“New York, Michigan, and Minnesota have joined the compact, multistate licenses are coming this year”

What nurses hear

"Good news, New York (or Michigan, or Minnesota) enacted the Nurse Licensure Compact, it just hasn't been implemented yet. Multistate licenses should be available this year."

The reality

As of mid-2026, 43 jurisdictions have enacted the NLC (41 states plus Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands), per NCSBN's own compact map. New York, Michigan, and Minnesota are not among them, and NCSBN's map colors all three 'Currently No Action.' The real bill statuses: New York's S3916 sits in the Senate Higher Education Committee and has never passed either chamber. Michigan's HB 4246 passed the House 57-52 in June 2025, then was referred to the Senate Regulatory Affairs Committee, where it has sat without action since. Minnesota's HF 1925 was introduced in March 2025 and never received a hearing. The 'enacted but not implemented' framing on aggregator sites confuses these states with Massachusetts, the one state that actually did enact the compact recently (November 20, 2024) and is still working through implementation. And Massachusetts shows why the distinction matters: some 20 months after enactment, its Board still cannot issue multistate licenses, and the Board's own notice says nurses from other compact states 'are not authorized to practice in Massachusetts until the NLC implementation is complete.' Enactment starts a process. It does not hand anyone a license.

Why this one spreads

• Aggregator 'compact states 2026' pages copy each other, and one site's error about 'enacted but not implemented' states propagates across dozens of lists.
• Michigan's bill really did pass the House, and 'House passes nurse compact' headlines read like the state joined. One chamber is not a law.
• Massachusetts genuinely enacted the compact in 2024, so 'a Northeast state joined recently' is half-remembered and reattached to New York.
• Real recent wins (Pennsylvania fully implemented July 2025, Connecticut October 2025) keep 'more states are joining' true in general, which makes any specific claim feel plausible.

The nuance that survives

• Statuses genuinely change, and Michigan is the closest pending state (one chamber passed). Check NCSBN's compact map at nursecompact.com before making a licensing decision, not an aggregator list.
• Enacted is not implemented. Massachusetts enacted in November 2024 and, as of mid-2026, still cannot issue multistate licenses; regulations, IT changes, and FBI background-check approval all come first.
• Until implementation completes in an enacted state, out-of-state compact nurses can NOT practice there on a multistate license (Massachusetts says this explicitly). Guam is the partial exception: visiting compact nurses may practice, but residents cannot get a compact license yet.
• Alaska has governor-backed compact bills (HB 131 / SB 124, introduced March 2025), and Hawaii, Illinois, and Oregon have had introductions. None has passed.
• If you live in a non-compact state, you cannot hold a multistate license at all, no matter how many compact states you work in.

Sources

NCSBN Nurse Licensure Compact map (43 jurisdictions, implementation dates)

Last verified: 2026-07-23

New York Senate, S3916 status (in committee)

Last verified: 2026-07-23

Michigan Legislature, HB 4246 status (House-passed only)

Last verified: 2026-07-23

Minnesota Legislature, HF 1925 status (introduced only)

Last verified: 2026-07-23

Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing, NLC implementation notice

Last verified: 2026-07-23

Pennsylvania Department of State, NLC fully implemented July 7, 2025

Last verified: 2026-07-23

Frequently asked questions

Is New York a compact state in 2026?

No. The compact bill, S3916, sits in the Senate Higher Education Committee and has never passed either chamber. New York nurses cannot get a multistate license, and compact nurses from other states need a New York license to practice there.

Is Michigan a compact state in 2026?

No. HB 4246 passed the Michigan House 57-52 in June 2025 but has sat in the Senate Regulatory Affairs Committee ever since. Michigan is the closest of the three, but one chamber's vote does not make a law.

Is Minnesota a compact state in 2026?

No. HF 1925 was introduced in March 2025 and never received a committee hearing. Minnesota has taken no binding step toward the compact.

What does 'enacted but not implemented' actually mean?

The legislature passed the compact into law, but the board has not finished the operational work: amending regulations, updating IT systems, and getting FBI approval for background checks. Massachusetts enacted in November 2024 and still cannot issue multistate licenses. Until implementation completes, residents cannot apply and visiting compact nurses cannot practice there.

Which states joined the compact most recently?

Connecticut is the newest full member (effective October 1, 2025), and Pennsylvania completed its full implementation on July 7, 2025. Massachusetts, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have enacted the compact but are still implementing it.

Keep going

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