Vermont RN licensure 2026: $130 fee, 4–6 weeks
Last reviewed: by Jayson Minagawa, BSN, RN
Vermont licensure at a glance
| Board of nursing | Vermont Board of Nursing |
| Endorsement fee | $130 |
| Processing time quoted | 4–6 weeks |
| Renewal cycle | 2 years (fixed biennial licensing period) |
| Continuing education | None mandatory; 20 contact hours, or 400 practice hours, or national certification per 2 years |
| Fingerprinting | Required for licensure by endorsement (single-state and multistate) |
Apply and check current fees at sos.vermont.gov/nursing.
Vermont renewal and licensing rows checked 2026-09-26 against outside.vermont.gov (1, 2).
Vermont RN license renewal: 2 years (fixed biennial licensing period). Continuing education for Vermont renewal: none mandatory; 20 contact hours, or 400 practice hours, or national certification per 2 years.
Same in all 51: licensing · renewal · discipline · international · CEUs · defence.
Vermont required CE topics, and free courses for them
Can Vermont nurses finish CE for free? Vermont names no required CE topic for RN or LPN renewal, so any accredited free course counts toward what Vermont asks for.
Vermont renewal CE: No mandatory CE hours: per 2 years, 400 practice hours (or 960 in 5 years), or 20 contact hours, or national certification. Topics the Vermont board names, checked Sep 2026:
- Controlled substances (APRNs with a DEA registration): 2 contact hours · every renewal · APRN. Source
No free course found for Vermont's version of this yet.
Every free course, with filters: free CEUs for Vermont nurses.
Compact status: Compact state
Vermont issues multistate licenses. With Vermont as your primary state of residence, one license covers every other NLC state; it follows your residence, not your job. Compact map.
Getting licensed in Vermont
Endorsing into Vermont runs through the Vermont Board of Nursing at $130, quoted at 4–6 weeks, with no second NCLEX. Because Vermont participates in the compact, a travel nurse holding a multistate license can start an assignment here without a separate application, which is why Vermont contracts often list short lead times.
Advanced practice in Vermont
Whether an NP may prescribe independently in Vermont is set by the Vermont Board of Nursing and moves by legislative session. Check it before accepting an APRN role there.
Practice environment
Staffing ratios: Vermont has no statutory nurse-to-patient ratio law. Staffing is governed by hospital policy and, where one exists, the collective bargaining agreement — so safe-staffing concerns are raised through the facility's chain of command and its staffing committee rather than through a state standard.
Mandated staffing committees with ≥50% clinical nurses; tiny labor market produces some of the highest ICU and CRNA premiums in the country.
Common questions
Does Vermont accept a compact nursing license?
Yes — Vermont is a Nurse Licensure Compact state, so a multistate license from another compact state covers practice here with no Vermont application.
Endorsing a license into Vermont: cost and wait?
$130 to the Vermont Board of Nursing, which quotes 4–6 weeks. Nursys verifies electronically.
Who regulates Vermont nursing?
The Vermont Board of Nursing, at sos.vermont.gov/nursing.
Licensure in states bordering Vermont
New York · Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Maine.
Related Vermont guides
Vermont RN salary data · travel nursing in Vermont · compact license map · national licensing guide.