Last updated: October 14, 2026.
This is a how-to for looking up a public license record, not legal advice and not an employer’s screening policy. A lookup shows what the board has posted. It does not grant you a license in another state.
A license verification should establish the correct person, credential, current status, expiration date, and any restrictions relevant to the planned work. Employers, credentialers, and nurses applying by endorsement all start in the same place: a primary-source lookup. For many boards, that place is Nursys. For others, it is the board’s own site.
Nursys QuickConfirm and Nursys verification are different
Nursys is the nurse-licensure database NCSBN operates for participating boards of nursing. Two uses get mixed together:
- QuickConfirm is the public lookup. You search a name or license number and see the status participating boards have reported. Use it when you need to check a license, not when a board has asked for an official verification report.
- Licensure verification for endorsement is the report a nurse orders so another board can receive primary-source verification. That is a different Nursys workflow from typing a name into QuickConfirm. The fee, if any, is whatever Nursys shows at checkout. Do not assume the public lookup fee and the endorsement-report fee are the same. Read the screen before you pay.
Start at nursys.com. If the person is not there, do not treat that as proof they are unlicensed. Some boards do not report every record through Nursys. Go to the board’s own verification page. The license verification helper and the board directory are the on-site routes to those official pages.
California, Pennsylvania, and board-specific records
California is not categorically absent from Nursys. The California Board of Registered Nursing directs RN endorsement-verification requests to Nursys. Its own verification process can also address RN licensure and advanced-practice certifications. California RN and California LVN records come from different regulators; do not assume one profession’s participation proves another’s.
For Pennsylvania, use the official PALS verification service for the state record and the current destination-board instructions for endorsement reports. Nursys participation can differ by license type and service. Check the participating-jurisdictions page rather than relying on a historical list of excluded states.
Connecticut fully implemented the NLC on October 1, 2025. Check both active status and the multistate designation. An active single-state Connecticut license authorizes Connecticut practice; it does not create privileges elsewhere. The Connecticut guide explains conversion and residency.
How to verify an RN, LPN, or APRN license
- Get the legal name, the state, and, if you have it, the license number. Nicknames and former names cause empty results.
- Search Nursys QuickConfirm for participating boards.
- If there is no record, open that board’s verification from the board directory.
- Read the status, the expiration date, and any discipline flag the board displays. Do not stop at “a number came up.”
- For an APRN, check both the RN license and the APRN or NP authorization. In many states they are separate records. An active RN license does not prove prescriptive authority.
- Save a PDF or printout with the date you checked. Boards update records. A screenshot from last year is not a current verification.
The same process applies when checking Hawaii, Arkansas, New Jersey, Florida, or New York records. Hawaii’s endorsement process, which is a different task from looking up a license you already hold, is in Hawaii nursing license by endorsement.
Getting a copy or proof of your own license
Boards have mostly stopped mailing a card as the only proof. Your proof is usually:
- the online verification page, which a hospital can check itself,
- a wallet card or PDF if that board still issues one, or
- a Nursys verification report if another board or a credentialer asks for the Nursys product specifically.
“Where can I get a copy of my nursing license?” often means the nurse cannot log in. Use the board’s password reset before you pay a third party to “get your license.” The record is yours. The digital license management notes cover storing the PDF without emailing it around.
Verification when you apply by endorsement
Endorsement means the new state will issue its own license based on the one you already hold. The new board decides what proof it accepts. Many participating boards accept a Nursys verification report instead of a paper letter from the old board. Some still want a board-to-board form.
Order the report after you know which product the destination board named in its instructions. Ordering the wrong report is a common delay. The license requirements guides for a specific home state and destination list the documents that research has tied to that move. They are not a substitute for the board’s checklist.
For an endorsement report, verify the sending jurisdiction, license type, destination board, and delivery status. Save the order receipt and ask the destination board whether it received the report if the application remains deficient. A paid order is evidence of a request, not proof that the licensing file is complete.
Read restrictions before concluding someone is cleared to work
An “active” status may coexist with a restriction, monitoring condition, or board order. Open any linked disciplinary document and check whether it affects the proposed role or setting. Match the license number and legal name to the clinician; names alone can produce the wrong record.
For a compact nurse, verify the home-state multistate license and the destination privilege. For an NP, check the APRN/NP credential and any separate prescribing or independent-practice authorization. A lookup is one part of credentialing and does not establish hospital privileges, payer enrollment, or competence for a particular procedure.
Quick reference
| Need | Where to start | Then |
|---|---|---|
| Connecticut RN license verification | Nursys QuickConfirm or Connecticut eLicense | Read single-state vs. multistate. See the Connecticut guide. |
| Arkansas RN license verification | Nursys QuickConfirm | Arkansas is an NLC state. Privilege still depends on a multistate license and primary residence. |
| Hawaii nurse license verification | Nursys, then Hawaii PVL if needed | Endorsement is a separate application. See the Hawaii guide. |
| California nurse license verification | California Board of Registered Nursing lookup | Do not stop if Nursys has no row. |
| New Jersey, New York, Florida | Nursys plus the board if the record is missing | APRN status is a second record. |
| Copy of your own license | Your board account, or the verification page | Order a Nursys report only if a board asked for that report. |
Understanding state licensing boards explains what the board is. This page is only the lookup.
Frequently asked questions
Is Nursys QuickConfirm free?
The public QuickConfirm search is the no-cost lookup NCSBN offers for participating boards. A verification report ordered for endorsement is a separate transaction. Confirm the amount on the Nursys screen before you pay.
Why is a nurse missing from Nursys?
The board may not report that license type, the name may not match, or the license may be expired and omitted from the public view you are using. Check the board’s own site before you conclude there is no license.
Does a verification let me work in that state?
No. Verification reads a record. It does not issue a license or a multistate privilege.
Can I verify an APRN and an RN the same way?
Search both. Many states post them as separate authorizations. Prescriptive authority may be a third flag.
If the lookup is step one of a new application
After you know the license is active, the next work is the destination application. Full Service preparation for an APRN application is $275 per application. Tracking an existing license, including alerts, is $35 per month. Both are on services. The verification itself stays on Nursys or the board.
Sources
- Nursys, NCSBN’s licensure verification system for participating boards.
- NCSBN, which operates Nursys and publishes the Nurse Licensure Compact materials.
- Connecticut NLC implementation notice, October 1, 2025.
- Connecticut DPH, convert a license to multistate.
- Hawaii Board of Nursing application instructions, for the separate endorsement path.
- California BRN, verification of licensure.
- Pennsylvania PALS license verification.
- Nursys participating jurisdictions.