Living in Kentucky, working in Washington
Can a Kentucky nurse work in Washington?
If your primary state of residence is Kentucky and you hold an active multistate license from Kentucky, you may generally practice in Washington under compact privilege — without applying for a separate Washington license.
Kentucky vs Washington at a glance
| Kentucky (home) | Washington (work) | |
|---|---|---|
| Compact status | Compact | Compact |
| Multistate license for residents | Yes | Yes |
| Compact nurses can practice here | Yes | Yes |
| Board of nursing | Kentucky board ↗ | Washington board ↗ |
Status shown as of 2026-06-17. Compact law changes — confirm anything that affects your license with the state board.
Recommended next step
Verify that your Kentucky license is multistate in Nursys, then review any Washington-specific requirements with the Washington State Board of Nursing (WABON).
Verify before you rely on this
Whether you can practice comes down to your actual license type, not just the two states’ status. Look your license up on Nursys to confirm it is single-state or multistate, then check Washington’s current requirements with the Washington State Board of Nursing (WABON).
Where each license is actually checked
These two states do not verify the same way, and the difference matters at different moments: Kentucky is what you will be asked to produce, Washington is what an employer there will run.
Your home state
Kentucky
Kentucky Board of Nursing verification portal ↗The only state in this cohort whose portal lets you search by NCSBN ID as well as by name or license number. That matters for a common name: the NCSBN ID is the stable cross-state identifier, so it resolves the "is this the same nurse?" question that a name search cannot. Kentucky moved to the ORBS system in March 2023, so guidance describing an older portal is out of date.
Where you want to work
Washington
Washington DOH Provider Credential Search ↗Washington splits by LICENSE TYPE rather than credential: a Washington single-state license is verified through the DOH Provider Credential Search, while a multistate license issued by another state is verified through Nursys. Note the board will not verify a credential that is pending, closed, or holding only a temporary practice permit — so a genuinely new hire on a temporary permit will not return a verification, which is a timing problem rather than a red flag.
How long each has been part of this
Kentucky has recognized compact privilege since January 19, 2018; Washington since July 24, 2023 — a gap of about 5 years. That is worth knowing because the newer member is where employers, staffing agencies and HR systems are most likely to still be working from an out-of-date understanding of what a multistate license covers.
One of these two ran a two-phase rollout — honouring incoming privilege before issuing multistate licenses to its own residents, which are separate switches on separate dates. The adoption timeline gives both dates for every jurisdiction.
The law behind each side
Compact privilege is not a courtesy between states — it is each legislature having enacted the compact into its own code. These are the provisions that do it.
Your home state
Kentucky
KRS 314.475 (Nurse Licensure Compact) ↗Kentucky gives the compact its own titled section inside the nursing chapter rather than a separate act, and names the board’s executive director as the “head of the state licensing board” for compact purposes — so the person with compact authority is identified in statute rather than by internal delegation.
Scope is set separately. What you may actually do here comes from KRS ch. 314 (Nursing); RN licensure at KRS 314.041, APRN at 314.042 ↗.
Where you want to work
Washington
Substitute Senate Bill 5499 (2023) ↗Signed 21 April 2023, making Washington the 40th jurisdiction to enact. The same legislation renamed the regulator from the Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission to the Washington State Board of Nursing.
Scope is set separately. What you may actually do here comes from RCW ch. 18.79 (Nursing Care) ↗.
Things to keep in mind
- Compact privilege only applies if your license is multistate, not single-state. Check this in Nursys.
- You must meet Washington's practice requirements (for example, scope of practice and any continuing-education rules).
- APRN roles are generally not covered by the standard compact — APRNs usually need separate authorization in each state.
Frequently asked questions
Related pages
Sources & last reviewed
- NLC frequently asked questions— NCSBN / NurseCompact (nursecompact.com)
Covers multistate licenses, primary state of residence, the 60-day rule, telehealth, and license type coverage.
- NLC member states map & status— NCSBN / NurseCompact (nursecompact.com)
Identifies full members, partial implementation (Guam), and enacted/awaiting implementation (Massachusetts, U.S. Virgin Islands).
- Nursys QuickConfirm license verification— NCSBN / Nursys (nursys.com)
Recommended destination to verify whether a license is single-state or multistate.
Facts on this page were last reviewed against official sources on 2026-06-17. Compact law changes — always verify with your state board of nursing.