How to get your RN license in West Virginia

West Virginia licenses registered nurses through the West Virginia Board of Registered Nurses (practical nurses have a separate board). Everything below comes from the board's RN requirements, fees and waivers, renewal, continuing education and repeat-exam pages, checked October 18, 2026.

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.

West Virginia at a glance

BoardWest Virginia Board of Registered Nurses
ExamNCLEX-RN, registered with Pearson VUE: $200 to Pearson VUE ($350 for registrations completed on or after February 1, 2027)
Board fee$70 for RN licensure by examination (or re-examination); non-refundable; waivable for low-income applicants and military families
Background checkState and federal criminal history check by electronic fingerprinting through IdentoGO with the board's service code
Nurse Licensure CompactCompact state: multistate license if you live here
RenewalEvery two years, May 1 to June 30 of even-numbered years; $90
Continuing education12 contact hours each renewal; new RNs take 3 hours on safe prescribing and drug diversion within a year of licensure
Authorization to TestNot stated; extra study requirements come before the ATT for some repeat or late testers
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.

West Virginia, step by step

West Virginia Board of Registered Nurses

  1. Who can apply: at least 18, a four-year high school course or equivalent, and a board-approved pre-licensure RN program (W. Va. Code 30-7 and 19CSR03).
  2. Application: the RN Initial by Exam application in the Nurse Portal, $70, non-refundable. Under W. Va. Code 30-1-23, the initial fee can be waived for low-income applicants (TANF, Medicaid, SNAP, or under 130% of the poverty guideline) and military families.
  3. Transcripts and background check: your program sends official final transcripts with your degree and graduation date. Complete state and federal electronic fingerprinting through IdentoGO with the board's service code.
  4. Graduate temporary license: once you have applied, cleared the background check and the board has reviewed your transcripts, you are automatically issued a 180-day graduate temporary license.
  5. NCLEX-RN: register and pay with Pearson VUE. If you first test more than five years after graduating, retest after one failure more than five years out, or retest after two or more failures, you must finish one knowledge activity and one remediation activity from the board's lists, documented directly to the board, before you get an ATT.
  6. Renewal: RN licenses renew every two years, May 1 to June 30 of even-numbered years; miss June 30 and the license lapses at once. The fee is $90, $20 of which funds nurse health programs.
  7. Continuing education: 12 contact hours from a board-approved provider each renewal, tracked in CE Broker. New RNs take 3 hours on safe prescribing and drug diversion within a year of licensure (a waiver is available if you did not handle controlled substances).

Sources: West Virginia Board of Registered Nurses RN requirements, fees and waivers, renewals, continuing education and requirements for exam and repeat exam applicants. Checked October 18, 2026.

The compact: multistate or single-state?

West Virginia is a Nurse Licensure Compact state. If West 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 West 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