CompactStates.com — https://www.compactstates.com · Always confirm license status with the issuing board of nursing.
Compact nursing states (NLC states)
What the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) is, which states are in it, and how a single multistate license lets you practice across state lines.
What are the compact nursing states?
Compact nursing states are jurisdictions that have joined and implemented the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC). As of 2026, the compact includes 43 jurisdictions, of which 40 have fully implemented it. If your primary state of residence is a fully implemented compact state, you can hold one multistate license and practice in every other compact state. The compact states are the same for RNs and LPNs/LVNs. The full 2026 list is below, and every entry links to a state page with its current status. For the deeper analysis — adopted-versus-live coverage, the borders where a multistate license stops, and the regional pattern — see our Nursing Compact States Report 2026.
A multistate license from a compact state does not reach every state on this list — where it works depends on where you live and where you want to practice.
Your primary state of residence
Where you plan to practice
Select your home state and the state you want to work in to get a direct answer.
Compact nursing states map
Full compact
Partial implementation
Enacted, awaiting
Not a compact state
Nurse Licensure Compact
Hover, tap, or tab to a state
Each state is coloured by its compact status. Select one for its multistate-license availability and a link to the full profile — or use the checker to test your exact home and work states.
Tapping the smallest jurisdictions — D.C., Rhode Island, Delaware — is fiddly on a phone. The full list below every jurisdiction is easier, and carries the same statuses.
U.S. territories
Not shown on the map above. Compact status still applies.
All 56 U.S. jurisdictions and their current Nurse Licensure Compact status. 40 have fully implemented the compact — residents can apply for a multistate license, and nurses with an active multistate license from another compact state can practice there under privilege. Search or filter, and open any jurisdiction for its board link and full breakdown.
Showing 56 of 56 jurisdictions
Every U.S. jurisdiction and its Nurse Licensure Compact status, whether residents can obtain a multistate license, whether a compact license from elsewhere can be used there, and the implementation date where known.
The compact is still growing, slowly. These are the most recent jurisdictions to switch it on — if you read guidance written before these dates, it described them as non-compact:
Connecticut — compact privilege recognized from October 1, 2025.
Pennsylvania — compact privilege recognized from July 7, 2025.
Rhode Island — compact privilege recognized from January 1, 2024.
Washington — compact privilege recognized from July 24, 2023, though Washington residents could not obtain a multistate license until January 31, 2024.
Going the other way, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands and Massachusetts have enacted the compact but not finished implementing it, so they are counted as adopted above without being usable. See the full NLC adoption timeline for every jurisdiction’s dates, sources, and the gap between enactment and implementation.
What the four statuses mean
Most lists show a single yes/no. That hides the two failure modes that actually catch nurses out, so we track four distinct states:
What each Nurse Licensure Compact status means for a nurse
Status
Residents can get a multistate license
Compact nurse from elsewhere can practice
What it means for you
Full compact state(40)
Yes
Yes
Hold or apply for a multistate license through your home state — it works across every compact state.
Partial implementation(1)
Not yet
Yes
A visiting compact nurse may practice, but residents cannot yet obtain a locally-issued multistate license: Guam.
No multistate license for residents, and privilege from other states does not reach it — apply by endorsement. See non-compact states.
How the compact works
The NLC lets a nurse hold one multistate license, issued by their primary state of residence, with authority to practice in every other compact state — in person or by telehealth. It removes the need to apply for a separate license in each compact state you work in. The terms “compact license” and “multistate license” are used interchangeably.
The compact applies to RNs and LPNs/LVNs. It does not, by itself, cover APRNs, who generally need separate authorization in each practice state. See our APRN compact guide for details.
What if my state isn’t a compact state?
If you live in a non-compact state, you cannot get a multistate license through that state. To work in another state, you typically apply for a single-state license or a license by endorsement. Use the compact state checker to see exactly what applies to your home and work states.
What this page is: an independent, plain-English reference maintained by an Illinois limited liability company. We are not the NCSBN, not the NLC, and not a board of nursing — and we never make licensure decisions. Boards do.
Source hierarchy. Compact status comes from the NLC’s published member-state status and each jurisdiction’s own board of nursing, which is the controlling authority where the two ever disagree. Every jurisdiction record stores its source URLs, a last-reviewed date, and a confidence level; the ones we are less certain about (some territories) say so on their page rather than quietly presenting a guess.
What we deliberately do not publish. Fees, continuing-education hours, renewal cycles, and processing times are board-set and change without notice. Publishing a stale figure is worse than publishing none, so we link you to the official source instead. The same rule governs the four-status model above: where a jurisdiction only partly participates, we say so rather than rounding it to yes or no.
Corrections and updates. Status changes are logged in data updates with the date and source. If you spot something wrong — especially a board link that has moved — tell us and we will verify it against the official source and correct it. The list above, the downloadable CSV, the checker, and every state page are generated from one shared data set, so they cannot silently disagree with each other.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. This page is a current, source-backed list of every fully implemented compact nursing state for 2026, plus the jurisdictions with partial or pending implementation. Each state links to its own page with the latest status, because compact membership changes as new states join.
The compact states are the same for RNs and LPNs/LVNs — the Nurse Licensure Compact covers both. A registered nurse whose primary state of residence is a fully implemented compact state can hold one multistate RN license and practice in every other compact state. The standard compact does not cover APRN roles.
The same jurisdictions. The Nurse Licensure Compact covers licensed practical nurse (LPN) and licensed vocational nurse (LVN) licenses on identical terms to RN licenses — LPN and LVN are the same credential under different names, with Texas and California using "LVN". If your primary state of residence is a fully implemented compact state, you can hold one multistate LPN/LVN license.
No, and conflating them is the most common compact mistake. A compact state is a jurisdiction that has joined the Nurse Licensure Compact. A multistate license is the license type that carries compact privilege. Living in a compact state does not automatically mean your license is multistate — compact states issue both single-state and multistate licenses, and only the multistate type travels. Check which you hold on Nursys.
Not through that state. A multistate license is issued only by your primary state of residence, and that state must be a compact state. If you live in a non-compact state you hold a single-state license, and to work elsewhere you generally apply for that state’s license by endorsement. If you genuinely relocate your legal residence to a compact state, you can then apply for a multistate license there.
Yes, but the location that matters is the patient’s, not yours. If your multistate license authorizes practice in a compact state, that generally includes telehealth to patients located there. So it is the patient’s state that must be covered. Employer policy and board rules may add requirements on top.
Your multistate license is tied to your primary state of residence, so it does not move with you. When you establish legal residence in a new state you apply for licensure there — a multistate license if the new state is a compact state, otherwise a single-state license. Many nurses must apply in the new home state within about 60 days; confirm the rule that applies to you with the board.
A nursing compact state is a U.S. jurisdiction that has joined and implemented the Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC). If your primary state of residence is a compact state, you can apply for one multistate license that lets you practice in other compact states without getting a separate license in each one.
A multistate license — often called a compact license — is a single nursing license issued by your home compact state that carries the privilege to practice in other compact states. The terms "compact license" and "multistate license" are generally used interchangeably.
Your primary state of residence (PSOR) is your one legal home state. A multistate license is issued by your PSOR, and it must be a compact state for you to be eligible. Evidence of PSOR can include a driver’s license, voter registration, a federal tax return, a military form, or a W-2.
Yes. The Nurse Licensure Compact applies to registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPNs/LVNs). It does not, on its own, cover advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs).
Generally no. The standard Nurse Licensure Compact covers RN and LPN/VN licenses. APRNs usually need individual APRN licensure in each state where they practice, unless separate APRN compact rules apply. Always confirm with the state board.
Use the free Nursys QuickConfirm service. It shows your license type, including whether it is single-state or multistate, so you can confirm your compact status before you practice across state lines.
As of 2026, 43 U.S. jurisdictions have adopted the Nurse Licensure Compact and 40 have fully implemented it, so residents there can hold a multistate license. A few are still implementing, and membership changes as new states join, so check the compact states map or your state’s page for its current status.
No. If you hold a multistate license from your primary state of residence, it lets you practice in every other compact state without a separate license. You only need to apply for individual licenses in non-compact states.
If you hold an active multistate license and your primary state of residence has not changed, your compact privilege lets you practice in other compact states without applying first. Confirm your license shows as multistate in Nursys before you rely on it, and check any state-specific requirements.
How we source compact-state information
We base every status on official and public sources — the Nurse Licensure Compact member listing and the state boards of nursing — and link them on each page.
Each record stores the source, a last-reviewed date, and a confidence level so you can see how settled it is.
Answers are generated from that published data, not from an AI model, so they’re consistent and auditable.
Compact law changes. See our data updates for review history, and always confirm your situation with your board of nursing.
Free to use with attribution. Cite the review date shown here rather than today’s — compact status changes as jurisdictions implement, and the figure you are quoting belongs to the date it was checked.
AMA (11th ed.)Used by most nursing and medical journals.
CompactStates.com. Compact nursing states. Updated June 17, 2026. Accessed [date you accessed it]. https://www.compactstates.com/compact-nursing-states
APA (7th ed.)Used by most nursing coursework and theses.
CompactStates.com. (2026, June 17). Compact nursing states. https://www.compactstates.com/compact-nursing-states
Plain textFor a footnote, a slide, or a message to a colleague.
"Compact nursing states", CompactStates.com, last reviewed June 17, 2026. https://www.compactstates.com/compact-nursing-states
Quoting a specific jurisdiction? Cite that jurisdiction’s page rather than this one, so the date travels with the fact.