How to Fill Out and Submit the Indiana CNA Reciprocity Application Online

To transfer an active out-of-state certification to Indiana, submit the Indiana CNA reciprocity application to Ivy Tech Community College, the state’s designated testing vendor, with a $65 fee and proof of your current certification. The Indiana Department of Health (IDOH) oversees the Nurse Aide Registry, but Ivy Tech handles application intake and any required testing.¹ Once your packet is in, you can work in Indiana as a nurse aide for up to 120 days while the transfer is being processed.²

Who Qualifies for Reciprocity

Three conditions have to be met before Indiana will consider a transfer:

Your CNA credential in the other state is active and in good standing at the time you apply. Lapsed or expired certifications do not qualify.
Your home state’s registry contains no findings of abuse, neglect, or misappropriation of resident property. Indiana verifies this directly with the other state.
You’ve performed nursing or nursing-related work recently enough to still be on your home state’s registry. Federal rules remove aides after 24 consecutive months of no such work, and once you’re off that registry there’s nothing to transfer.³

If you don’t meet all three, reciprocity isn’t available. The alternative is completing an Indiana-approved CNA training program and passing both the written and skills competency exams through Ivy Tech.⁴

Where to Get the Application

The form is called the Nurse Aide Competency Evaluation Application for Reciprocity, and Ivy Tech distributes it through their CNA testing office. Start at the Ivy Tech CNA testing information page, which links to the downloadable documents.⁵ If a link is broken or the form isn’t visible, email the testing office through the same page, or contact the IDOH Aides Training Program at 317-233-1325 or Aides@health.in.gov.⁶

Filling Out the Form

The application itself is short. What causes delays is not length but mismatches: every entry gets checked against your home state’s registry, and a maiden name on one document with a married name on another, or a transposed digit in a license number, will stall the whole file.

Legal name exactly as it appears on your government-issued photo ID. If your name has changed since your original certification, note the change on the application and bring documentation (marriage certificate, court order).
Social Security number, for identification and cross-state registry verification.
Your out-of-state registry or certification number. Verify it against your certificate or your home state’s online registry lookup.
The training program where you originally completed CNA training, and the date you finished.
The state where you currently hold active certification.

If you’re filling out a paper form by hand, print clearly. Illegible entries get treated as missing information and the packet comes back.

Documents to Include

A legible copy of your out-of-state CNA certificate showing it hasn’t expired. If your home state doesn’t issue physical cards, a printout or PDF from that state’s official registry verification page works.
A government-issued photo ID (driver’s license, state ID, or passport). The name has to match the application.
Work history verification if your home state’s registry doesn’t display employment dates. A letter on facility letterhead from a recent employer, confirming your dates of employment and duties, is the usual fix.

Copy everything before mailing. If a packet goes missing in transit, you don’t want to rebuild it from your home state’s registry office.

Fee and Where to Send It

Mail the completed application, supporting documents, and payment to Ivy Tech’s central testing office.² The processing fee is $65. Confirm the current fee and accepted payment methods with Ivy Tech before you mail anything; personal checks have historically been refused in favor of money orders or facility checks, and vendor payment policies do change.⁵

What Happens After You Submit

Once Ivy Tech has your packet, they open a verification request with your home state’s registry. Turnaround depends on the other state; some respond in days, others in weeks. The IDOH CNA FAQ notes that Ivy Tech may contact you to schedule a written competency exam as part of the reciprocity process.² Some applicants have reported being exempt from testing, so ask Ivy Tech directly whether a written test applies in your case.

Working in Indiana While Your Application Is Pending

You don’t have to wait on the outcome to start. Indiana allows a nurse aide to work for up to 120 days while an application is being processed and the aide is not yet listed on the Indiana registry.² Before you begin clinical duties, your employer has to verify your credentials with your home state’s registry; Indiana facilities are required to check every state registry they have reason to believe holds information on a prospective aide.⁷

If your application isn’t approved inside that 120-day window, you generally can’t keep working as a nurse aide in Indiana until the issue is cleared. Follow up with both Ivy Tech and IDOH well before the deadline if you haven’t heard anything.

Checking Your Status

Once approved, your name appears as active on the Indiana Nurse Aide Registry. Check your listing through the state’s online license verification tool at mylicense.in.gov.⁸ Employers use the same portal to confirm a prospective hire is in good standing before assigning patient care duties.¹

If the application is still pending, log in through the same system to see your checklist and any outstanding items. For a delayed application, contact the IDOH Aides Registry at Aides@health.in.gov or 317-233-1325.⁶

Military Spouses

If you’re a military spouse relocating to Indiana on orders, the Military Spouse Licensing Relief Act, an amendment to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, requires states to recognize professional licenses held by military spouses from other jurisdictions. You still apply through the standard reciprocity process, but presenting a copy of military orders can expedite review. You must remain in good standing with your home state and comply with Indiana’s standards of practice. CNA certification is not excluded from the act’s coverage.

Keeping Your Indiana Certification Active

Once you’re on the Indiana registry, your certification is valid for two years. To renew, you need at least eight hours of paid work in nursing or nursing-related activities during that two-year cycle. Private care hours do not count in Indiana.⁹

Renewal runs online through mylicense.in.gov. First-time users create credentials with the “Register a Person” option.⁹ If your certification lapses by more than eight months, a paper renewal form has to be completed and submitted by your verifying employer, either emailed to aides@health.in.gov or faxed to 317-233-7442. Letting the certification lapse further, or failing the work requirement outright, means full retraining and retesting through an approved Indiana program; reciprocity does not apply to your own expired Indiana credential.

1
Indiana Department of Health. Aide Training, Certification, and Registry
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Indiana Department of Health. Frequently Asked Questions: Certified Nurse Aides
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eCFR. 42 CFR 483.156 – Registry of Nurse Aides
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Indiana Department of Health. Certification and Recertification
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Ivy Tech Community College. CNA, QMA, Home Health Aide Testing Information
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Indiana Department of Health. Certified Nurse Aide (CNA) Training and Certification
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Legal Information Institute. Indiana Code 410 IAC 16.2-3.1-14 – Personnel
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Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. PLA Online Services
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Indiana Department of Health. How Do I Renew My Certification