam on your own.
- 2
Pass the competency evaluation
Your training program must include a competency evaluation examination (N.J.A.C. 13:37-14.4(j)), and the Board of Nursing consumer guide says the evaluation is done by a New Jersey licensed home care agency. The regulation text at N.J.A.C. 13:37-14.10 still describes an exam given by the Board or a Board approved testing service, but the Board's current certification steps do not list one. Ask your program which evaluation you will take.
- 3
Receive your CHHA certificate
The credential is issued by the Board through the Division of Consumer Affairs. It is the document a home care agency asks to see before putting you on a case.
- 4
Renew every two years
CHHA certification in New Jersey runs on a two year cycle. Renewal is not automatic, and letting it lapse means you cannot legally work as a CHHA until it is restored.
What makes New Jersey different
Many states have no home health aide credential of their own. New Jersey does. The Board of Nursing certifies CHHAs, keeps a registry of them, and sets the rules for the job in N.J.A.C. 13:37-14. Every approved training program has to teach those rules (N.J.A.C. 13:37-14.5).
So your course covers New Jersey's own rules, not only general aide skills, and it is worth practising against questions built from them rather than only reading your course handouts.
Renewing your CHHA
CHHA certification renews every two years through the Division of Consumer Affairs. Renewal is the part people get caught by, because nothing stops you forgetting the date until an agency runs a check. Put the expiration on a calendar the day you are certified. Working on a lapsed CHHA is not permitted, and sorting it out afterwards takes longer than renewing on time.
Common questions
Is a CHHA the same thing as an HHA?
Yes. CHHA stands for Certified Homemaker-Home Health Aide, and it is simply what New Jersey calls the home health aide credential. If you have read about HHA training elsewhere and then found New Jersey talking about a CHHA, they are the same job and the same work. The name is what changes at the state line.
Is a CHHA the same as a CNA?
No. A CNA is a certified nursing assistant, a different credential with a different scope that usually works in nursing homes and hospitals. New Jersey issues the CHHA specifically for home health aides through the Board of Nursing. Some states route home health aides through a nursing assistant credential instead, but New Jersey is not one of them.
How many hours of training does a New Jersey CHHA need?
76 hours total: 60 hours of classroom instruction plus 16 hours of supervised clinical training, at a program approved by the New Jersey Board of Nursing. That is above the 75 hour federal Medicare minimum.
What score do I need to pass the CHHA exam?
We found no published passing score. The regulation text says the Board sets one each year for the exam described in N.J.A.C. 13:37-14.10, but the Board's consumer guide describes the competency evaluation as done by a licensed home care agency. Ask your approved training program what standard applies to the evaluation you will take.
Who gives the CHHA competency evaluation?
Your training program must include a competency evaluation examination (N.J.A.C. 13:37-14.4(j)), and the Board of Nursing consumer guide says the evaluation is done by a New Jersey licensed home care agency. The regulation text at N.J.A.C. 13:37-14.10 still describes an exam given by the Board or a Board approved testing service, but the Board's current certification steps do not list one, so confirm with your program.
How do I renew my CHHA license in New Jersey?
CHHA certification renews on a two year cycle through the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs. Watch your expiration date rather than waiting for a reminder, because working on a lapsed certificate is not permitted.
I am certified in another state. Can I transfer to New Jersey?
There is no automatic reciprocity. Endorsement may be available depending on where you trained, and the New Jersey Board of Nursing reviews applications individually. Call the Board at (973) 504-6430 to confirm what your specific certificate qualifies for before you pay for anything.
Practise for the New Jersey exam
Free practice questions written for New Jersey, no account needed to start.
New Jersey HHA practice testRequirements come from the New Jersey Board of Nursing, its consumer guide to homemaker-home health aides, and N.J.A.C. 13:37-14. State processes change without notice, so confirm current details with the Board at (973) 504-6430 before you rely on them. This page is information, not legal advice.