How to get a Certified Nurse Aide license in New Jersey
New Jersey licenses nursing assistants statewide through the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH).1 For the Certified Nurse Aide (Nurse Aide in Long-Term Care Facilities) license you need 90 clock hours2 of education, a passing score on the New Jersey Nurse Aide in Long Term Care Facilities Competency Evaluation: practical (clinical) skills evaluation and written/oral examination1 and a criminal background check3. You renew every 2 years4.
Who issues it
New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH)
Training and experience
Training: 90 clock hours2
Exam
New Jersey Nurse Aide in Long Term Care Facilities Competency Evaluation: practical (clinical) skills evaluation and written/oral examination1
Fees the board lists
Fingerprint and state background check: $03
Renewal
Every 2 years4
On this page
- New Jersey nursing assistant licenses
- Applies to every license level
- Who needs a Certified Nurse Aide license
- Requirements for a Certified Nurse Aide license
- How much a Certified Nurse Aide license costs
- How to apply
- Renewal and continuing education
- Moving to New Jersey with a license from another state
- Certified Medication Aide (C.M.A.)
- City and county rules
- Check a license or report a problem
- Laws and rules
- Common questions
- Certified nursing assistant (CNA) licenses in other states
New Jersey nursing assistant licenses
New Jersey issues 2 nursing assistant credentials. Each has its own section below; the table shows what each one covers and its headline requirements.
| License | What it covers | Training or experience | Exam |
|---|---|---|---|
| Certified Medication Aide (C.M.A.) | Medication aides work in assisted living residences, comprehensive personal care homes, dementia care homes and assisted living programs. Not the same as a Certified Medical Assistant.5 | – | Yes5 |
| Certified Nurse Aide (Nurse Aide in Long-Term Care Facilities) | – | Training 90 clock hours2 | Yes2 |
Applies to every license level
These rules are the same for every New Jersey nursing assistant license on this page, so they are shown once here. Each license's own section lists only what differs.
Renewal
Who needs a Certified Nurse Aide license
Work that does not need this license:
- Acute care hospitals: certification is not required for nurse aides, except in a hospital's licensed long-term care or sub-acute unit; hospitals train unlicensed assistive personnel with the Board of Nursing UAP curriculum.2
Requirements for a Certified Nurse Aide license
The rules this license shares with every other level are under Applies to every license level.
- Education or training
- 90 clock hours2
Complete a New Jersey-approved Nurse Aide in Long-Term Care Facilities Training and Competency Evaluation Program (NATCEP): 50 classroom hours and 40 clinical hours, using the Department's curriculum.2
Alternative: Nursing students, graduate nurses and foreign-licensed nurses with a fundamentals of nursing course (completed within the 12 months before applying) may take the exam without the training course.2
Alternative: Nurse aide training and experience in military service.2
Alternative: NJ Board of Nursing certified homemaker-home health aides who completed the Long-Term Care Module of the UAP core curriculum (clinical skills evaluation still required).2
Alternative: Completion of the Board of Nursing UAP core curriculum plus the Long-Term Care Module (clinical skills evaluation still required).2 - Exam
- New Jersey Nurse Aide in Long Term Care Facilities Competency Evaluation: practical (clinical) skills evaluation and written/oral examination1
Given by: PSI1
When you can take it: After completing the 90-hour NATCEP, or after NJDOH approves a waiver.2
Practical (clinical) skills evaluation, proctored by NJDOH-approved evaluators1
Written/oral examination2
Exam waived: Reciprocity Route 1 applicants (24 hours of CEUs) are not told to test; Route 2 applicants (24 months full-time work) must pass both NJ exams.2 - Background check
- Background check required3
Fingerprints required3
Notarized CBI application with four screening questions; "Yes" answers need evidence of why you should not be disqualified. Disqualifying convictions lead to disqualification (or revocation after certification) unless you show clear and convincing evidence of rehabilitation; you get at least 30 days to challenge a record.3 - Also required
- Employer-paid training: a nurse aide employed by (or with an offer from) a long-term care facility when training starts may not be charged for any part of the program; a facility that hires an aide within 12 months of training must reimburse reasonable costs pro rata.1
- Also required
- Students must have two-step Mantoux (TB) testing before the first day of class (NJDOH interpretation of N.J.A.C. 8:39-19.5).1
How much a Certified Nurse Aide license costs
| Fee | Amount | Paid to | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fingerprint and state background check | $03 | NJDOH | CBI application processing |
The board's pages we cite do not list the exam fee; check it with the exam provider, PSI1, when you schedule.
How to apply
- Enrol in an approved NATCEP: ask a long-term care facility, your county vocational school or community college, or use the NJDOH lists of approved programs.2
- Get the CBI application from your instructor, have it notarised, mail it to CIU/NJDOH and book an IdentoGO fingerprint appointment using the fingerprint form.3
- Complete the 90-hour course (50 classroom, 40 clinical hours).2
- Pass the practical skills evaluation and the written/oral exam given through PSI.1
- Once the CBI clears you are certified and listed on the New Jersey Nurse Aide Registry (online public registry search).1
- Processing time
- Allow at least 12 weeks for the criminal background investigation.3
Renewal and continuing education
- When it expires
- Recertify every two years: current certificate, at least 7 hours of paid nursing-related work in a licensed health care facility or agency in the 24 months before expiry, no revocation/suspension, and an updated criminal background check before the expiry date (notice comes about four months before expiry).4
- Required topics
- Work requirement: at least 7 hours of paid nursing or nursing-related employment in a licensed health care facility or agency within the 24 months before expiry.4
- If it expires
- Recertification aides do not need a new CBI application or new fingerprints; NJDOH updates the check each renewal.3
Renewal planner
Enter the expiration date printed on your New Jersey Certified Nurse Aide (Nurse Aide in Long-Term Care Facilities) license. The count is worked out on your device from today's date; nothing is sent anywhere.
Moving to New Jersey with a license from another state
These are the routes NJDOH publishes for the Certified Nurse Aide license. The other nursing assistant licenses have their own routes in their sections below.
- Route
- License by endorsement
- What the board says
- Certification by reciprocity: current valid certificate from another state or U.S. territory registry, no crimes and no abuse/neglect/misappropriation findings, plus Route 1 (24 hours of approved CEUs in the prior 24 months, including 12 hours on Alzheimer's/dementia care) or Route 2 (24 months of full-time CNA work, at least 35 hours/week in a nursing home, most recent within 24 months, and pass both NJ exams). Call 1-877-774-4243 to apply.2
- Conditions
- Documentation from the other registry of a current, valid certificate.2
No criminal convictions and no findings of abuse, neglect or misappropriation of resident property.2
Route 1 CEUs: 12 hours on Alzheimer's disease and dementia care plus 12 hours on infection control, emergency procedures, abuse/neglect/misappropriation, resident rights and pharmacy.2
Route 2: most recent work within 24 months, and pass the NJ clinical skills and written/oral exams.2
Reciprocity applicants complete the CBI and fingerprints (forms come with the reciprocity packet).3
Military service members, veterans and spouses: Nurse aide training and experience in military service lets you take the NJ competency exam without the training course.2
Certified Medication Aide (C.M.A.)
Medication aides work in assisted living residences, comprehensive personal care homes, dementia care homes and assisted living programs. Not the same as a Certified Medical Assistant.5
Requirements
- Education or training
- Complete an NJDOH-approved medication aide training program (schools registered with NJ Department of Labor and Department of Education) before registering for the exam.5
Who may teach it: Courses are taught by a New Jersey RN with medication-administration or teaching experience who completed the Train-the-Trainer workshop, in consultation with a registered pharmacist.5 - Experience
- Must already hold a current New Jersey nurse aide (CNA), homemaker-home health aide or personal care assistant certification.5
License you must hold first: Current NJ CNA, CHHA or PCA certificate (bring it to the exam).5
How to apply
- Hold a current NJ CNA, CHHA or PCA certificate.5
- Complete an NJDOH-approved medication aide training program (find DOL/DOE-registered schools on mycareer.nj.gov).5
- Register with PSI for the exam within 3 months and pass it within 6 months of finishing training; bring your CNA/CHHA/PCA certificate.5
- Complete the criminal background investigation.5
Renewal
- When it expires
- Renew every two years; you must still hold a current NJ CNA or CHHA certificate, and your employer completes Section 2 of the renewal form attesting to 10 CE hours.5
- Continuing education
- At least 10 hours each renewal period5
- Required topics
- 5 hours reviewing medication administration principles, skills and knowledge5
5 hours on current drug use relevant to the elderly5 - Approved courses
- CE is obtained through the employer, which keeps the records for at least one renewal period.5
- If it expires
- Lapsed certificate: email [email protected] with your name, CMA number, reason for the lapse and phone; no extension is granted if you are not working as a CMA.5
From another state
- Route
- No reciprocity
- What the board says
- No reciprocity for medication aides certified in other states.5
The rules this license shares with every other level are under Applies to every license level.
City and county rules
Certified Medication Aide (C.M.A.)No local license: statewide NJDOH certification.5
Certified Nurse Aide (Nurse Aide in Long-Term Care Facilities)No local license: nurse aide certification is a statewide NJDOH credential.7
Check a license or report a problem
Before you hire a nursing assistant in New Jersey, you can confirm the license is current on the board's own search. Every board we cover in New Jersey is on the New Jersey license lookup page.
- Look up a license
- njna.psiexams.com7
Laws and rules
The requirements above come from these laws and board rules.
- 42 CFR 483.150-483.158 (nurse aide training, competency evaluation and registry)
- N.J.A.C. 8:39-43 (Certification of Nurse Aides in Long-Term Care Facilities), amended at N.J.A.C. 8:39-43.10 effective January 5, 2026
- N.J.A.C. 8:43G-18.3(e), (f) (hospital unlicensed assistive personnel training)
- N.J.A.C. 8:36-9.2(d) (medication aide renewal, as quoted by NJDOH)
Common questions
How long does it take to get a Certified Nurse Aide license in New Jersey?
Can I transfer my nursing assistant license to New Jersey?
NJDOH publishes this route for the Certified Nurse Aide license: license by endorsement2. Conditions and forms.
How often do you renew a Certified Nurse Aide license in New Jersey?
Every 2 years4.
Certified nursing assistant (CNA) licenses in other states
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Texas
- Utah
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wyoming
Sources
Every number and rule above links to one of these official pages. Select a footnote number to read the board's own words.
- Navigating the NATCEP (guide)New Jersey Department of HealthDated October 31, 2006Checked November 7, 2026
- Apply for a Certification (nurse aide)New Jersey Department of HealthDated August 14, 2023Checked November 7, 2026
- Criminal Background CheckNew Jersey Department of HealthDated August 14, 2023Checked November 7, 2026
- Renew or Replace a Certificate (nurse aide/PCA)New Jersey Department of HealthDated August 14, 2023Checked November 7, 2026
- Certified Medication AideNew Jersey Department of HealthDated August 25, 2025Checked November 7, 2026
- Fingerprint SubmissionsNew Jersey Department of HealthDated June 23, 2025Checked November 7, 2026
- Licensing and Certification CredentialsNew Jersey Department of HealthDated March 7, 2023Checked November 7, 2026