Nursing License from Illinois to Hawaii: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Hawaii accept an Illinois nursing license?
A nursing license transfers from Illinois to Hawaii by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Hawaii Board of Nursing, verify your Illinois license, and meet Hawaii's endorsement requirements. NCLEX is not retaken; your original licensure and exam scores are verified through Nursys or directly by your original state board.
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Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Neither Illinois nor Hawaii participates in the Nurse Licensure Compact, so this is a classic endorsement move: Hawaii's board verifies the license you already hold and issues its own. Nothing about Illinois speeds it up or slows it down — the timeline below is Hawaii's standard out-of-state queue.
What's different between Illinois and Hawaii
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Hawaii. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Illinois to Hawaii (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Hawaii to Illinois (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Illinois matter?
Coming from Illinois does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Hawaii.
- NLC membership
Neither Illinois nor Hawaii is in the NLC.
- Application fee
Hawaii lists $186–$254 for an out-of-state applicant and Illinois lists $50–$75 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Processing time
Hawaii lists 3–4 weeks; Illinois has no verified processing-time figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Exam rules on record
Hawaii and Illinois carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Hawaii (this move): NCLEX is not retaken; your original licensure and exam scores are verified through Nursys or directly by your original state board
- Illinois (the reverse move): NCLEX is not retaken; your license is verified through Nursys
What changes, Illinois → Hawaii
| Illinois (current) | Hawaii (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| NLC status | Licensure by endorsement | Licensure by endorsement |
| Application fee | $50–$75 ($50 non-refundable endorsement fee, or $75 with the optional 6-month temporary permit (+$25); fingerprint fee paid separately to a licensed livescan vendor) | $186–$254 (total varies by point in the 2-year licensing cycle ($40 application + $36 license + Compliance Resolution Fund $50-$100 + $60 Center for Nursing + $18 half-renewal when applicable); fingerprint fee paid directly to Fieldprint; optional temporary permit $50) |
| Processing time | no processing range stated in IDFPR application materials | 3–4 weeks (board states processing is normally 15-20 working days for complete applications; one single-employer temporary permit available) |
| Licensing authority | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (Board of Nursing) | Hawaii Board of Nursing |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Hawaii sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Hawaii's current requirements on the Hawaii Board of Nursing website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Hawaii Board of Nursing (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Fingerprint-based FBI and Hawaii state criminal history check through Fieldprint (code FPHIBrdNursing).
- Submit an original National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) self-query report.
- Obtain verification of licensure from your state of original licensure by exam (via Nursys if that state participates).
- If you have not actively practiced in the past 5 years, the board may require proof of continued competency (NCLEX retake or board-recognized continuing education).
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Do I retake the NCLEX moving from Illinois to Hawaii?
No — the NCLEX transfers everywhere.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-10-29.
- Hawaii DCCA — Application for License (Endorsement or Without Exam), NSG-02/NSG-07 with fee schedule ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Hawaii Board of Nursing — Application Forms and Publications ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- IDFPR — Registered Nurse Instruction Sheet (Examination/Endorsement/Restoration), rev. 4/24 ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- IDFPR — Nurses profession page ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-10-29
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