DC Board of Nursing License: Requirements, Renewal, and Discipline

To get a nursing license from the DC Board of Nursing, you need to meet basic eligibility rules, finish an approved nursing program, pass the NCLEX (or apply by endorsement if you already hold a license in another state), clear a criminal background check, and submit the application through DC Health’s online portal. The DC Board of Nursing license requirements are set out in DC Municipal Regulations Title 17 and apply to every level of practice, from LPNs and RNs to advanced practice registered nurses. One thing to know up front: the District is not part of the Nurse Licensure Compact, so a multistate license from another state does not let you work in DC.

Baseline Eligibility for Every Applicant

Before the Board looks at your education or exam scores, you have to clear a set of threshold requirements. You must be at least 18 years old. You cannot have a conviction for an offense related to nursing practice. You cannot have a license that has been revoked or suspended in another jurisdiction where the underlying conduct would produce a similar result in the District, and you cannot have a disciplinary action pending against you in another state when you apply.¹

These checks happen early. If something here is going to disqualify you, it stops the rest of the process before it starts.

Licensure by Examination for New Graduates

If this is your first nursing license, you apply by examination. Two things have to line up: your education and the NCLEX.

An Approved Nursing Program

Your nursing program has to be approved by the DC Board of Nursing under DCMR Title 17, Chapter 56, or by another U.S. state or territory whose standards the Board considers substantially equivalent.² Graduates of provincially approved Canadian programs also qualify. Any program operating inside the District needs Board approval before it can enroll students.³

The NCLEX

Once you graduate, you register for the NCLEX through Pearson VUE. RN candidates take the NCLEX-RN and LPN candidates take the NCLEX-PN. The passing standard is set nationally by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, and DC uses that same threshold.² You pay the NCLEX fee to Pearson VUE separately from the Board’s application fee. After the Board approves your application, you receive an Authorization to Test and can then schedule the exam.

Licensure by Endorsement for Nurses Already Licensed Elsewhere

If you already hold an active nursing license in another state, you apply by endorsement instead of retaking the NCLEX. The Board verifies your original license through NURSYS, the online verification system run by NCSBN, which charges $30. Two states, Pennsylvania and Michigan, do not participate in NURSYS. If your license is from one of them, you have to request verification directly from that board and have it emailed to verifications.bon@dc.gov.⁴

The combined application and criminal background check fee for endorsement is $280, payable only by Visa or MasterCard.⁵ After you pay, you receive a link and code to schedule fingerprinting. The Board will not finalize the license until both the background check and your out-of-state verification come back.

One boundary worth flagging here. The District is not a member of the Nurse Licensure Compact. A multistate license from a compact state does not authorize you to practice in DC. You still need a DC license by endorsement, and this catches travel nurses and new residents off guard regularly.

Requirements for Internationally Educated Nurses

If you graduated from a nursing program outside the U.S. or Canada, you have extra credential steps. Applicants who have ever been licensed in another country need a Credential Evaluation Service (CES) Professional Report from CGFNS International. If you have never held a foreign license but finished a foreign nursing degree within the past three years, you can submit an official English-translated transcript or an academic evaluation from a member of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services.⁶

If your nursing education was not in English, you also have to pass an English proficiency exam. The Board accepts two:

TOEFL iBT with an overall score of at least 84 and a Speaking section score of at least 23.
IELTS with an overall band of at least 6.5 and a Spoken Band of at least 7.0.

Applicants living outside the U.S. also need a national criminal background check from their country of residence, submitted in original form with the application.⁶

Additional Requirements for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses

Nurse practitioners, nurse-midwives, nurse anesthetists, and clinical nurse specialists each have their own chapter in DCMR Title 17 (Chapters 57 through 60), layered on top of the RN license. At a minimum, you need a post-basic nursing education program in your specialty that is either Board-approved or accredited by a nationally recognized body the Board accepts.⁷ You also have to hold current national certification from an approved certifying body such as the American Nurses Credentialing Center and keep it current through every renewal.

Submitting Your Application

Every application goes through the DC Health online licensing portal. You create a secure profile, upload documents, and pay by Visa or MasterCard. Your electronic signature is a legal attestation that everything in the application is true and complete.

Have these ready before you start:

A U.S. government- or state-issued photo ID such as a passport or driver’s license.
A 2×2 passport-style photo, front-facing, plain white background.
Official transcripts sent directly from your school to the Board.
Documentation for any name difference between your application and supporting documents, such as a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order.
Your Social Security Number, or a completed SSN Affidavit if you do not have one.

After you submit, the portal shows which items have been received and which are still outstanding. If something is missing, you will be notified through the portal or by email. Plan on at least 30 days of processing once the Board has every required item in hand.

Renewing Your License

RN and APRN licenses expire at midnight on June 30 of each even-numbered year. The next deadline is June 30, 2026.² LPN licenses follow a separate biennial cycle. Renewal fees for the 2026 cycle are $145 for RNs and $263 for APRNs.⁸

Continuing Education

You need 24 contact hours of continuing education in the two years before your license expires. Not all 24 are free-choice:

At least 2 hours must cover cultural competency or specialized clinical training focused on patients who identify as LGBTQ.
At least 10 percent of the total (about 2.4 hours) must cover topics the Director of DC Health designates as public health priorities, published every five years or as needed.

The remaining hours can address any clinical or professional development topic that meets Board standards.² If this is your first renewal after your initial license was granted, CE is waived for that cycle.

You are also required to report any change of name, address, email, or phone number to the Board within 30 days. Missing that window can result in a $100 fine.⁹

Reinstating an Expired License

If your license has been expired for five years or less, you can apply for reinstatement. The process mirrors endorsement: a new application, the $280 fee, a fingerprint-based background check, and verification from any other state where you hold a license. You also need 24 CE contact hours (with the same LGBTQ and public health components) completed within two years of your reinstatement application date.⁴

Past the five-year mark, reinstatement is no longer available. You have to apply as a new candidate and complete a Board-approved refresher course before the Board will consider your application.⁴ If your license is anywhere near that mark, reinstate now.

What Can Get Your License Disciplined

The Board can discipline nurses who violate the DC Nurse Practice Act or fall short of professional standards. Sanctions run from a formal reprimand to full revocation. The Board can also impose civil fines of up to $5,000 per violation, order probation, require remedial education or treatment, restrict a nurse’s scope of practice, or issue a cease and desist order.¹⁰

If the Board believes a nurse is an immediate threat to public health or safety, it can summarily suspend the license before a full hearing. Otherwise, the Board issues a formal notice of intent and the nurse has the right to a hearing. Practicing on an expired, suspended, or revoked license is itself a violation with its own penalties. The Board also runs random audits of continuing education compliance, and failing an audit can start disciplinary action even when no patient has filed a complaint.

1
D.C. Law Library. DC Code 3-1205.03 – General Qualifications of Applicants
2
DC Health. District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Title 17 Chapter 54 – Registered Nursing
3
DC Health. District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Title 17 Chapter 56 – Nursing Schools and Programs
4
DC Health. Registered Nurse Reinstatement and Reactivation Requirements
5
DC Health. Registered Nurse Endorsement Requirements
6
DC Health. Instructions for Internationally Educated Nurses and Foreign Educated Applicants
7
DC Health. District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Chapter 59 – Nurse-Practitioners
8
DC Health. 2026 RN/APRN Renewal Notice
9
DC Health. Reporting a Name, Address, Email, or Phone Number Change
10
D.C. Law Library. DC Code 3-1205.14 – Revocation, Suspension, or Denial of License