Nevada Nurse Practitioner Licensure Steps - 2024

Nurse Practitioner Licensure Requirements in Nevada

Follow below to learn how to become a nurse practitioner (NP) in Nevada.

Initial Registered Nurse (RN) License

Already have your RN License?  Skip to the next section

An RN license is the first requirement for an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) license in Nevada. Since the state is not a party to the NLC, every prospective Nurse Practitioner must obtain a license to practice in Nevada from the Nevada State Board of Nursing (NVBN).

The application process involves filling out a form, paying the prescribed fees, and submitting supporting documents when necessary. You can apply for an RN license by Examination or Endorsement.

RN by Examination

Nurses who have never been licensed in the US are to apply via this route.

All applicants must have completed an associate degree to apply for licensure. But, because you’re looking to obtain an APRN license, a bachelor’s degree from an accredited nursing education program is needed. If you completed a Nevada-based program, your institution automatically sends the Board an affidavit of graduation, which qualifies you for a temporary permit if you desire one.

Other requirements include the following:

• Applying to NCLEX Testing Service through Pearson Vue. You are allowed four attempts at the NCLEX-RN. Once your licensure application has been received and you have sent one in for the test, you will receive Authorization to test as long as you are declared eligible by the Board. The exam fee is $200.
• Ordering a copy of your official transcripts to be sent to the Board. A photocopy of an unofficial license is not acceptable. The transcript must show your date of graduation and the degree awarded.
• Foreign-trained applicants are required to have their credentials evaluated by the CGFNS, IERF, or Josef Silny and Associates, Inc. If you were trained in a country where the official language is not English, you must pass an English Language Proficiency test as specified for “Graduates of International Nursing Programs” under requirement 2 here.
• The application is completed online after creating an account using the NVBN nurse portal. The application fee is $100.
• A completed fingerprint card for a criminal background check (CBC). You can find the Fingerprint Submission Form on the NVBN website, complete with instructions. Here is a list of fingerprinting locations in Nevada. You are required to pay a fee of $40.25 for the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and state background checks.

Any documents that should be mailed in can be sent to:

Once the Board receives your test results, a copy is sent to your address of record. You may request an Interim Permit if this is your first time taking the exam. The permit is valid for 90 days or until your official exam results are released.

Your application status is updated in the nursing portal, so you can check there to verify it has been issued. Hard cards are not distributed, so you will not receive one in the mail. 

RN by Endorsement

Endorsement is the route for nurses currently licensed in another US state.

Requirements:

• These applicants must have passed the NCLEX-RN and fulfilled all requirements for obtaining an RN license by Examination.
• You will be required to provide proof of completing a nursing program that awards at least a bachelor’s degree for a prospective APRN. An original copy of your transcript is required and needs to be sent from your educational institution to the Board. The transcript must contain your date of graduation and the kind of degree awarded.
• Graduates of international nursing programs should also send a copy of their transcript to the Board and a copy of the related learning experience (RLE), if applicable.
• Applicants who have only been licensed in the US for less than five years before applying for a license by endorsement in Nevada must pass an English Proficiency test as specified under requirement “2ii” here.
• The Board also requires verification of your valid license. That can be obtained using the Nursys licensure verification for endorsement request if your Board of nursing participates in Nursys. If not, you must contact them using the NSBN request form and pay their prescribed fee for licensure verification.
• The application process is completed online for a fee of $105.

The fingerprint-based Criminal Background Check (CBC) is mandatory for everyone applying for licensure. The live scan option is only available for those living in Nevada.

The Board provides fingerprint capture services at its Reno and Las Vegas offices. You can book an appointment here. There is also a list of other fingerprint-capturing facilities in Nevada. If you are outside Nevada, you must obtain an FD-258 standard fingerprint card and provide all your details in the fingerprint submission form. These should all be sent to:

Note that all fees are non-refundable.

Advanced Education Requirement

As of June 1, 2005, prospective APRNs are required to complete a post-graduate program, awarding at least a master of science in nursing (MSN) degree to be licensed by the NVBN.

Prospective nurse practitioners need to complete a program accredited by a recognized body for the accreditation of post-graduate nursing programs, such as the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).

Such programs must prepare participants to take up an NP role in a given specialty area for a given population focus. Each program must feature both theoretical and clinical aspects of training with courses like:

• Advanced Health Assessment
• Advanced Pharmacology
• Advanced Pathophysiology
• Advance Role Preparation
• Clinical Preceptorship
• Specific Clinical Specialty

To apply for prescribing privileges, applicants need to complete the additional information on the application. In order to prescribe medication, advanced pharmacology must be included in your education program as well.

Prescribing privileges require a minimum of two-semester credits in advanced pharmacotherapeutics. You also need a minimum of 2000 hours of practice as an APRN in a clinical setting or entered into an agreement with the collaborating physician to prescribe schedule II-controlled substances.

If you don’t have a master’s a doctorate in nursing, you’ll also be required to submit proof that you’ve completed 1000 hours of active practice prescribing medication and the two immediate preceding two years as an APRN. Temporary licenses are not granted prescribing privileges.

Dispensing privileges also require an application and passing a dispensing exam issued by the Board of Nursing for a $150 fee. The dispensing license is granted by the Board of Pharmacy. After passing the exam, the Board of Nursing notifies the Board of Pharmacy of your eligibility to dispense prescription drugs.

National Certification

Once you complete your graduate education, the Board requires you to obtain national certification from the certifying agency for your chosen specialty area.

These agencies are endorsed to evaluate the quality of your education, and they usually do this through certification examinations. Past applicants have found that completing programs endorsed by the appropriate certifying agency improves your success rate. Here are the recognized agencies for the certification of NPs in Nevada:

• National Certification Corporation (NCC)
• Pediatric Nursing Certification Board (PNCB)
• American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
• American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC)
• American Association of Critical-care Nurses (AACN)

Getting Licensed to Practice as a Nurse Practitioner in Nevada

You can apply for the Nevada APRN license online and pay the $200 application fee.

The Board requires proof that you have completed a post-graduate nursing program. You have to request that an original copy of your transcript be sent from your awarding institution to the Board. The transcript should include your graduation date, degree type, and coursework information showing you were educated in all subjects a standard program for advanced nurses should cover.

If you completed this program more than two years before submitting an APRN application, you’re required to send the Board proof that you’ve practiced nursing for at least 1000 hours in the last two years.

The Board also requires verification of a valid national certification sent from your national certifying agency. All applicants for an APRN license are required to hold a valid RN license to practice in Nevada. The Board requires verification of such license as is the case for RN by Endorsement. Licenses obtained from the Board in Nevada do not need to be verified.

Finally, you are required to take part in a fingerprint-based criminal background check unless you have done one with the Board in the past six months from the date of your application.