How to get a single-state Registered Nurse license in Kentucky

Kentucky registered nurse licenses

Kentucky 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 Kentucky registered nurse license on this page, so they are shown once here. Each license's own section lists only what differs.

What it covers

Acts requiring substantial specialized knowledge, judgment and nursing skill, applying the nursing process to care, counsel and health teaching, health maintenance and illness prevention, and administering prescribed medication and treatment.¹⁰

Requirements

Education or training

Completed the basic curriculum for registered nurses in an approved school of nursing and its graduation requirements.¹
Who may teach it: Approved school of nursing; the applicant must appear on the Certified List of Kentucky (or Out-of-state) Program of Nursing Graduates, or the program sends an official transcript.²
Alternative: Foreign-educated nurses who passed NCLEX may be licensed by endorsement with a CGFNS Credentials Evaluation Service Professional Report or VisaScreen letter.¹

Exam

NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure Examination)²
Given by: Pearson VUE⁴
When you can take it: After the KBN application ($125), jurisprudence exam, IdentoGO background check, Pearson VUE registration and verification of program completion (Kentucky schools: Affidavit of Graduation; out-of-state: official transcript).⁴
Retakes: Re-register with Pearson VUE ($200); no retest within 45 days of the last attempt. After a second failure the application and provisional license are void and you file the "Examination RETEST" application.¹¹
Exam waived: Graduates of Puerto Rico schools after September 1, 2006 need a CGFNS or NACES-member credential evaluation; foreign graduates follow separate examination guidelines.⁴

Exam

Kentucky Jurisprudence Examination (35 questions, open book, administered by NCSBN)⁵
Given by: NCSBN⁵
Passing score: 80%⁴
When you can take it: Only after an application is on file with KBN; take it from the application status page in the Nurse Portal.⁴
Retakes: Access lasts 3 weeks after payment; if not passed in that time, pay $15 again under a new username.⁵
Time limit: ⁵

Background check

Background check required³
Fingerprints required³
Report all convictions except non-DUI traffic misdemeanours, with certified court records and a letter of explanation; no license issues until the FBI report is received and any conviction is addressed by the Board.⁴

Also required

Able to speak, write and read English with comprehension.¹

Also required

One-time CE within 3 years of licensure: Kentucky-program graduates 2 h suicide prevention + 1 h Alzheimer's/dementia; out-of-state graduates also 3 h domestic violence and 1.5 h pediatric abusive head trauma.⁴

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. Complete an approved RN program (Kentucky schools certify graduates by Affidavit of Graduation; out-of-state programs send an official transcript).⁴
2. Create a KBN Nurse Portal account, select "Apply for a License" and pay the $125 application fee (valid one year).⁴ kybn.boardsofnursing.org⁴
3. Take the jurisprudence exam ($15 to NCSBN; 80% to pass) from your application status page.⁵
4. Register with IdentoGO (UEnroll, KBN service code 27GKJR) and complete live-scan fingerprinting ($57).³
5. Register for NCLEX-RN with Pearson VUE ($200); request ADA accommodations through the Nurse Portal message center if needed.⁴
6. Pass NCLEX; KBN emails you when the license issues (no license cards; verify online).⁸
7. Licensed in another state? Apply by endorsement ($165) and order verification through Nursys.⁸
8. Within 3 years of licensure complete the one-time content-specific CE.⁴

Apply online

kybn.boardsofnursing.org⁴

Temporary or provisional license

Exam applicants may get a provisional license ("R.N.A.") within 14 business days of meeting all requirements (after the FBI report): valid up to 6 months, Kentucky only, practice only under direct supervision of an RN/APRN physically present in the facility; void after a second NCLEX failure.¹

Processing time

Applications and documents are reviewed within 14 business days; up to three months if you answer "yes" to disciplinary or conviction questions.⁴

Renewal

How often

Every year⁶

When it expires

All RN licenses expire October 31 each year; renew online in the Nurse Portal between September 15 and 11:59 p.m. EDT October 31. A license issued in the first 6 months of a period expires that October 31; one issued in the last 6 months runs to the next October 31.¹⁵

Renewal fee

$55¹⁶

Continuing education

14 hours each renewal period⁷

Required topics

One-time requirements (within 3 years of licensure): 1.5 h pediatric abusive head trauma, 3 h domestic violence and elder abuse, 1 h Alzheimer's disease and dementia, 2 h suicide prevention; RNs active on July 15, 2024 must finish the dementia hour by October 31, 2027.¹⁷
New from July 15, 2026 (statute): 1 hour every 3 years on recognizing and preventing pediatric ingestion or inhalation of controlled substances, counted within the required hours.¹⁸

Approved courses

CE from a provider approved by KBN, another state board of nursing or a listed national nursing organization (201 KAR 20:220); keep records 5 years and upload only if audited. BLS/CPR, orientation and in-service do not count.¹⁹

Exemptions

Active-duty military: renewal fee and continuing competency waived on proof of orders (KRS 36.450, 12.355).²⁰

If it expires

No grace period: a license not renewed by 11:59 p.m. EDT October 31 lapses and working on it is illegal practice; reinstate with the $135 application, IdentoGO background check, continuing competency by lapse length, and the jurisprudence exam if lapsed 1 year or more.²¹
Reinstatement CE: lapsed up to 12 months 14 CE (or other renewal methods); up to 2/3/4/5 years 28/42/56/70 CE (14 within the past year); over 5 years 120 CE within one year. 500+ hours of non-Kentucky nursing practice in the past 5 years replaces the CE.²²

Renew online

kybn.boardsofnursing.org¹⁵

From another state

Military service members, veterans and spouses: Active-duty licensees are renewed without fee or continuing competency on PCS orders, AF Form 899, DD 214 or mobilisation orders; those deployed overseas may renew within 90 days of return.²⁰

Who needs a single-state Registered Nurse license

Other rules on who may do this work:

• Single-state license: valid only in Kentucky.⁹

Requirements for a single-state Registered Nurse license

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

Residency or citizenship

No residency requirement for a Kentucky license; nurses not eligible for compact status (e.g. primary residence in another state) hold a single-state license valid only in Kentucky.⁹

Renewal and continuing education

Moving to Kentucky with a license from another state

These are the routes KBN 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

Residency or citizenship

Multistate (compact) status requires declaring Kentucky as primary state of residence (upload proof such as driver license, state ID, REAL ID or vehicle registration) and meeting the NLC uniform licensure criteria listed by KBN, including state and federal fingerprint-based background checks and a valid US Social Security number.⁹

Social Security number

A valid US Social Security number is an NLC uniform licensure requirement.⁹

How to apply

1. Multistate status: declare Kentucky as primary state of residence (proof of residence uploaded) and complete the state and federal background check; there is no separate compact fee or application.⁹

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 Kentucky, you can confirm the license is current on the board's own search. Every board we cover in Kentucky is on the Kentucky license lookup page.

Look up a license

kbn.ky.gov⁸

Laws and rules

The requirements above come from these laws and board rules.

• KRS 314.011 (definitions), 314.031 (unlawful acts), 314.041 (RN license), 314.071 (renewal/reinstatement), 314.073 (continuing competency), 314.103 (background check)
• KRS 314.475 (Nurse Licensure Compact)
• KRS 314.027(2) and 314.171(4)
• 201 KAR 20:070 (licensure by examination)
• 201 KAR 20:085 (licensure periods)
• 201 KAR 20:110 (licensure by endorsement)
• 201 KAR 20:215 (continuing competency)
• 201 KAR 20:225 (reinstatement)
• 201 KAR 20:240

Rule changes since January 2024

• July 15, 2026: KRS 314.073 amended (2026 Ky. Acts ch. 68): adds a 1-hour CE every 3 years on pediatric ingestion/inhalation of controlled substances.¹⁸
• April 10, 2026: KRS 314.041 amended (2026 Ky. Acts ch. 75).¹
• July 30, 2025: 201 KAR 20:240 fee regulation amended (51 Ky.R. 1803), removing obsolete fees.¹²
• January 2, 2024: NLC rule 402(2): nurses changing primary state of residence must apply in the new compact state within 60 days.⁹

Common questions

Registered nurse (RN) licenses in other states

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