Overview
The New Mexico Board of Nursing is a state agency, whose purpose is to protect the citizens of the state of New Mexico by licensing Nurses and certifying Hemodialysis Technicians and Medication Aides; regulating education programs for licensees and certificate holders; regulating practice; taking complaints and disciplining licensees and certificate holders who violate the law and rules.
Registered Nursing (RN) & Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Licensure by Examination
Applicants Must Meet the Following Requirements:
- Submit completed and signed application.
- Provide non-refundable fee of $110.00 in the form of S. Money Order, Cashier’s Check or Demand Draft drawn on U.S. banks and made payable to NM Board of Nursing.
- Submit Certification of Eligibility for Graduation of Nursing Program.
Note: The form must be received directly from the registrar’s office prior to permission to take NCLEX (National Council Licensure Examination).
- Complete Criminal History Check. For more information see page 5 of the application packet.
- Register with the testing agency before or just after submitting the licensure application to take the licensure test, NCLEX (National Council Licensure Examination). You may use any of the following ways to complete the registration:
- Register online. The registration fee of $200 can be paid via American Express, Visa, or MasterCard. OR
- By telephone (1-866-496-2539).
Graduates from non-U.S. programs must:
- Submit proof of nursing education that is equivalent to an approved program of nursing in the U.S. The board does not evaluate transcripts. You must have an evaluation of educational credentials conducted by a qualified credentials evaluator. See page 2 of the application packet for a list of qualified credential evaluators.
- Provide Verification of English Competency with your application. This requirement may be met in one of the following ways:
- Completed nursing program in another country given in English; or
- A passing score of a nursing licensure examination which is given in English; or
- A minimum score of 540 with 207 (computerized version) or 84 (internet- based test) and a minimum speaking score of 26 on the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language); or
- A minimum score of 725 overall on the TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication); or
- A minimum score of 6.5 overall with a 7.0 on spoken section on the IELTS (International English language testing system).
Note: Validation of educational and language requirements must be received from the original source. Copies of certification, reports, and English language test results submitted by the applicant are not acceptable for validation of these requirements.
- Submit the completed application, fees, and all the required documents to the following address:
New Mexico Board of Nursing
6301 Indian School Road, NE
Suite 710,
Albuquerque, New Mexico-87110
Registered Nursing (RN) & Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Licensure by Endorsement
Applicants Must Meet the Following Requirements:
- Complete a state approved nursing education program.
- Applicants must have a license in another state or territory of the United States, and be licensed by passing a national licensure examination in English.
- Canadian applicants who have been endorsed by another state after passing the Canadian nursing exam in English or the NCLEX are eligible for endorsement in New Mexico.
- Submit a completed and signed application.
- Provide fingerprint cards for criminal background check.
- Provide non-refundable fee of $110.00 in the form of S. Money Order, Cashier’s Check or Demand Draft drawn on U.S. banks and made payable to NM Board of Nursing.
- Provide license verification DIRECTLY from the licensing authority that gave you your original license as a nurse.
- If your current state of licensure utilizes NURSYS complete the NURSYS registration on the NCSBN website.
- If your current state of licensure does not verify on Nursys, you must complete the Endorsement Request Form, send to your initial state of licensure by exam with the appropriate fee. Your state of licensure will then send to the board your official verification in writing. Note: This process can take up to 30 days to complete.
- Submit the completed application, fees, and all the required documents to the following address:
New Mexico Board of Nursing
6301 Indian School Road, NE
Suite 710,
Albuquerque, New Mexico-87110
For more information visit the official New Mexico Board of Nursing website.