Wisconsin licenses registered nurses through the Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS), with the Wisconsin Board of Nursing. Everything below comes from DSPS's Registered Nurse pages (licensure by examination, temporary license and multistate compact) and its credential fee and renewal date list, 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.
Who can apply: at least 18, two years of high school or the equivalent, and a graduate (or soon-to-be graduate) of a Wisconsin Board of Nursing-approved RN program or a comparable one. This route is only for people who have never passed the NCLEX.
Application: in LicensE, choose Health, Registered Nurse, Licensure by Examination. The initial fee is $73. Supporting documents must come straight from third parties through the Third Party Portal; board-approved schools upload an official transcript or a Statement of Graduation form.
Eligibility date: you are made eligible for the NCLEX as of your reported graduation date, or earlier if your school sends a certificate of approval. Tell DSPS if your graduation date changes, and do not test before it.
Processing: DSPS reviews your materials in about 10 days. If anything is missing, the application moves to "Pending Applicant Input" and your Due Diligence checklist in LicensE shows what is needed.
Temporary permit: exam applicants who have never failed the NCLEX-RN can apply for a temporary license; it is invalidated if you fail, and you cannot get another.
Multistate license: not automatic. Select it on your application (or amend later), upload Form 2687 and a passport-style photo, and DSPS sends fingerprint instructions; follow them exactly or the prints may be wasted. You need a U.S. Social Security number and Wisconsin as your primary state of residence. DSPS's pages list no fingerprint step for a single-state license.
Renewal: every two years; RN licenses expire at the end of February in even-numbered years (DSPS lists 02/29). The fee is $73. Renewal opens about 4 weeks before, includes a Department of Workforce Development survey, and requires no CE.
Wisconsin is a Nurse Licensure Compact state. If Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin 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.