Georgia licenses registered nurses through the Georgia Board of Nursing, part of the Secretary of State's Professional Licensing Boards Division. Everything below comes from the board's Registered Nurse how-to guide and its April 2026 continuing competency packet, checked October 18, 2026. Fees change, so confirm on the linked pages before you pay.
Study aid, not legal advice. Your state board of nursing has the final word on your license, and its rules and fees change. Built by an RN. Headed In LLC is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), Pearson VUE or any board of nursing; their names appear here only to point you to the real thing. NCLEX and NCLEX-RN are registered trademarks of NCSBN.
Education: graduate from an approved registered nursing program. Georgia programs send your transcript for you; other schools send it themselves or through their transcript vendor.
Application: create an account in the GOALS portal and choose Apply for a License; paper applications are no longer accepted. The fee is $40, non-refundable. The checklist covers a background consent form, court documents and an explanation for any arrests, a secure and verifiable document, an affidavit of citizenship and your Social Security number, plus whether you qualify for a multistate (eNLC) license.
Same-day registrations: the board recommends registering with Pearson VUE and with GAPS/Idemia for fingerprints on the same day you submit the application, using the same name on both. After GAPS processes your registration it emails you how to get fingerprinted.
Processing: applications are handled in the order received. Answer any deficiency letter all at once: an application whose deficiencies are not fixed within 60 days may be withdrawn, and you would start over with new fees. Some applications go to the board, which needs them complete 15 days before a meeting. The board does not give a time to the Authorization to Test; check with the board.
Retakes: if you fail, apply for Repeat Exam from your exam application in GOALS ($40) and register again with Pearson VUE.
Renewal: every two years, online, by January 31 of the year your license expires, with a late period of February 1 to 28. The fee is $65.
Continuing competency: during each two-year period, complete one of five options: 30 CE hours from a board-approved provider; keeping a national certification the board recognizes; an accredited academic nursing or related course of at least two credit hours; employer verification of competency with at least 500 hours of practice; or a board-approved reentry program or graduation from a nursing program. Documentation goes to CE Broker; without it the renewal is incomplete.
Georgia is a Nurse Licensure Compact state. If Georgia is your primary state of residence and you meet the compact's uniform licensure requirements (they include a fingerprint-based state and federal background check), the board issues a multistate license that also lets you practice in every other compact state. If you live in another state, or do not meet those requirements, you get a single-state license good in Georgia only. Move your primary residence to another compact state and you must apply there for a new multistate license within 60 days.
An associate degree, bachelor's degree, diploma or entry-level master's program approved by a board of nursing, with an NCLEX program code. Your school confirms you graduated.
Apply to the board
The license comes from the state board, not the exam. Apply, pay the board fee and do the background check the board asks for.
Register with Pearson VUE
The NCLEX-RN registration fee is $200 to Pearson VUE ($350 for registrations completed on or after February 1, 2027), non-refundable. Your registration stays open 365 days while the board decides your eligibility.
Get your Authorization to Test and sit the exam
When the board makes you eligible, Pearson emails your Authorization to Test (ATT). Test within its dates: they cannot be extended. The NCLEX-RN runs 85 to 150 questions in up to five hours, and it stops when the computer is 95% sure you are above or below the passing standard.