The high recurrence rate of venous thromboembolism (VTE) seriously affects the patients’ quality of life, and also increases the disease burden and healthcare risks. However, the VTE recurrence can be prevented to a large extent. Accurate assessment of the risk of VTE recurrence in patients and stratifying the risks of the VTE recurrence is the first step for medical workers to prevent and control VTE recurrence. Here, the authors address the current status of VTE recurrence and its risk factors, and overview the risk assessment tools of VTE recurrence in foreign countries, so as to improve medical workers’ cognition of the current status of VTE recurrence and its risk factors, and provide practical guidance for assessment of VTE recurrence risk, and reference for medical safety warning and risk management of VTE recurrence.