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For registered nurses moving to Missouri

How to Transfer Your Nursing License to Missouri

Is Missouri a nurse compact state? Yes. Missouri 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 Missouri without another license, and a nurse who lives in Missouri applies for the multistate license there. A nurse from a state outside the compact needs a Missouri license from the Missouri State Board of Nursing, by endorsement for a nurse licensed in another state. (NCSBN, read 9 Nov 2026.)

Yes
Compact state
2,778
RN jobs in Missouri
$40.14
Median posted RN pay

What the Missouri 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 $105.00 application fee is non-refundable and is mailed with the application; the fingerprint background check is paid separately to the fingerprint vendor (no amount stated).
Temporary permit
A temporary permit valid for six months is issued automatically to a qualifying applicant, once in a lifetime; the letter states no fee for it.
Fingerprints
A fingerprint-based criminal background check is required.
License verification
The letter states no fee.
Requirements
Evidence of U.S. citizenship or lawful presence, an official final transcript showing degree and graduation date, a Social Security number, and the criminal background check through MACHS after the SSN is issued; a signed statement and court documents are required for any yes answer to a screening question.
Renewal
RN licenses expire April 30 of every odd-numbered year; the letter states no continuing education hours.
“Submit the application with a $105.00 fee.”

From the Missouri State Board of Nursing's own page, read 9 Nov 2026: pr.mo.gov (source: Missouri 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.

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Nurses in Missouri: new openings every week

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Nursing jobs in Missouri today

2,778 registered nurse and 513 LPN jobs are open in Missouri on this board, read every night from each employer's own job board.

Transferring a nursing license to Missouri: common questions

Is Missouri a nurse compact state?

Yes. Missouri 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 Missouri without another license, and a nurse who lives in Missouri applies for the multistate license there. A nurse from a state outside the compact needs a Missouri license from the Missouri 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 Missouri?

If your home state is another compact state and you keep living there, your multistate license already lets you work in Missouri. If you move to Missouri, apply to the Missouri State Board of Nursing for its multistate license. If your license is from a state outside the compact, apply to the Missouri State Board of Nursing for a license by endorsement ($105 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 Missouri?

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

Can I work in Missouri while my license is processed?

By the Missouri State Board of Nursing's own page: A temporary permit valid for six months is issued automatically to a qualifying applicant, once in a lifetime; the letter states no fee for it.

How much do registered nurses make in Missouri?

Open registered nurse jobs in Missouri that post an hourly rate pay $40.14–$44.43 an hour in the middle half, median $40.14 (661 jobs from 66 employers on this board today).

Do employers in Missouri offer relocation assistance?

310 open healthcare jobs in Missouri 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 Missouri?

By open jobs on this board today: Mercy (392), BJC HealthCare (307), SSM Health (167), MU Health Care (154), CoxHealth (150), Freeman Health System (129). Every RN job in Missouri.

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 Missouri.

  1. NCSBN Nurse Licensure Compact map (nursecompact.com), read 9 Nov 2026, published 9 Nov 2026
  2. Missouri 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 Missouri. Data as of 9 Nov 2026. https://carejobs.now/transfer-nursing-license/missouri

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