How to get a single-state Registered Nurse License in Alabama

Alabama registered nurse licenses

Alabama issues 2 registered nurse credentials. Each has its own section below; the table shows what each one covers and its headline requirements.

Applies to every license level

These rules are the same for every Alabama registered nurse license on this page, so they are shown once here. Each license's own section lists only what differs.

What it covers

Practice of professional nursing: for compensation, care and counseling of persons, health promotion and illness prevention based on the nursing process (assessment, nursing judgment, evaluation), health teaching, and executing medical regimens including administering medications and treatments prescribed by a physician or dentist.⁶

Requirements

High school diploma or GED

Required²

Education or training

Graduate of (or complete all graduation requirements of) an approved registered nursing program in Alabama, or one in another jurisdiction that substantially meets Alabama educational criteria; the program must be accredited by a body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.²
Who may teach it: Board-approved school of nursing (Alabama) or a program in another jurisdiction substantially meeting Alabama criteria.⁷
Alternative: Graduates of foreign nursing schools: credential evaluation (course-by-course report), English proficiency test unless taught substantially in English, and the same licensure examination.²

Exam

NCLEX-RN (Board-designated official licensing examination)²
Given by: Pearson VUE⁸⁹
Passing score: Pass-Fail designation recorded as the official result²
When you can take it: Apply only after graduating; the Board does not consider an application until graduation and receipt of the official transcript.⁸⁹
Retakes: Eligible to re-test after 45 days; do not reapply until official failure results are received by mail.¹⁰
Exam waived: Exam not repeated for licensure by endorsement (licensed in another state; must have met requirements for the licensure examination).²

Social Security number

Valid U.S. Social Security number required before the license is issued.²

Fees

Each line is a separate charge as the board lists it. The board does not publish a combined total, so none is shown here.

The board's pages we cite do not list the exam fee; check it with the exam provider, Pearson VUE⁸⁹, when you schedule.

How to apply

1. Graduate from your RN program first; the Board will not consider an exam application before graduation.⁸⁹
2. Have your nursing program send an official transcript to the ABN (sealed envelope, or eScrip-Safe, Parchment, National Student Clearinghouse or Credential Solutions to [email protected]).⁸⁹
3. Register for the NCLEX-RN with Pearson VUE using your full name and SSN exactly as on your ABN application and test ID.⁸⁹
4. Pearson VUE issues your Authorization to Test once the ABN approves the complete application; take the exam. Results come only from the Board (online in 24-48 hours, by mail in 3-5 days).¹⁰
5. Licensed in another state? Use the endorsement application instead: request license verification through Nursys (or the ABN verification form), send transcripts and CE proof after you submit the application, and complete fingerprinting.¹¹ Form (PDF, abn.alabama.gov)¹¹

Apply online

abn.alabama.gov¹⁰

Temporary or provisional license

First-time exam applicants found eligible get a nonrenewable temporary permit to practice as Nursing Graduate-RN Program (NG-RNP) under direct RN supervision, in Alabama only; first-time endorsement applicants with an active license elsewhere get a nonrenewable temporary permit valid 180 days. A "yes" answer to any regulatory question prevents a temporary permit.²

Processing time

No timetable; licenses issue only when all requirements are complete, first-in first-out.¹⁰

Renewal

How often

Every 2 years³

Continuing education

At least 24 hours each renewal period⁴

Required topics

First renewal: 4 contact hours of Board-provided CE on statutory/administrative frameworks, scope of practice and standards of practice, plus 1 contact hour per calendar month remaining in the earning period (maximum 24).²
1 contact hour = 50 minutes; 15 contact hours = 1 academic semester credit hour.¹²

Approved courses

Board-approved or Board-recognized continuing education²

Exemptions

Actively deployed military nurses: license does not lapse during deployment if conditions are met; CE may be completed within six months after return.²

If it expires

Failure to renew by December 31 lapses the license; reinstatement needs 24 contact hours of CE earned in the 24 months before applying, plus current renewal and reinstatement fees. NCLEX is not retaken.²
Failure to meet the CE requirement is cause for the license to lapse.²

Renew online

abn.alabama.gov⁴

From another state

Military service members, veterans and spouses: Actively deployed nurses: license does not lapse during biennial renewal if active at deployment and orders provided in advance; otherwise reinstatement/renewal without penalty or late fees within six months of discharge or return.²

Who needs a single-state Registered Nurse License

Other rules on who may do this work:

• Single-state license is valid for practice in Alabama only.⁷

Requirements for a single-state Registered Nurse License

The rules this license shares with every other level are under Applies to every license level.

Background check

Background check required²
No fingerprints required¹³
Regulatory questions on criminal history, substance use, health, discipline and military discharge; a "yes" triggers staff review and blocks a temporary permit but does not by itself bar licensure.¹⁰

Residency or citizenship

Must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident.²

How much a single-state Registered Nurse License costs

How to apply

1. Submit the application, the citizen or non-citizen checklist; pay the application fee (the exam page lists electronic card payment plus a $3.50 transaction fee; the 2026 downtime paper application it currently links is paid by check or money order to the Alabama Board of Nursing).⁸ Form (PDF, abn.alabama.gov)¹⁴

Renewal and continuing education

When it expires

Valid two years from January 1 of each odd-numbered year, expiring December 31 of each even-numbered year; renew September 1 (8:00 a.m.) to December 31 (4:30 p.m.) of even years.²

Renewal fee

$100⁴

Late renewal

Late renewal fee: $250⁴ (license lapsed after December 31 of the renewal year)

Moving to Alabama with a license from another state

These are the routes ABN publishes for the single-state Registered Nurse License. The other registered nurse licenses have their own routes in their sections below.

Multistate Registered Nurse License

Requirements

Background check

Background check required²
Fingerprints required²
Regulatory questions on criminal history, substance use, health, discipline and military discharge; a "yes" triggers staff review and blocks a temporary permit but does not by itself bar licensure.¹⁰

Residency or citizenship

Must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident; multistate applicants must declare Alabama as primary state of residence and document it.²

Also required

Multistate eligibility: no felony convictions/agreed dispositions, no nursing-related misdemeanors (case by case), not in an alternative program, English proficiency exam for foreign graduates of non-English programs.²

Also required

An applicant ineligible for or denied a multistate license may be considered for single-state licensure.²

Fees

Each line is a separate charge as the board lists it. The board does not publish a combined total, so none is shown here.

How to apply

1. Submit the application with the Declaration of Primary (Home) State of Residence (PSOR) form and Alabama residency proof, the citizen or non-citizen checklist; pay the application fee (the exam page lists electronic card payment plus a $3.50 transaction fee; the 2026 downtime paper application it currently links is paid by check or money order to the Alabama Board of Nursing).⁹ Form (PDF, abn.alabama.gov)¹⁶
2. After the application is on file, register with FieldPrint (fieldprintalabama.com) and complete Live Scan fingerprinting; prints submitted before the application are not refunded.⁹
3. Already hold an Alabama single-state license? Apply for SSL-to-MSL conversion ($200), attest to 24 CE hours in the past 24 months (prorated) and complete fingerprinting.¹⁵

Renewal

When it expires

Valid two years from January 1 of each even-numbered year, expiring December 31 of each odd-numbered year; renew September 1 (8:00 a.m.) to December 31 (4:30 p.m.) of odd years.²

Renewal fee

$200⁴

Late renewal

Late renewal fee: $350⁴ (license lapsed after December 31 of the renewal year)

From another state

The rules this license shares with every other level are under Applies to every license level.

Check a license or report a problem

Before you hire a registered nurse in Alabama, you can confirm the license is current on the board's own search. Every board we cover in Alabama is on the Alabama license lookup page.

Look up a license

abn.alabama.gov¹⁷

Laws and rules

The requirements above come from these laws and board rules.

• Code of Ala. 1975 § 34-21-21
• Code of Ala. 1975 § 34-21-1
• Code of Ala. 1975 § 34-21-23
• Code of Ala. 1975 § 34-21-24; Ala. Admin. Code r. 610-X-4-.14
• Ala. Admin. Code ch. 610-X-4 (Licensure)
• Ala. Admin. Code ch. 610-X-10 (Continuing Education)
• Code of Ala. 1975 § 34-21-120 et seq. (Nurse Licensure Compact)

Rule changes since January 2024

• September 14, 2026: Ala. Admin. Code 610-X-4-.02 (qualifications) amended, published July 31, 2026, effective September 14, 2026.²

Common questions

Registered nurse (RN) licenses in other states

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