Skip to content

For registered nurses moving to Arkansas

How to Transfer Your Nursing License to Arkansas

Is Arkansas a nurse compact state? Yes. Arkansas is in the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC): a nurse whose home state is a compact state and who holds its multistate license can work in Arkansas without another license, and a nurse who lives in Arkansas applies for the multistate license there. A nurse from a state outside the compact needs a Arkansas license from the Arkansas State Board of Nursing, by endorsement for a nurse licensed in another state. (NCSBN, read 9 Nov 2026.)

Yes
Compact state
652
RN jobs in Arkansas
$40
Median posted RN pay

What the Arkansas State Board of Nursing asks

Licensure by endorsement for a registered nurse licensed in another state, as the board's own page states it (read 9 Nov 2026).

Fee
The board's fee schedule lists $125.00 for RN license by endorsement; the temporary permit is a separate $30.00, the state and federal criminal background check is a separate system, and all fees are non-refundable.
Temporary permit
A one-time temporary permit that authorizes practice while awaiting permanent licensure may be requested for an additional fee ($30.00 on the fee schedule) by a qualified applicant who holds an unencumbered active license from another jurisdiction.
Fingerprints
A fingerprint-based criminal background check is required.
License verification
Through Nursys (verification request submitted online) if the original license was issued in a Nursys state; otherwise the ASBN Verification Form is mailed to the original licensing state, which may charge a fee.
Requirements
Application through the Arkansas Nurse Portal with a valid U.S. Social Security number and a declaration of primary state of residence; a nurse out of active practice more than five years must complete an Arkansas board-approved refresher course or graduate from an approved program within one year of applying.
Good to know
If your primary state of residence is a compact state and you hold an active multistate license there, you cannot be issued an Arkansas license; completed applications are valid for one year.
“Arkansas law requires applicants for licensure to submit a state and federal criminal background check.”

From the Arkansas State Board of Nursing's own page, read 9 Nov 2026: healthy.arkansas.gov (source: Arkansas State Board of Nursing). Fees change: the board's page on the day you apply is the one that counts.

The steps

What every move takes; the board's page above says what it asks in each.

  1. Check whether your home state and the new state are both in the Nurse Licensure Compact: if both are and you keep living in your home state, your multistate license already lets you work there.
  2. If you are moving your home to the new state and it is a compact state, apply for its multistate license; if it is outside the compact, apply to its board of nursing for a license by endorsement.
  3. Have your current license verified to the new board, through Nursys where your state takes part in it.
  4. Complete the background check the board asks for (most ask for fingerprints) and any state exam or course it names.
  5. Pay the board's fee and, where the board offers one, ask for a temporary permit so you can start work while the application is processed.

Nurses alerts

Nurses in Arkansas: new openings every week

A weekly email with the newest Nurses openings in Arkansas, taken from the employers' own careers sites. Free, stop anytime.

Only job openings in your inbox. Leave anytime with one click.

Nursing jobs in Arkansas today

652 registered nurse and 178 LPN jobs are open in Arkansas on this board, read every night from each employer's own job board.

Transferring a nursing license to Arkansas: common questions

Is Arkansas a nurse compact state?

Yes. Arkansas is in the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC): a nurse whose home state is a compact state and who holds its multistate license can work in Arkansas without another license, and a nurse who lives in Arkansas applies for the multistate license there. A nurse from a state outside the compact needs a Arkansas license from the Arkansas State Board of Nursing, by endorsement for a nurse licensed in another state. (NCSBN, read 9 Nov 2026.)

How do I transfer my nursing license to Arkansas?

If your home state is another compact state and you keep living there, your multistate license already lets you work in Arkansas. If you move to Arkansas, apply to the Arkansas State Board of Nursing for its multistate license. If your license is from a state outside the compact, apply to the Arkansas State Board of Nursing for a license by endorsement ($125 by its own page): have your license verified through Nursys, complete the background check, and pay the fee.

How do I transfer an LPN or LVN license to Arkansas?

The same way: the compact covers LPN/VNs too, so a multistate LPN license from a compact home state works in Arkansas; otherwise apply for a license by endorsement to the Arkansas State Board of Nursing. Its own page states the LPN fee, which differs from the RN fee above. LPN jobs in Arkansas.

Can I work in Arkansas while my license is processed?

By the Arkansas State Board of Nursing's own page: A one-time temporary permit that authorizes practice while awaiting permanent licensure may be requested for an additional fee ($30.00 on the fee schedule) by a qualified applicant who holds an unencumbered active license from another jurisdiction.

How much do registered nurses make in Arkansas?

Open registered nurse jobs in Arkansas that post an hourly rate pay $38.02–$45.76 an hour in the middle half, median $40 (72 jobs from 18 employers on this board today).

Do employers in Arkansas offer relocation assistance?

37 open healthcare jobs in Arkansas offer relocation help in their own posting today, each quoting the offer (a set amount, reimbursement or a package); ask for the terms in writing before you accept.

Who is hiring registered nurses in Arkansas?

By open jobs on this board today: Unity Health (79), Mercy (75), University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (66), Saint Bernards Medical Center (56), CommonSpirit Health (39), Advantis Medical (38). Every RN job in Arkansas.

Sources and method

The compact status is NCSBN's map on the day read. The board's rules are its own page's words, shown only where the page states them; a sentence of it is checked against the page every week, and a change is read again. The jobs and pay are the registered nurse jobs open on this board in Arkansas.

  1. NCSBN Nurse Licensure Compact map (nursecompact.com), read 9 Nov 2026, published 9 Nov 2026
  2. Arkansas State Board of Nursing: licensure by endorsement, read 9 Nov 2026; checked again every week for the sentence quoted, published 9 Nov 2026
  3. CareJobs.Now job board: open jobs read every night from each employer's own careers site

Cite this page

CareJobs.Now. (2026). How to Transfer Your Nursing License to Arkansas. Data as of 9 Nov 2026. https://carejobs.now/transfer-nursing-license/arkansas

How the board counts