Is Delaware a nursing compact state?

What Delaware’s compact status means

Because Delaware is a full compact state, a single multistate license issued by Delaware lets you practice in Delaware and in other compact states without applying for a separate license in each one.

If you live in another compact state and hold an active multistate license there, you can generally practice in Delaware under compact privilege — but you still have to follow Delaware's laws and scope-of-practice rules while you work here.

Compact privilege only works if your license is the multistate type, not single-state. Check this before you rely on it.

What Delaware residents should know

If Delaware is your primary state of residence and you hold an active Delaware multistate license, you can practice in Delaware and in other compact states. If your Delaware license is single-state, ask the Delaware Board of Nursing about converting it to multistate.

What nurses coming to Delaware should know

Coming from another compact state with an active multistate license? You can generally practice in Delaware under compact privilege — just follow Delaware’s practice rules. Coming from a non-compact state? You’ll apply for a Delaware license by endorsement.

When Delaware joined the Nurse Licensure Compact

Delaware was one of the 29 jurisdictions where the enhanced Nurse Licensure Compact took effect on January 19, 2018, the day the current compact went live nationwide. Many of these jurisdictions had participated in the original compact since 2000; we have not separately verified when Delaware first joined that earlier compact, so we do not publish a date for it.

Sourced from yearinreview2018.ncsbn.org, ncsbn.org. See the full NLC adoption timeline for every jurisdiction’s dates and methodology, or the Nursing Compact States Report 2026 for how far the compact reaches overall.

The law behind Delaware’s status

Compact status is not an opinion or a listing — it is a statute. These are the primary sources that actually govern licensure in Delaware, so you can check our answer against the law rather than taking our word for it.

Compact statute

In force — citation not yet confirmed.

Delaware has adopted the compact, but neither its board nor its code publishes a clean compact-specific citation we have been able to confirm. We would rather say so than print a section number that looks authoritative and is wrong. The Delaware Board of Nursing is the authority in the meantime, and if you have the citation we will add it.

Nurse practice act

24 Del. C. ch. 19 (Board of Nursing) ↗

Delaware’s own license lookup

Delaware DELPROS search & verify ↗

Free lookup with a discipline column — where history exists it reads "Yes" and the Board Orders themselves are downloadable, not just flagged. Delaware does not issue written verifications for RNs and LPNs at all; that route is Nursys only, like Maine. APRNs go through a separate verification process instead — the second jurisdiction in this cohort, after D.C., where RN and LPN traffic rides shared national infrastructure and advanced practice is handled apart from it.

Board of nursing

Delaware Board of Nursing ↗

Statutory citations reviewed 2026-07-31. Citations change far more slowly than fees or processing times — which is why we publish these and not those. Enactment is not the same as implementation: check the dates above before relying on the compact here.

RN, LPN/LVN, and APRN coverage in Delaware

The Nurse Licensure Compact covers RN and LPN/LVN licenses. It does not, on its own, cover APRN roles — nurse practitioners, CRNAs, CNSs, and CNMs generally need separate APRN authorization in each state, including Delaware. See the APRN and the compact guide, and confirm specifics with the Delaware Board of Nursing.

Coverage is the same for both credentials, so the state lists are the same: every RN compact state and every LPN/LVN compact state both include Delaware.

By credential: Delaware RN & the compact, Delaware LPN, and Delaware APRN.

Primary state of residence, moving, and endorsement

Your primary state of residence (PSOR) drives multistate eligibility — you can hold it in only one state at a time. Because Delaware is a compact state, if you make it your PSOR you may qualify for a multistate license issued by Delaware — often more useful than a plain single-state license. Coming from another state, you generally apply to the Delaware Board of Nursing by endorsement. If you are relocating, the 60-day rule governs the timing.

Verifying a Delaware nursing license

Look any Delaware license up on Nursys QuickConfirm — it shows whether the license is single-state or multistate, its status, and its expiration. For anything Nursys does not show, use the Delaware Board of Nursing. See the full Delaware verification guide. CompactStates is an independent reference, not a verification service, and holds no license records.

Travel assignments and telehealth in Delaware

Because Delaware recognizes compact privilege, an active multistate license from your compact home state generally covers a Delaware travel assignment, and telehealth to patients located in Delaware, without a separate Delaware license. Telehealth licensure generally follows the patient’s location. See the Delaware travel and telehealth guides.

Renewal and continuing education

Renewal cycles, fees, and continuing-education requirements are set by the Delaware Board of Nursing and change over time, so we link you to the official source rather than list figures that could go stale. Nursys shows your expiration date and license type. See the Delaware renewal guide. If your Delaware license is multistate, keeping it renewed is what keeps your compact privilege active in every other compact state.