New York RN licensure 2026: $143 fee, TBD
Last reviewed: by Jayson Minagawa, BSN, RN
New York licensure at a glance
| Board of nursing | New York State Board of Nursing |
| Endorsement fee | $143 |
| Processing time quoted | TBD |
| Renewal cycle | 3 years (registration renewal) |
| Continuing education | No general CE hours; NYSED-approved infection control coursework every 4 years |
Apply and check current fees at www.op.nysed.gov/professions/registered-professional-nursing.
New York renewal and licensing rows checked 2026-09-26 against op.nysed.gov.
New York RN license renewal: 3 years (registration renewal). Continuing education for New York renewal: no general CE hours; NYSED-approved infection control coursework every 4 years.
Same in all 51: licensing · renewal · discipline · international · CEUs · defence.
New York required CE topics, and free courses for them
Can New York nurses finish CE for free? Partly: 1 of the 2 required topics New York names for RN or LPN renewal have a free course; Infection control and barrier precautions did not.
New York renewal CE: No general CE hour requirement for RN registration; NYSED-approved infection control coursework every 4 years. Topics the New York board names, checked Sep 2026:
- Infection control and barrier precautions: every 4 years · RN/LPN. Source
Must be taken from a provider approved by the NYS Education Department or the NYS Department of Health
No free course found for New York's version of this yet. - Child abuse identification and reporting: one-time, plus the updated curriculum by November 17, 2026 (a 15-minute addendum if you trained between 11/1/2022 and 8/31/2025) · RN. Source
Must be taken from a NYSED-approved provider
Who needs the full course and who needs the 15-minute addendum
Courses for New York nurses: Self-Directed Online Training (NYS Mandated Reporter training) (3 h, completely free) - Pain management, palliative care and addiction (prescribers with a DEA registration): 3 contact hours · every 3 years · APRN. Source
No free course found for New York's version of this yet.
Every free course, with filters: free CEUs for New York nurses.
Compact status: Not a compact state
New York issues no multistate license. Whatever your compact license covers, New York needs its own — apply before you agree a start date. Compact map.
Getting licensed in New York
Endorsing into New York runs through the New York State Board of Nursing at $143, quoted at TBD, with no second NCLEX. Because New York is outside the compact, travel assignments here need a New York license in hand before you start — build the processing time into any contract start date you agree to.
Advanced practice in New York
Whether an NP may prescribe independently in New York is set by the New York State Board of Nursing and moves by legislative session. Check it before accepting an APRN role there.
Practice environment
Staffing ratios: SB 2025-S4003 introduced Jan 2025, would expand the existing 2021 ICU 1:2 law to all units. Not yet enacted.
Public staffing-ratio disclosure law; NYSNA union strength. 2026 update: Largest NYC nurses' strike in history began Jan 12, 2026 at NewYork-Presbyterian, Montefiore, Mount Sinai. Three new 3-year contracts ratified by Feb 20, 2026 — boosts NYC private-sector RN benchmarks. SB 2025-S4003 would expand 2021 ICU 1:2 law to all units, pending.
Common questions
Does New York accept a compact nursing license?
No — New York is not a Nurse Licensure Compact state, so a multistate license does not reach it. You need a New York license of its own.
Endorsing a license into New York: cost and wait?
$143 to the New York State Board of Nursing, which quotes TBD. Nursys verifies electronically.
Who regulates New York nursing?
The New York State Board of Nursing, at www.op.nysed.gov/professions/nursing.
Licensure in states bordering New York
New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Connecticut · Massachusetts · Vermont.
Related New York guides
New York RN salary data · travel nursing in New York · compact license map · national licensing guide.