How to Become a Nurse in Texas (RN, LVN or CNA)

Three nursing roles, three paths

Texas licenses registered nurses (RNs) and licensed vocational nurses (LVNs, the Texas name for LPNs) through the Texas Board of Nursing, and certifies nurse aides (CNAs) through the Texas Health and Human Services Commission's Nurse Aide Registry. The three paths share a shape, school then exam then a state record, but the schools, exams, fees and agencies differ. This guide walks through each one as the Texas agencies describe it, then covers endorsement for nurses moving in, the compact, pay and renewal.

How to become a registered nurse in Texas

1. Graduate from an approved RN program

Texas accepts two pre-licensure routes to the RN exam: an associate degree in nursing (ADN), usually two years at a community college, and a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN), usually four years. The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for registered nurses, and many hospital systems prefer or require it, but both degrees lead to the same license. The Texas Board of Nursing publishes the list of approved RN programs together with each program's NCLEX pass rates for the last five years, which is the single most useful number when comparing schools. Graduates of pre-licensure programs approved by another state's board are also eligible to apply in Texas; graduates of unapproved programs are not eligible to take the NCLEX.

2. Apply to the Texas Board of Nursing

Applications are filed online in the Texas Nurse Portal; choose "NCLEX-RN Application, U.S. Graduates". The board's examination fee is $75 and includes the Nursing Jurisprudence Exam. The board recommends starting this and the NCLEX registration at least 30 days before graduation so the file is complete when your transcript is.

3. Submit fingerprints for a criminal background check

Every applicant for a Texas nursing license has had to submit fingerprints since 2004. The check runs through the Texas Department of Public Safety and the FBI, and the results go straight to the board; the board will not accept results you send yourself or a check done for an employer or another agency. If you were fingerprinted for the board as a nursing student, you do not repeat it unless staff ask. The fingerprinting fee is set by the Department of Public Safety and the FBI, not by the board.

4. Register for the NCLEX-RN

Register with the exam vendor, Pearson VUE. The NCLEX registration fee is $200 in the United States; the National Council of State Boards of Nursing has announced that it rises to $350 on 1 February 2027. Your registration must be in place before the board can issue an Authorization to Test (ATT). The exam itself is national and can be taken at any test center.

5. Pass the Nursing Jurisprudence Exam

Texas is one of the states with a law exam, and every NCLEX applicant must pass it before an ATT is issued. The Nursing Jurisprudence Exam is taken online: 50 questions, two hours, open to the board's website and other reference material, and a pass is 38 correct answers (75 percent). If you fail, you may retake it 24 hours later. The exam covers the Texas Nursing Practice Act and the board's rules, and the board offers a free prep course. The fee is folded into the application fee.

6. Affidavit of graduation and your ATT

After graduation your program's dean or director submits an Affidavit of Graduation to the board; graduates of Texas programs have it sent electronically, graduates of programs elsewhere in the United States have the dean email a sealed form directly to the board. Once the application, background check, exam registration, jurisprudence exam and affidavit are all on file, the board reviews the application within 15 business days, and the ATT email follows within five more. A graduate nurse (GN) permit, if you are eligible, posts to your portal within five business days of the ATT. The ATT and the GN permit are each valid for 75 days and cannot be extended, so schedule the exam as soon as the ATT arrives.

7. Take the NCLEX-RN and receive your license

The board receives pass or fail results from Pearson VUE within 24 to 48 hours of your exam, and issues the permanent license within 15 business days of a passing result. If you fail, you file a retest application and pay the $200 exam fee again; your fingerprints, affidavit and jurisprudence results stay on file. Under board rule 217.2 you must be within four years of your graduation date to retest. Past that, the only route back is a new nursing program, not a refresher course.

Open positions for new graduates and experienced nurses are listed by employer on our registered nurse jobs in Texas hub.

How to become an LVN in Texas

A licensed vocational nurse in Texas is what most other states call a licensed practical nurse, and the path is the RN path with a shorter school and a different exam:

1. Finish a board-approved vocational nursing program. The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes these programs typically take about one year. The board publishes the list of approved LVN programs with five-year NCLEX-PN pass rates.
2. Apply in the Texas Nurse Portal using "NCLEX-PN Application, U.S. Graduates". The $75 examination fee, fingerprint background check and Nursing Jurisprudence Exam are identical to the RN requirements.
3. Register for the NCLEX-PN with Pearson VUE ($200, rising to $350 on 1 February 2027).
4. Graduate, test, get licensed. Your dean submits the Affidavit of Graduation, the board issues the ATT and a graduate vocational nurse (GVN) permit valid for 75 days, and the permanent LVN license follows within 15 business days of a passing result. The same four-years-from-graduation limit applies to retesting.

Many Texas LVNs later bridge to RN through an LVN-to-ADN or LVN-to-BSN program; the board treats that graduate as a new RN applicant by examination. Current openings are on our LVN jobs in Texas hub.

How to become a CNA in Texas

Nurse aides are not licensed by the Board of Nursing. They are certified and listed by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), which maintains the Nurse Aide Registry of everyone certified to work in the nursing facilities it licenses. HHSC notes that neither federal regulation nor Texas rule sets a minimum education requirement for nurse aides.

1. Complete a state-approved nurse aide training program. Texas requires a minimum of 100 clock hours: 60 hours of classroom training that does not involve direct resident care and 40 hours of hands-on resident care in a nursing facility. Programs run at community colleges, career schools and inside nursing facilities, and HHSC publishes a directory of approved programs.
2. Apply through TULIP. Since July 2023 applications go through HHSC's online licensure portal, with your program director approving the application.
3. Pass the two-part competency exam. HHSC contracts the exam to Prometric. The written exam has 70 multiple-choice questions and may be taken orally on request; the skills exam asks you to demonstrate five skills chosen at random from a list of 34. A candidate who fails either part may retest twice; a third failure means repeating the training program.
4. Get listed on the Nurse Aide Registry. Passing both parts places you on the registry in active status. To stay active you must verify your nurse aide employment with the registry at least every two years; a certificate not kept current shows as expired.

Several groups can skip the training and go straight to the exam: students in a state-accredited RN or LVN program who have completed the first semester, graduates of RN or LVN programs, people who completed the training portion of an approved program in another state within the last 24 months, and veterans with 100 or more hours of equivalent military training. A nurse aide who is active on another state's registry can apply for reciprocity instead, which requires a Department of Public Safety criminal history check and no exam. Openings are on our CNA jobs in Texas hub.

Licensed in another state? Endorsement and the compact

Texas is a member of the Nurse Licensure Compact and implemented the enhanced compact on 19 January 2018. If your primary state of residence is another compact state and you hold a multistate license, you can practice in Texas, in person or by telehealth, without a Texas license. The compact covers RNs and LVNs only; Texas does not participate in any APRN compact, so nurse practitioners and other advanced practice nurses need a Texas APRN license. See our compact nursing states list for every member.

If you are moving to Texas, the compact's 60-day rule applies: a multistate licensee who changes primary state of residence to another compact state must apply for a license in the new state within 60 days. Nurses from non-compact states, and nurses relocating permanently, apply for a Texas license by endorsement:

• Eligibility (board rule 217.5): graduation from an approved RN or LVN program, a passing score on the appropriate U.S. licensing exam, and nursing practice in another state within the previous four years.
• Fee: $150, which includes the Nursing Jurisprudence Exam.
• Temporary license: the board issues a one-time 120-day temporary license, if you are eligible, within 15 business days of a complete application and fee, so you can start work while the permanent license is processed.
• Everything else: fingerprints for the DPS and FBI background check, the Nursing Jurisprudence Exam (available 15 business days after you file), and verification of licensure from every state, territory or province where you have ever held a license.

Nurses who once held a Texas license cannot endorse; they renew or reactivate the license they had.

What nurses earn in Texas

The figures below are the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics for May 2025, the most recent state wage data the government publishes. Texas employs more registered nurses than any state except California, and pays them a little under the national median; vocational nurses and nurse aides sit further below their national figures.

Pay varies widely inside the state: the big metro systems in Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin and San Antonio generally post the highest rates, and night, weekend and specialty differentials add to the base. For posted pay by city and employer, see nurse jobs and pay in Texas; for how Texas ranks against other states, see the highest-paying states for nurses.

Job outlook

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects national employment of registered nurses to grow 6 percent from 2025 to 2035, faster than the average for all occupations, with about 180,800 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted. Licensed practical and vocational nurses are projected to grow 3 percent with about 51,800 openings a year, and nursing assistants and orderlies 3 percent with about 203,300 openings a year. Texas, with the second-largest nursing workforce in the country and a fast-growing population, accounts for a large share of those openings; the state's hospital systems are among the most active employers on our board, see where hospitals are hiring nurses now.

Keeping your Texas license or certificate

• RNs and LVNs renew every two years through the Texas Nurse Portal. The renewal fee is $68 for an RN and $45 for an LVN. Each licensing period you must show continuing competency, most commonly 20 contact hours of continuing education in your area of practice or an approved national nursing certification, plus any targeted CE the board requires. The CE requirement is waived for your first renewal if you renew on time or within 90 days of expiration. From 1 September 2026, CE is documented in the portal's CE Module before the renewal application is submitted. Details by state are in our nurse CE requirements by state guide.
• CNAs keep their listing active by verifying nurse aide employment with the Nurse Aide Registry at least every two years.

Sources

• Texas Board of Nursing, Licensure by Examination, current requirements, read 1 October 2026.
• Texas Board of Nursing, Fees, current fee schedule, read 1 October 2026.
• Texas Board of Nursing, Nursing Jurisprudence Examination, read 1 October 2026.
• Texas Board of Nursing, Licensure by Endorsement, read 1 October 2026.
• Texas Board of Nursing, Nurse Licensure Compact and Licensure Renewal, read 1 October 2026.
• Texas Health and Human Services Commission, Become a Certified Nurse Aide in Texas, Nurse Aide Registry FAQs and Nurse Aide Training and Competency Evaluation Program, read 1 October 2026.
• National Council of State Boards of Nursing, NCLEX Fees and Payment and Nurse Licensure Compact, read 1 October 2026.
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: Registered Nurses, Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses and Nursing Assistants, national and Texas estimates, read 1 October 2026.
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2025-35 projections: Registered Nurses, Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses and Nursing Assistants and Orderlies, read 1 October 2026.