How to get your RN license in Virginia

Virginia licenses registered nurses through the Virginia Board of Nursing, part of the Department of Health Professions. Everything below comes from the board's Registered Nurse application page, fee table and criminal background check page, and its rules in 18VAC90-19 (renewal and continued competency), 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.

Virginia at a glance

BoardVirginia Board of Nursing (Department of Health Professions)
ExamNCLEX-RN, registered with Pearson VUE: $200 to Pearson VUE ($350 for registrations completed on or after February 1, 2027)
Board fee$190 (exam or endorsement), non-refundable; a repeat exam application is $50
Background checkFingerprint-based state and FBI check through Fieldprint; $35.95 by Livescan inside Virginia
Nurse Licensure CompactCompact state: multistate license if you live here
RenewalEvery two years by the last day of your birth month (even or odd years by birth year); $140
Continuing educationOne of nine continued competency options, such as 30 contact hours, or 15 hours plus 640 hours of practice
Authorization to TestNot stated; the board says to register with Pearson VUE right after you apply to avoid ATT delays
Practice for the NCLEX freeThe NCLEX shut-off simulator: real practice questions under the exam's published stopping rules, 85 to 150 questions. No sign-up.

Virginia, step by step

Virginia Board of Nursing (Department of Health Professions)

  1. Education: graduate from a state-approved RN education program, then apply for licensure by examination.
  2. Application: online only. The RN fee is $190 (exam or endorsement), paid by card online; all fees are non-refundable. Read the application instructions and the laws and regulations first.
  3. Pearson VUE: register immediately after you submit the board application, so your Authorization to Test is not delayed. The board does not give a time to the ATT; check with the board.
  4. Background check: every RN applicant needs a fingerprint-based state and FBI check (Virginia Code 54.1-3005.1). Your application confirmation receipt carries a VBON Fieldprint code; use it to book with Fieldprint. Inside Virginia it is done by Livescan for $35.95; Fieldprint also has Livescan sites in every state.
  5. Retakes: a repeat exam application is $50.
  6. Renewal: every two years, by the last day of your birth month: in even-numbered years if you were born in an even year, odd if odd. The fee is $140, plus $50 if late; an unrenewed license lapses automatically. At every renewal you declare your primary state of residence, and if it is another compact state, you cannot renew the Virginia license.
  7. Continued competency: one of nine options each renewal, including 30 contact hours; 15 contact hours plus 640 hours of active practice; a current national specialty certification; three credit hours of post-licensure academic nursing education; a board-approved refresher course; or a nursing research project, publication or teaching.

Sources: Virginia Board of Nursing, apply for an RN license, fees, criminal background checks, and 18VAC90-19-150 (renewal) and 18VAC90-19-160 (continued competency). Checked October 18, 2026.

The compact: multistate or single-state?

Virginia is a Nurse Licensure Compact state. If Virginia 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 Virginia only. Move your primary residence to another compact state and you must apply there for a new multistate license within 60 days.

Compact status from NCSBN, nursecompact.com, checked October 18, 2026.

The national steps, briefly

  1. An approved RN program

    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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

The full national walk-through and every state: How to get your RN license. NCLEX facts from NCSBN, NCLEX fees and registration.

Practice for the NCLEX freeThe NCLEX shut-off simulator: real practice questions under the exam's published stopping rules, 85 to 150 questions. No sign-up.

Official pages