Getting a Florida nursing license by endorsement

How it works

Florida licenses out-of-state nurses by endorsement. Because Florida is a compact state, whether you actually need it depends on your primary state of residence, not on where you work.

Processing time

Not published as a real-world average. Florida law requires the Board to issue the license within 7 days of all requirements being met, and to review an initial application within 30 days, but the Board does not publish a typical end-to-end turnaround. Do not rely on a single number.

Work while waiting

There is no Florida-issued temporary license for ordinary endorsement applicants. A compact nurse moving to Florida may keep practicing on their former multistate license only until the Florida license issues. Military spouses have a separate authorization (see below).

Requirements

Request license verification from every state where you hold or have held a license. Complete Livescan electronic fingerprinting to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, required for all initial applicants under House Bill 975. Florida's nurse-specific coursework (medical errors, laws and rules, HIV/AIDS, domestic violence and human trafficking, impairment) is tied to your renewal cycle rather than gating the initial endorsement.

Fees

$110 application and licensing fee to the Board of Nursing, plus the separate Livescan fingerprint vendor fee.

Compact rules

If your primary residence stays in another compact state and you hold a multistate license, you can already practice in Florida on that license with no Florida endorsement needed. But once you make Florida your primary residence you must apply for licensure by endorsement immediately, with no grace period; your former home-state license is inactivated when the Florida one issues.

Military spouse

Florida eliminated licensure fees for military spouses and provides expedited full licensure for an active-duty spouse already licensed in another state (SB 562, 2022), applied for through the VALOR online portal. Older Department materials also describe a 120-day authorization to practice on proof of out-of-state licensure.

The 120-day military-spouse practice window appears on older Department forms that predate the 2022 fee-elimination law; confirm which path is current with the Board before relying on it.

Source: Florida Board of Nursing, RN/LPN licensure by endorsement, last checked 2026-06-18. Fees and timelines change; confirm with the board before you rely on a date.