To hold a Mississippi nursing license, you need to graduate from an approved nursing program, pass the NCLEX, clear a fingerprint-based state and federal background check, and pay the board’s fees. Once licensed, you renew every two years and complete 20 hours of continuing education each cycle. The Mississippi nursing license requirements below apply to registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical nurses (LPNs), and advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs), and are set by the Mississippi Board of Nursing (MSBN) under the Nursing Practice Law at Mississippi Code 73-15-1 and following sections.1Mississippi Board of Nursing. Mississippi Code 73-15-1 – Short Title
Who Needs a Mississippi License
Every RN, LPN, APRN, and certified clinical hemodialysis technician practicing in Mississippi is regulated by the MSBN.2Secretary of State of Mississippi. Mississippi Administrative Code Title 30 Parts 2801 and 2810 – Nursing Rules and Regulations There is one meaningful exception. Mississippi joined the Nurse Licensure Compact on July 1, 2001, so an RN or LPN whose primary state of residence is another compact state and who holds a current, unrestricted multistate license can practice in Mississippi without applying for a Mississippi license.3Mississippi Board of Nursing. What Is the Nurse Licensure Compact? If you move to Mississippi permanently, the multistate license follows your residence, and you must apply for a Mississippi license within the compact’s timeframe.4Mississippi Board of Nursing. Mississippi Code 73-15-201 – Nurse Licensure Compact The compact covers RN and LPN/VN licenses only. APRNs are not included and must be separately licensed in Mississippi.
Getting Your First License by Examination
This is the path for anyone who has never held a nursing license in any state.
Education
RN applicants must graduate from a nursing program that substantially meets Mississippi’s educational standards.5Mississippi Board of Nursing. What Is Licensure by Examination LPN applicants must complete a nursing program approved through a state vocational education division or equivalent accrediting body.6Justia. Mississippi Code 73-15-21 – Licensed Practical Nurses If a school loses MSBN approval, its graduates cannot sit for the NCLEX or obtain a Mississippi license, so verify your program’s standing before you enroll.
Application
You submit an attested written application, a high school diploma or equivalent, and official transcripts from your nursing program. The name on your application must exactly match the identification you will present at the testing center. Applicants whose first language is not English must demonstrate competence in English related to nursing.
NCLEX
You must register for and pass the National Council Licensure Examination. Mississippi allows up to six attempts within two years of graduation.7Mississippi Board of Nursing. NCLEX Testing NCLEX registration is $200, paid directly to Pearson VUE.
Getting a License by Endorsement
If you already hold a nursing license in another state and are not practicing under the compact, you apply by endorsement. You verify your original license through NURSYS, or directly through your home state’s board if it does not participate in NURSYS.8Mississippi Board of Nursing. Endorsement Application Instructions You also submit official transcripts from your nursing school, complete the fingerprint background check, and provide proof of Mississippi residency if you are claiming the state as your primary home. Endorsement applicants meet the same background check requirements as examination applicants.9Legal Information Institute. 30 Miss Code R 2810-2.3 – Requirements for Licensure by Endorsement
Background Check and Criminal History Disclosure
Every applicant must clear a fingerprint-based criminal history check through both the Mississippi Department of Public Safety’s central criminal database and the FBI’s federal database.6Justia. Mississippi Code 73-15-21 – Licensed Practical Nurses You provide a full set of fingerprints in the format the board prescribes, and the board forwards them for processing.10Mississippi State Department of Health. Background Checks Fingerprinting fees are paid separately to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety and typically run $50 to $70.
The board can refuse any application from a person convicted of an offense under Title 97 of the Mississippi Code or any violation of the Nursing Practice Law itself. Felony convictions, offenses involving dishonesty, substance-related crimes, and offenses suggesting a threat to patient safety are the most common grounds for denial. Disclose any criminal history on your application. Concealment is treated more seriously than most underlying offenses because the board views it as a separate character issue. If you answer yes to any discipline or criminal history question, you can upload supporting documents and an explanation, and expect a longer review.
What It Costs
Fees are set in Mississippi Administrative Code Part 2880.
- Initial RN application: $10011Mississippi Board of Nursing. Applications and Forms
- Initial LPN application: $60
- NCLEX registration: $200 to Pearson VUE
- Fingerprint/background check: roughly $50–$70 to the Department of Public Safety
- Active RN or LPN renewal: $100 per two-year cycle12Mississippi Board of Nursing. Mississippi Administrative Code Title 30 Part 2880 – Fees
- Inactive renewal: $25 per cycle
- APRN state certification renewal: $100 for the first certification, $50 for each additional one
- APRN controlled substance prescriptive authority (initial or renewal): $100
APRNs who prescribe controlled substances also need a federal DEA registration, which carries its own fee.
Renewing Your Mississippi Nursing License
Mississippi uses staggered two-year renewal cycles. RN licenses run from January 1 of each odd-numbered year through December 31 of the following even-numbered year. LPN licenses run the opposite cycle: January 1 of each even-numbered year through December 31 of the following odd-numbered year.13Mississippi Board of Nursing. Mississippi Administrative Code Part 2815 – Continuing Education Requirements
Continuing Education
RNs and LPNs must complete at least 20 contact hours of approved continuing education during each two-year renewal period. New graduates licensed by examination in Mississippi are exempt for their first licensure period. You can carry over up to 10 hours from the prior renewal period.
Audits
At renewal, you attest that you completed the CE. The board runs random audits. If you are selected, you must produce documented evidence of compliance within 10 business days. Keep your certificates, transcripts, and attendance records for at least four years after earning the credits, because that is the board’s retention requirement and lost paperwork is a preventable audit failure.
Extra Requirements for APRNs
Mississippi APRNs include nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives, clinical nurse specialists, and certified registered nurse anesthetists. All four categories require national certification in the specialty area.
Every Mississippi APRN must practice within a collaborative or consultative relationship with a physician holding an unrestricted Mississippi license, or with a dentist in the case of CRNAs. You file a written protocol or practice guidelines with the board when you apply, when you renew, when you enter a new collaborative relationship, and any time you change the protocol or practice site. The board reviews and approves each protocol. If the relationship ends, you cannot practice as an APRN until a new board-approved relationship is in place.14Justia. Mississippi Code 73-15-20 – Advanced Practice Registered Nurses
Certified nurse practitioners and certified nurse midwives can apply for controlled substance prescriptive authority after completing a board-approved educational program. Once approved, they may prescribe Schedules II through V. The prescribing APRN must follow the DEA Practitioner’s Manual, and patients receiving controlled substances for chronic use must sign a controlled substance contract.15Mississippi Board of Nursing. Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Collaborative Agreement Template 2025 APRNs who prescribe controlled substances also need a federal DEA registration number in addition to the state prescriptive authority from the MSBN.
What Can Cost You Your License
Grounds for discipline include practicing beyond your authorized scope, unprofessional conduct, substance abuse, patient neglect, and fraud. The board’s hearing panel does not have to find that the violation was intentional; negligent or unknowing violations are still grounds for discipline, though willfulness affects the severity of the penalty.16Justia. Mississippi Code 73-15-31 – Disciplinary Proceedings Sanctions range from a formal reprimand up to permanent revocation.
Two mandatory reporting duties are worth flagging because failing to comply is itself a licensure risk. Under Mississippi Code 43-21-353, nurses with reasonable cause to suspect that a child is neglected, abused, or a victim of human trafficking must immediately make an oral report to the Department of Child Protection Services, followed by a written report as soon as possible.17Justia. Mississippi Code 43-21-353 – Duty to Inform State Agencies Under Mississippi Code 43-47-7, nurses who know or suspect that a vulnerable adult has been abused, neglected, or exploited must immediately report to the Department of Human Services or the county department where the person is located.18Justia. Mississippi Code 43-47-7 – Reporting Abuse, Neglect, or Exploitation Failure to report can result in MSBN disciplinary action, fines, or criminal charges. Good-faith reports are legally protected from retaliation.