License requirements by state
What each board asks for at initial licensure and at renewal, step by step, for RN, APRN and prescribing credentials.
Informational guidance only. Confirm current requirements with the appropriate licensing authority before applying, renewing or practicing. Read the disclaimer
Arizona: APRN, initial licensure
Prepare the state-specific education, certification, application and practice documents below. Separate prescribing approvals appear under Prescriptive Authority and State Rx / CS.
NP application checklist
Apply for APRN Initial certification through the Arizona Nurse Portal. Maintain a current Arizona RN license in good standing or a current RN license with multistate privileges from another compact state. Document a qualifying graduate nursing degree/program and national certification in the matching NP role and population focus. If you lack Arizona or compact RN authority, submit the RN endorsement application at the same time.
- Timing
- Before initial Arizona NP certification
- Conditions
- The board publishes older-education and pre-July 2004 national-certification exceptions. These require direct jurisdiction verification; do not apply a CNS-only waiver to an NP.
Graduation or 960 practice hours
Meet the practice requirement through completion of an advanced-practice nursing program within five years OR at least 960 qualifying advanced-practice hours within five years. Compensated or volunteer work can qualify, including a position whose job description requires, prefers or recommends the advanced certification being sought.
- Timing
- Five years before application
- Conditions
- Practice hours are not CE hours. Use the pathway applicable to your education and employment history.
Request both school documents
Have the educational institution send an official transcript directly to AZBN at transcripts@azbn.gov and a separate official completion letter on school letterhead to schoolletters@azbn.gov. Documents may instead be mailed directly to Arizona State Board of Nursing, 1740 W. Adams, Suite 2000, Phoenix, AZ 85007.
- Timing
- Before initial Arizona NP certification
- Conditions
- Both the transcript and the school completion letter are listed requirements. Applicant-uploaded copies do not replace the required direct school submission.
Certification verification and lawful presence
Have the national certifying agency send verification directly to nationalcerts@azbn.gov or the board’s mailing address. Upload acceptable citizenship/nationality/alien-status documentation with the application, even if it was previously supplied with the RN application.
- Timing
- Before initial Arizona NP certification
- Conditions
- Applicants using a listed historical exception must obtain the specified direct verification from the prior licensing jurisdiction.
Fingerprint background check
Submit a full set of fingerprints for state and federal checks unless a fingerprint card was submitted to AZBN within the previous two years. A DPS clearance card is not a substitute. Electronic service is available to applicants physically in Arizona; otherwise use an FD-258 blue-and-white applicant card completed by an identity-verifying fingerprint provider. Permanent certification waits for results.
- Timing
- Before initial Arizona NP certification
- Conditions
- Do not fingerprint yourself. The temporary-certificate pathway accepts the specified fingerprint card or electronic receipt while other temporary-approval conditions are met.
Arizona application fees
NP certification costs $150; the published background-check fee is $50. Prescribing/dispensing authority adds $150 when requested. RN endorsement, if needed, is a separate $150 application. All fees are nonrefundable.
- Timing
- Before initial Arizona NP certification
- Conditions
- These are board fees, not a complete estimate of school, certifier, fingerprint-provider or federal DEA charges. Apply any background-check exemption using the board’s instructions.
Card processing or free ACH
Credit/debit payments incur the greater of $2.00 or 2.2% per transaction. eCheck/ACH payments have no processing fee.
- Timing
- When making a payment
- Conditions
- The board’s fee notice gives an effective date of September 11, 2025.
Optional temporary AP certificate
Request temporary AP certification in the initial application and pay the $35 temporary fee listed in the application instructions. The board requires the official transcript, completion letter, fingerprint card/electronic receipt and direct certification verification or eligibility-to-test verification. New graduates awaiting certification must authorize release of exam results.
- Timing
- Optional; expires six months after issuance or automatically on certification-exam failure
- Conditions
- Subject to all board eligibility conditions. A yes answer to a disciplinary question makes the applicant ineligible. Extension is discretionary. This is an AP certificate; do not substitute the $50 temporary RN endorsement fee.
Initial prescribing and dispensing education
Provide a three-semester-hour pharmacology course completed within three years before application OR written evidence of 45 contact hours in pharmacology or clinical management of drug therapy completed within that same three-year period. Hold qualifying RN authority and Arizona board certification in the relevant specialty.
- Timing
- Three-year lookback before the prescribing application
- Conditions
- Alternative routes, not additive requirements. Do not prescribe or dispense until AZBN officially grants the authority. The additional prescribing/dispensing application fee is $150.
NP practice and prescribing
RNPs make independent clinical decisions, diagnose and treat within their specialty. Prescribing and dispensing are subject to board requirements and authorization.
- Timing
- During practice
- Conditions
- Consultation or referral is required when care exceeds the NP’s knowledge or experience, or referral protects the patient.
Coverage and conditions
- Use the checklist for the standard NP route. International education, reentry, military pathways, older educational exceptions and disciplinary history can require additional board documents. Submit the board’s current application; this site does not submit it for you.
Maintained by The Multistate NP from board sources and updated on review. Confirm against the board’s current application before you file. National certification and federal DEA requirements are separate.