New Jersey licenses registered nurses through the New Jersey Board of Nursing, in the Division of Consumer Affairs. Everything below comes from the board's applications page, its Phases and Timelines sheet, and the board's rules in N.J.A.C. 13:37 (fees and continuing education), checked October 18, 2026. Confirm the fee in the application 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.
New Jersey Board of Nursing (Division of Consumer Affairs)
One application: New Jersey combined its exam and endorsement forms into one online Candidate application, for anyone never licensed and for nurses licensed in other states. If you meet the compact requirements you get a multistate license; if not, a single-state New Jersey license.
Fees: under the board's fee rule, a $75 application fee, a $120 initial license fee and a $5 Alternative to Discipline surcharge (graduates of programs abroad pay a $100 application fee). The application shows the amount due.
Background check: after the board's first review you get a letter to complete a fingerprint criminal history check. The board says results take about 1 to 3 weeks from your appointment and cannot be expedited, so book it right away. The board also queries the National Practitioner Data Bank before it licenses anyone.
Timeline: the board's Phases and Timelines sheet estimates about 2 to 3 weeks for the first review (longer in peak season), 4 to 6 weeks for deficiencies and the background check, and 3 to 4 weeks for final review, with 1 to 2 more for a multistate license. Your license card follows by mail in 10 to 15 business days. Watch your spam folder for the board's automated emails.
NCLEX-RN: register with Pearson VUE; a re-exam application cannot go forward until you have. The board does not give a separate time to the Authorization to Test; check with the board.
Retakes: fail three times in a row and, before a fourth try, you must finish a 30-hour remediation course taught by a qualified instructor (N.J.A.C. 13:37-2.1(b)).
Renewal: every two years; the active renewal fee is $120, plus $50 if you are 1 to 30 days late. Each renewal needs 30 hours of CE, including at least 1 hour on prescription opioids (alternatives for pain, and the risks and signs of abuse, addiction and diversion). Up to 15 extra hours carry into the next period.
New Jersey is a Nurse Licensure Compact state. If New Jersey 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 New Jersey 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.