Louisiana State Board of Practical Nursing: Licensing and Renewal

The Louisiana Board of Practical Nursing, officially the Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners (LSBPNE), is the state agency that licenses LPNs, approves their education programs, sets the rules for annual renewal, defines what LPNs are allowed to do at the bedside, and investigates complaints. It operates under Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 37, Sections 961 through 979. Registered nurses answer to a separate agency, the Louisiana State Board of Nursing, so if you are an LPN, the LSBPNE is the board you deal with for everything about your license.

Getting Your First Louisiana LPN License

Louisiana law requires every LPN applicant to meet three baseline qualifications: good moral character, United States citizenship or permanent residency, and completion of an approved education program.¹ The education piece is usually a board-approved practical nursing program of roughly 12 months, though completion of an approved registered nursing program also qualifies.

Moral character is tested in part through mandatory fingerprint-based background checks run by both the Louisiana State Police and the FBI. One conviction does not automatically disqualify you, but failing to disclose criminal history when asked is often treated more seriously than the underlying offense.

After your program, you have to pass the NCLEX-PN. The LSBPNE reviews your credentials and, once satisfied, approves you to register for the exam.² The exam itself is run by Pearson VUE, and the registration fee is $200, paid directly to Pearson VUE by credit, debit, or prepaid card. If you fail, you pay the $200 again for each retake.³ Once you pass, you submit your licensure application to the LSBPNE with proof of education and your exam results, and the board issues the license if everything is in order.

Moving an LPN License from Another State

If you already hold a current, valid LPN license in another state, you can apply to Louisiana by endorsement rather than retaking the NCLEX-PN. The endorsement fee is $185 plus a 1.8% state processing charge. You will need to show that your practical nursing program included IV therapy instruction, pass Louisiana State Police and FBI background checks, and submit a certified copy of your birth certificate.⁴

One important catch: if you have ever held a Louisiana LPN license at any point in the past, you do not qualify for endorsement. You have to go through reinstatement instead, even if that old Louisiana license expired years ago.⁴

There is also an expedited route under the Welcome Home Act (Act 253 of the 2024 Legislative Session). It is available if you live in Louisiana, have held your out-of-state LPN license for at least one year, and have no pending discipline. A Welcome Home Act license is valid only in Louisiana and does not carry Nurse Licensure Compact multistate privileges.⁴ Any endorsement application has to be completed within one year of your initial request or it is voided.

Multistate Practice and the Nurse Licensure Compact

Louisiana joined the Nurse Licensure Compact on July 1, 2019, which now includes 40 member states as of early 2026.⁵ A multistate license lets you practice in any compact member state, both in person and via telehealth, without applying for a separate license in each one.

Qualifying is stricter than ordinary Louisiana licensure. You need no state or federal felony convictions, no nursing-related misdemeanor convictions, an active and unencumbered license, a valid Social Security number, fingerprint-based background checks on file, and Louisiana declared as your primary state of residence.⁵

Converting an existing single-state Louisiana license to multistate is handled through the Louisiana State Board of Nursing, not the LSBPNE, with an updated background check. The conversion fee is $89.25 ($50 application fee plus $39.25 background check fee), and processing takes up to 60 days.⁵ Your Louisiana license deactivates if you hold a multistate license in another compact state, so you cannot keep active licenses in two compact states at the same time.

Annual Renewal and What Happens If You Lapse

Louisiana LPN licenses renew every year, not every two years as in some states. The renewal window runs from November 1 through January 31, and the total renewal cost is $61.08.⁶ Continuing education is required for renewal; the specific contact hour count sits in the board’s rules and can change, so confirm the current figure on the LSBPNE site before your renewal cycle.

Miss January 31 and your license automatically flips to “Inactive – Lapsed” at midnight. You are not allowed to practice while lapsed. Reinstatement runs through the board’s nurse portal and costs $162.88, close to three times the normal renewal fee.⁶ Working on a lapsed license can also open a disciplinary case against you, so the January 31 deadline is worth treating as firm.

What Louisiana LPNs Are Allowed To Do

LPNs in Louisiana perform nursing duties consistent with their education, always under the direction of a licensed physician, optometrist, dentist, or registered nurse.⁷ That supervision requirement is not optional. An LPN cannot independently assess patients, write care plans, or make clinical judgments outside practical nursing training. Day-to-day work includes monitoring vital signs, giving medications, wound care, assisting with hygiene, and charting.

IV Therapy

Louisiana specifically authorizes LPNs to initiate and maintain IV therapy and to administer IV medications, including hyperalimentation and blood products.⁷ This is wider than many other states, and it is the reason endorsement applicants have to show proof of IV therapy training and competency as part of coming into Louisiana.⁴ Beyond IV therapy, LPNs can perform additional specified acts after completing board-approved training, again under direction of a physician, optometrist, dentist, or registered nurse.

Discipline, Penalties, and the NPDB

The LSBPNE investigates complaints and imposes discipline. Proceedings can be triggered by incompetence or negligence, substance use that impairs practice, criminal convictions that raise safety concerns, fraud involving nursing credentials, and any violation of the practical nursing statutes. The board gathers evidence, interviews witnesses, and reviews records before deciding.

Available penalties run from formal reprimand and probation through suspension, restriction, and outright revocation. The board can also impose fines and bill the licensee for the costs of the investigation. Revocation is reserved for the most serious cases, such as predatory behavior, patient harm from gross negligence, or repeated violations after prior discipline. A revoked license can sometimes be reinstated once the nurse meets conditions set by the board, like remedial education or demonstrated sobriety.

The Record Follows You Out of State

Louisiana discipline does not stay in Louisiana. Federal law requires state licensing boards to report formal disciplinary actions to the National Practitioner Data Bank within 30 days. Reportable actions include revocation, suspension, reprimand, probation, and voluntary surrender of a license to avoid discipline. Even a dismissed proceeding can show up in the NPDB if the dismissal came because the nurse surrendered the license or left the state.⁸ NPDB records surface in background checks run by employers and licensing boards in other states, so Louisiana action affects you nationally.

1
Justia. Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 37 RS 37-970 – Qualifications of Applicants
2
Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners. Licensure
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Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners. Licensure by Examination
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Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners. Licensure by Endorsement
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Louisiana State Board of Nursing. Nurse Licensure Compact
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Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners. License Renewal
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Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners. Scope of Practice
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National Practitioner Data Bank. What You Must Report to the NPDB