Explanation letter in lieu of local license

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Hi!

Anyone please share your experience or knowledge on the license requirement of the California Board of Nursing. California BON requires a copy of the local license from the country where the course is finished. However, in the absence of such license, as stated on its website, they only require an explanation letter for the absence. I sent an explanation letter together with my application form stating that I still do not have a license since I just graduated. I took the June local board and awaiting the result. Despite the explanation letter, I just received a letter from them asking for a copy of the local license.

I would highly appreciate anyone who can enlighten me. Pls send reply to email: Thank you and regards. George

CA will not permit you to sit for the exam if you do not have a local license. Being a green card holder here does not exempt you from this requirement.

You are going to have to write the NLE to be able to get licensed here.

Did they rescently changed the rules? I cannot recall before being asked by CA board for my local license. The only time I needed to provide a copy of my local license was when I applied for my interim permit...but I'm not 100% sure about this because I have copy of my local license when I came here in the US.

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i have a question for you guys ( moderators and staff). sorry but i would like to know where you get your answers, where do u base them. does anyone of you work for the CABON? or has inner contacts inside the Board of Nursing?

do u know anyone who was denied of his/her license even though he/she passed the examination?

i would like to quote a part of the letter i received from CABON..

" this is to inform you that the CABON has evaluated your application and you have been found eligible to take the nclex".

eligible - i believe it means only one thing, they have evaluated and approved yuor aplication. they are letting u take the exam. and i think they wouldnt give you false hope after passing ur exam they would just take away ur chance of getting ur license. and i think it is unfair to re-evlauate an application coz one dont hold a license. and someone already evaluated my case and she said that she would let me take the exam if i pass a certain document. then i did then i received my eligibilty.

and please guys, im not criticizing u all. i just want to share that not everyone are required. there are "exemptions too". like my reasons y i didnt take my exam - my evaluator accepted it so as my three friends who have the same cases like mine.

markEmark,

The board will look at your application after you pass because it will need to be paired up with your criminal background check from the Federal/state bureaus. Beyond the BRN noting that you passed the exam and that you are not a criminal, it's at their discretion as to the depth of their "re-evaluation".

Clear your head of these thoughts of whether you'll be receiving your license or not. The situation is you received eligibility by the BRN and you can sit for the NCLEX. If they question your "eligibility" after the NCLEX or if they don't, it doesn't matter at this point. The best thing to do is pass the exam. You will know if CA has a problem with issuing your license. They will send you a letter.

The facts are you are physically in the USA. It's too late to get back to the Philippines and gather the necessary documents or signatures for NLE. It's almost Oct. I'm guessing the deadline for filing for the NLE for Nov has probably already passed. So stop worrying. One step at a time. Good luck.

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.
Did they rescently changed the rules? I cannot recall before being asked by CA board for my local license. The only time I needed to provide a copy of my local license was when I applied for my interim permit...but I'm not 100% sure about this because I have copy of my local license when I came here in the US.

It started in Jan 08 asking for a local license unless you was exempt from sitting it and then a letter wasn't enough and you had to prove that you couldn't sit it

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Sorry, but you slipped by, nothing more than that. As a green card holder, you are still a citizen of the Philippines and are under their passport. So that means that you are not exempt from the requirement for the local license to be written.

Please be aware that CA still has the right to require the NLE before they will issue the license. The other thing that you have to take into account is the fact that there will be a reviewer that will be reviewing your file before the license from CA is issued and if they do not see the NLE and license from the PRC, they have the right to ask for it.

There is no explanation that would be acceptable to them as for the reason that you did not sit for the local exam.

Best of luck to you, but you are not out of limbo as of yet.

suzanne. i passed my nclex. and i am now holding my license. i am about to start my job as an RN in a hospital. i have also met two other people, who have the same situation. they didnt took the exam in the PH but still they wer able to take the exam, get their license, and work here in calfornia.

im out of the limbo. take care.

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I'm also starting to think that the news about CABRN becoming firmer on the local license requirement is somewhat exaggerated. I have a cousin and a bunch of nursing batchmates who are all US immigrants who were ALL granted eligibility to take the NCLEX even without having taken the local NLE. One of them has already taken it and is now an RN. This issue really got me paranoid and worried when I was waiting for my application to process...apparently I was worried for nothing.

I guess we could never really know exactly what the case is without actual numbers of how many applicants are granted compared to those denied eligibility to sit the NCLEX. But based on how many people I know who were given the go signal to take the NCLEX, I don't think the CABRN is as stringent as I thought they would be.

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Was this recently? Like within 2008 or before? If it was before then yes it most likely was possible...but now California is cracking down and requiring a local license...

BTW what's a batchmate? Is that a group of people who graduated from the same class??? Sorry, we don't use that term here in the US, so yes I'm clueless....We usually say classmates, so I'm assuming it's the samething....

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Was this recently? Like within 2008 or before? If it was before then yes it most likely was possible...but now California is cracking down and requiring a local license...

BTW what's a batchmate? Is that a group of people who graduated from the same class??? Sorry, we don't use that term here in the US, so yes I'm clueless....We usually say classmates, so I'm assuming it's the samething....

yeah. ur correct. we graduatd from the same class. or the same year. and yeah. we graduated 2008 from the philippines, we are all immigrants, didnt take the local exam, passed the nclex, got our license and now starting our work as UR RNs.

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There are handful that have gotten thru, but most definitely not all that applied. Many have not even been granted permission to even sit for the NCLEX exam at this time as well. Suspect that you and your classmates applied at the same time, but you got lucky and nothing more than that. The majority that are posting here now about this have not even been granted to sit for the NCLEX exam if they are not issued an exemption letter from the PRC concerning this.

Consider yourself fortunate, but is most definitely not the case any longer.

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My license can not be approved if I have outstanding taxes even though I am an "approved" nurse. How does my ability to pay local or state taxes effect my nursing? I don't think there is any relationship between tax paying and nursing, but my state does.

It's called being a good citizen with good standing in the community.

If your not going to pay your taxes or child support or try to defraud the state or governemnt, then you need you licenses revoked.

In my opinion it falls under "moral turpitude"

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

In most states too, you can not get a license if you are behind in child support payments. Per US laws, you have to pay taxes and pay child support if so ordered.

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Hi markEmark!

May I know what reason you gave to CaBON on why you were not able to take the NLE? I also know of someone who applied May 2008 to CaBON and was also given an eligibility last Sept 2008 inspite of not taking the NLE and he is neither an immigrant nor a citizen of another country. He studied in the Philippines and is still staying in the Philippines.

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Hi markEmark!

May I know what reason you gave to CaBON on why you were not able to take the NLE? I also know of someone who applied May 2008 to CaBON and was also given an eligibility last Sept 2008 inspite of not taking the NLE and he is neither an immigrant nor a citizen of another country. He studied in the Philippines and is still staying in the Philippines.

same as others.i dont intend on staying in the PI because im an immigrant, my family are here.

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