Moving from Canada to US

I've been a Registered Nurse for 23 years and have an active license in Quebec and an inactive license in Ontario. My hubby has been approached by several American headhunters for some pretty amazing jobs in the US. (he's in a highly specialized and sought-after field) So now we're courting the idea of possibly moving to the US. My question is, what's involved in a Canadian nurse getting her license in the US? Would I have to write the NCLEX exam or would my current license be transferable?

Thanks!

Moved to the International forum.

Depending on husband visa you may or may not be able to work and if not then you can apply for the TN visa. Either way you will need to apply to BON (Board of Nursing) and meet requirements for foreign trained nurse and pass NCLEX. This can take a few months. If you have to apply for a visa of your own with retrogression you have the TN and will need visa screen certificate. Would suggest a read in this forum and Canadian forum on NAFTA etc plus read the sticky called Primer to working in the US

I was going to move to BC a few years ago and was facing the same with getting a license there. I ended up not going, so ended up not worrying about it. Good Luck!

Moved to the International forum.

Depending on husband visa you may or may not be able to work and if not then you can apply for the TN visa. Either way you will need to apply to BON (Board of Nursing) and meet requirements for foreign trained nurse and pass NCLEX. This can take a few months. If you have to apply for a visa of your own with retrogression you have the TN and will need visa screen certificate. Would suggest a read in this forum and Canadian forum on NAFTA etc plus read the sticky called Primer to working in the US

You will have to write the NCLEX exam, the Canadian licenses no longer have reciprocity with the US. You are also going to need a Visa Screen Certificate and that requires that you pass either the CGFNS or the NCLEX-RN exam.

Best of luck to you.

Thanks to you both....I didn't realize there was a forum for this...sorry for posting in the wrong place. I just looked through all the stickies. Man, there's a lot to think of and you've given me a great starting point.

Thanks to you both....I didn't realize there was a forum for this...sorry for posting in the wrong place. I just looked through all the stickies. Man, there's a lot to think of and you've given me a great starting point.

Sure you will find much that will help. Do you know what sort of visa your husband will get?

Sure you will find much that will help. Do you know what sort of visa your husband will get?

At this point no....he's still in the "talking" phase which mainly means they are discussing what his job description will be. He's been approached with queries from as far south as Florida but we want to stay close to home...mainly the New England states and New York. The opportunity for him in the US is huge...even with the economic crisis and I would certainly not lack work. BUT....even though I've been a nurse for over 20 years I've specialized in peds and family practice and to be honest I'm not so sure how well I would fare out with the NCLEX exam.

It's certainly a lot to think about.

Thanks again!

Thought this might be a good place to post this query. While I know there are alot of opportunities here in the USA. Two reasons to stay north of the border are public health care and unionization. Unionized wages mean a nurse who works in London or Niagara makes the same wage as the nurse in Toronto. Pretty advantageous.

I am a Canadian wanting to return home to ON. I have been holding off on this, because I thought it necessitated contacting all the boards I have worked with in the past. I see in the application I have, that I just have to get my present state to fill out a form and my originating province. Question: is this true?

I have lived and worked in PA since 1993 on a PA license (fifteen years). My license is valid without any disciplinary actions against it. I have nothing to cover up, no skeletons in the closet. It's just that contacting all the states I worked in as a travel nurse is a pain and honestly is senseless since I have not worked out of PA for fifteen years.

Thoughts?

Thanks, Kevin

For the original posting - you must pass the NCLEX for all but 4 states - check online to see what you are looking at. Currently it is taking about 12 weeks to get a CGFNS Visa screen certificate after the test is written. Then, apply to the nursing board of the state in which you are looking at. Once those two things are in place, all you need is a ORIGINAL letter from the employer, your ORIGINAL diploma from nursing school, your passport, your ORIGINAL Visa Screen Certificate and you will be awarded a TN visa at almost any border crossing. If your husband is not a nurse, but another occupation in the TN fields, he will have to undergo the same process with the exception of the NCLEX and nursing license....there may be other things that he is required to do for his field. My original stuff took about 3 months to get into place but after that it was easy. With the new rule change to the TN visa, your visa will be good for up to 3 years if you get a letter stating they need for up to three years. Remember though that your visa is employer specific, if you want to change jobs, you will have to leave and reapply for a new visa under the new employer. If you have been practicing for 20 years, then the NCLEX should not be a problem. I passed in 76 questions with only 5 years experience. Pearson International has 3 test centers in Canada for the NCLEX now, so it is easier to get to a testing facility. The cost of the TN visa is $50.00 plus $8.00 for the card. So it is not that expensive.

For onelonenurse - if you are applying for the College of Nurses of Ontario re-instatement, you MUST declare all jurisdicitions, including Ontario, in which you have obtained registration as a nurse. You must also list all Canadian provinces in which you have applied for, but not yet received, registration as a nurse. You must also declare ALL nursing employers since graduation from your nursing program. It is a reall pain in butt but they will reject your application if it is not complete - and they may even seek disciplinary action against you if you are not truthful on the application.

Actuallu Suzanne, you are incorrect. I have held over 20 TN visas in the past 15 years and have NEVER been asked for my NCLEX pass score sheet. The USCIS employees that process you for the TN visa have NEVER requested a passing score for the NCLEX. The list is very specific for documents required when applying for a TN visa:

original diploma ffrom nursing school - with seal

original CGFNS certificate - with seal

nursing license for the State in which you intend to practice - card

SSN - card

passport

letter of intent from future employer (which has it's own requirements as to content)

where the NCLEX comes in as important is that most of the State Boards require it for licensure by endorsement.