Nursing License from Michigan to Minnesota: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Minnesota accept a Michigan nursing license?
A nursing license transfers from Michigan to Minnesota by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Minnesota Board of Nursing, verify your Michigan license, and meet Minnesota's endorsement requirements. NCLEX is not retaken; your license is verified through Nursys.
Verify this exact pair in the checker
Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Neither Michigan nor Minnesota participates in the Nurse Licensure Compact, so this is a classic endorsement move: Minnesota's board verifies the license you already hold and issues its own. Nothing about Michigan speeds it up or slows it down — the timeline below is Minnesota's standard out-of-state queue.
What's different between Michigan and Minnesota
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Minnesota. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Michigan to Minnesota (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Minnesota to Michigan (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Michigan matter?
Coming from Michigan does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Minnesota.
- NLC membership
Neither Michigan nor Minnesota is in the NLC.
- Application fee
Minnesota lists $105 for an out-of-state applicant and Michigan lists $212.90 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Exam rules on record
Michigan and Minnesota carry the same exam note for a licensee arriving from another state; any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
What changes, Michigan → Minnesota
| Michigan (current) | Minnesota (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| NLC status | Licensure by endorsement | Licensure by endorsement |
| Application fee | $212.90 ($212.90 combined application fee + 2-year license fee; fingerprint background-check vendor fee paid separately) | $105 (endorsement application (Minn. Stat. 148.243, subd. 3); + criminal background check fee set by the BCA and FBI, paid to the Board) |
| Processing time | board does not publish an endorsement processing timeline | board does not publish a timeline; optional temporary permit valid up to 60 days (non-renewable) while the application is under review |
| Licensing authority | Michigan Board of Nursing | Minnesota Board of Nursing |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Minnesota sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Minnesota's current requirements on the Minnesota Board of Nursing website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Minnesota Board of Nursing (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Fingerprint-based state and federal criminal background check, completed after you submit the application.
- Submit verification of licensure from your state of original licensure and, if different, the state where you most recently practiced.
- Have your nursing employer complete the Board's form verifying your nursing practice dates.
- If you have neither practiced nor graduated from a nursing program in the past 2 years, complete continuing education (1 contact hour per month out of practice, up to 60 for RNs); after more than 5 years, complete a Board-approved refresher course.
- 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 Michigan to Minnesota?
No — the NCLEX transfers everywhere.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified Michigan 2026-07-21, Minnesota 2026-10-29.
- Minnesota Board of Nursing — Licensure by Endorsement process ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Minnesota Board of Nursing — Licensure Fees ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Minnesota Statutes 148.211 — Licensing (endorsement; border-state license recognition) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Minnesota Statutes 148.212 — Temporary permit ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Minnesota Statutes 148.243 — Fee amounts (licensure by endorsement) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Minnesota Statutes 214.075 — Health-related licensing boards; criminal background checks ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Minnesota Rules 6305.0500 — Requirements for professional and practical nurse licensure by endorsement ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Michigan LARA/BPL — Michigan Nursing Licensing Guide ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Michigan LARA — Board of Nursing ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources Michigan 2026-07-21, Minnesota 2026-10-29
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