The Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) is an agreement between participating states that allows registered nurses and licensed practical/vocational nurses to hold one multistate license and practice in all member states without applying for additional licenses. As of 2025, 43 jurisdictions have enacted the compact, with 40 already actively implementing it. The compact eliminates the need for nurses to go through the costly, time-consuming process of obtaining a separate license in every state where they want to work.
How a Multistate License Works
A multistate license is issued by your home state, the state where you legally reside. That single license gives you the authority to practice nursing in person or via telehealth in every other compact state, with no additional applications and no time limit. As long as you maintain legal residency in the state that issued your license and remain in good standing, you can practice across state lines freely.
This is fundamentally different from the traditional single-state license, which is only valid in the state that issued it. Nurses who live in noncompact states can still apply for individual licenses in compact states, but they’ll only receive single-state licenses valid in that one state. You can hold as many single-state licenses as you want, but you’re only eligible for a multistate license if you declare a compact state as your primary residence.
Which States Are in the Compact
Forty states currently have the NLC in effect, with several more on the way. The original group of states implemented the compact on January 19, 2018, including Texas, Virginia, Florida, Colorado, North Carolina, and about 20 others. States have continued joining in waves: Kansas and Louisiana in 2019, Alabama and Indiana in 2020, New Jersey in 2021, Vermont in 2022, Ohio in 2023, and Rhode Island and Washington in 2024.
Connecticut is set to implement the compact on October 1, 2025, and Pennsylvania follows on July 7, 2025. Guam, Massachusetts, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have enacted the NLC but don’t yet have implementation dates. Notable holdouts that have not enacted the compact include California, New York, Oregon, Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois.
Primary State of Residence Requirements
Your eligibility for a multistate license hinges entirely on where you legally live. The compact uses the concept of a “primary state of residence” (PSOR) to determine which state issues your license. This isn’t about where you own property. It’s about your legal residency status, similar to how your driver’s license is tied to the state you live in.
If your legal residence is in a compact state, you can apply for a multistate license through that state’s board of nursing. If you live in a noncompact state, you’re not eligible for a multistate license regardless of where you want to practice. You’d need to apply individually in each state where you want to work.
What Happens When You Move
Relocating from one compact state to another requires you to apply for a new multistate license in your new home state. There is no grace period. You should apply as soon as you move, and you cannot wait until your old license expires. While your application is processing, you can continue practicing on your former home state’s license, but once the new multistate license is issued, your old one is automatically inactivated.
If you move from a compact state to a noncompact state, you lose your multistate privileges. You’ll need to apply for a single-state license in that new state. Moving from a noncompact state to a compact state opens the door to applying for a multistate license for the first time.
Which State’s Rules You Follow
Having a multistate license doesn’t mean you practice under your home state’s rules everywhere. When you practice in another compact state, you follow that state’s nursing practice laws and regulations. Your home state issues the license, but each state retains authority over nursing practice within its borders. If a compact state has specific scope-of-practice rules or requirements that differ from your home state, you’re expected to know and follow them.
Each state also retains the authority to take disciplinary action against a nurse practicing within its jurisdiction, even if the nurse’s license was issued elsewhere. Disciplinary records are tracked through Nursys, the only national database for nurse licensure and discipline. Boards of nursing report directly to this system, and anyone can look up a nurse’s license and discipline status for free.
Telehealth and Emergency Response
The compact has become especially important for two areas of modern healthcare: telehealth and disaster response. A nurse with a multistate license can provide telehealth services to patients in any compact state without needing a separate license in the patient’s state. For health systems operating across state lines, this removes a major barrier to expanding virtual care.
The COVID-19 pandemic made the case for the compact in stark terms. When hospitals were overwhelmed, all 50 states had to issue emergency declarations and temporarily waive licensure requirements so out-of-state nurses could help. In compact states, that mobilization was already built into the system. Nurses could cross state lines immediately without waiting for emergency waivers or temporary permits. The same principle applies to hurricanes, wildfires, and other regional disasters where nurses from neighboring states need to respond quickly.
If the compact expanded to all 50 states, emergency licensure waivers would become unnecessary. All nurses would meet uniform licensure requirements, every state would maintain enforcement authority, and the question of when temporary practice authority expires would no longer be an issue.
How to Get a Multistate License
If you already hold a single-state license in a compact state, you can apply for a multistate license through your state board of nursing’s website. You’ll need to meet the compact’s uniform licensure requirements, which include passing the NCLEX, completing a background check, and meeting education standards. The specific application process varies by state, but the eligibility criteria are standardized across all compact members.
If you’re a new graduate in a compact state, your initial license application will typically include the option for a multistate license. If you’re licensed in a noncompact state and want multistate privileges, you’d need to establish legal residency in a compact state first, then apply for licensure by endorsement in that state.