How long does a Tennessee medical license take?

The Board of Medical Examiners gives an average of 10 to 12 weeks to process an MD application, absent complicating factors, without saying when the count starts. The Board of Osteopathic Examination says a DO application may take up to 8 weeks, in instructions revised 9/18 that its page still links. For a physician licensed in another state, a 2023 law requires a decision, or notice to appear before the board, within 45 days of a completed application. Neither board expedites for a job offer. On the compact route, IMLCC’s Year 9 averages were 38 days from application to a Letter of Qualification, then 22 days from qualification to issued licenses.

How much does a Tennessee medical license cost?

$580 for an MD and $375 for a DO in board and transcript fees: the $500 or $300 application fee, the $10 state regulatory fee, and a $70 USMLE or $65 COMLEX transcript. The state and FBI background check comes on top; the Department of Health and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation last published its fee as $37.15, on pages that predate the FBI’s fee increase of October 1, 2026. Through the IMLC, compact fees are $1,210 for an MD or $1,010 for a DO. Notary fees, any school or training program charges, and, for DOs, other states’ clearance fees come on top as well.

Is Tennessee in the IMLC?

Yes. Tennessee’s compact law, signed May 11, 2017, took effect January 1, 2019; both boards issue licenses through the compact, and either can be your state of principal license. Under Tennessee’s sunset review law the compact was set to end on June 30, 2026, and a law effective March 6, 2026 moved that date to June 30, 2034. In IMLCC’s Year 9, April 2025 to March 2026, the Board of Medical Examiners approved 275 Letters of Qualification and issued 841 licenses through the compact, and the osteopathic board approved 28 and issued 145.

Do MDs and DOs apply to the same board in Tennessee?

No. MDs apply to the Board of Medical Examiners and DOs to the Board of Osteopathic Examination, under separate statutes and fees: $510 to apply as an MD against $310 as a DO, and $310 against $210 to renew every two years. The DO file is heavier, with clearance from every state or country where you have held a license in any profession, while the MD checklist asks for no license verifications. Only DOs can still get a telemedicine license.

Do I need a Tennessee license to treat Tennessee patients by telehealth?

Yes, apart from narrow exemptions. Tennessee has no out-of-state telehealth registration, and the Board of Medical Examiners says anyone who sees patients located in Tennessee must be licensed there. It stopped issuing its own telemedicine license in 2016; the osteopathic board still issues one to DOs who live and practice outside Tennessee, limited to their specialty. The exemptions include consulting at a Tennessee physician’s request. Since April 14, 2026, deciding with clinical judgment whether a treatment or procedure is clinically appropriate also counts as practicing medicine or osteopathic medicine in Tennessee.

Can I work locums in Tennessee on a locum tenens license?

Yes, if you live outside Tennessee, hold a license in good standing in another state, and are certified in a specialty or eligible for certification: both boards issue a locum tenens license, at their discretion, for intermittent practice in that specialty. It costs the same as a full license, $510 for an MD or $310 for a DO, plus the background check, and you notify the board of each Tennessee practice location and its duration before it starts. The MD checklist lists no transcripts, training verifications, or exam scores.

Does Tennessee require fingerprints or a jurisprudence exam?

Fingerprints, yes; a jurisprudence exam, no. Every new applicant on the direct route goes through a Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and FBI check run through the state’s vendor, which takes fingerprint cards by mail from out-of-state applicants and collects its fees at pre-enrollment. At the Board of Medical Examiners the results stay valid for six months, so a file still incomplete after that needs a new check. On the compact route, your state of principal license runs the check.

Does Tennessee’s 2026 citizenship law apply to physicians?

Yes, with a physician exception: since May 7, 2026, a license applied for or renewed requires US citizenship or qualified alien status, but a physician can qualify instead with proof of having applied for a visa that would authorize work in the United States. Every applicant still signs a notarized citizenship declaration, and a board licensing a physician from another state must confirm that state verified the status, or verify it itself.

Is FCVS required in Tennessee?

Not for a full license: both boards accept an FCVS profile for your school transcript, training verifications, exam scores, and proof of citizenship or lawful presence, and neither requires one. A first profile costs $395, transcripts included, plus a $3.50 NPDB report fee. The Board of Medical Examiners requires FCVS only for its temporary and foreign training licenses, both for international graduates.

What does staying licensed in Tennessee involve?

Renewal every two years in your birth month, $310 for an MD or $210 for a DO; 40 CME hours per cycle, 2 of them on controlled substance prescribing; registration with the Controlled Substance Monitoring Database and checks before opioid, benzodiazepine, and Schedule II amphetamine prescriptions; e-prescribing for controlled substances; and a separate $888 DEA registration for Tennessee. There is no state controlled-substance registration.

Tennessee physician license: fees, timeline, requirements, and common delays

Tennessee licenses MD and DO physicians through two boards in the Department of Health, the Board of Medical Examiners and the Board of Osteopathic Examination, and both issue licenses directly or through the IMLC. Applying directly, an MD pays $580 in board and transcript fees and a DO $375, plus a state and FBI background check. Compact fees are $1,210 (MD) or $1,010 (DO). The MD board puts its average processing time at 10 to 12 weeks, and the DO board says up to 8 weeks. The friction is the 90-day window: items a board asks for must arrive within 90 days of its first deficiency letter, or the file closes and reapplying takes a new application and fees.

Tennessee at a glance.

License: Full license to practice medicine (MD) or osteopathic medicine (DO), renewed every two years
MD and DO: Two boards: the Board of Medical Examiners for MDs, the Board of Osteopathic Examination for DOs
IMLC: Member state, issuing licenses. Either board can be your SPL; a 2026 law moved the compact’s sunset date to June 30, 2034
FCVS: Accepted by both boards, required by neither for a full license
Uniform Application: Not used
Fingerprints: Required: a state and FBI check; from out of state, a fingerprint card you mail in for scanning
Jurisprudence exam: None
Interview: Not routine; a board can call you, and MDs out of practice over 2 years should appear for a reentry plan
Board fee: MD $510, DO $310: each an application fee plus the $10 state regulatory fee, nonrefundable
Renewal: Every two years in your birth month: MD $310, DO $210
CME: 40 hours every two years, 2 of them on controlled substance prescribing

Which route fits.

MDs file with the Board of Medical Examiners and DOs with the Board of Osteopathic Examination, both staffed by the Department of Health, directly or through the IMLC. Tennessee has no out-of-state telehealth registration, so treating patients in Tennessee by telehealth takes a Tennessee license unless a narrow exemption applies, such as consulting at a Tennessee physician’s request. Since April 14, 2026, state law also counts using clinical judgment to decide whether a treatment or procedure is clinically appropriate as practicing medicine or osteopathic medicine, so that review work for patients in Tennessee needs a Tennessee license too.

The MD license.

Who it fits: MDs who will treat patients in Tennessee, in person or by telehealth, with USMLE Steps 1 to 3 and ACGME training: 1 year for US and Canadian graduates, 3 years plus ECFMG certification for international graduates. The board’s checklist asks for no verification from other states’ boards, and its application does not ask you to list your US medical licenses.
The trade-off: $580 in board and transcript fees plus the background check, and an average of 10 to 12 weeks, with your school, each US training program, and FSMB sending documents directly. Tennessee’s rules also describe a discretionary license based on licensure in another state, with an endorsement from every board that has licensed you, but the board’s license-type guide, checklist, and application do not list it.

Licensing board: Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners.

The DO license.

Who it fits: DOs who will treat patients in Tennessee, in person or by telehealth, licensed by examination or by endorsement of a license from another state. You need a 1-year internship or PGY-1 and COMLEX-USA or another accepted exam, the USMLE included, with no attempt limit or completion window in the rules.
The trade-off: $375 in board and transcript fees plus the background check, and a heavier file than an MD’s: every state, country, or province where you hold or have ever held a license to practice any profession sends clearance, some for a fee, and the application itself is notarized. The board’s instructions say the process may take up to 8 weeks.

Licensing board: Tennessee Board of Osteopathic Examination.

The IMLC.

Who it fits: Physicians whose state of principal license is another member state and who meet the compact’s terms, which include specialty certification. Either Tennessee board can also be your state of principal license, to add other member states. Tennessee’s compact law took effect January 1, 2019, and a law effective March 6, 2026 moved the compact’s sunset date from June 30, 2026 to June 30, 2034.
The trade-off: Compact fees of $1,210 for an MD or $1,010 for a DO, $700 of it to IMLCC, against $580 or $375 plus the background check to apply directly. Adding Tennessee to a Letter of Qualification still within its 365 days costs $610 or $410, and your state of principal license runs the fingerprints and verifications.

The locum tenens license.

Who it fits: MDs and DOs who live outside Tennessee and will practice there intermittently, with a license in good standing in another state and specialty certification or eligibility for it; each board issues the license at its discretion. Practice is limited to that specialty, and you notify the board of each Tennessee practice location and its duration before the practice starts.
The trade-off: The same fee and renewal as a full license, $510 (MD) or $310 (DO), plus the background check. The MD checklist lists no transcripts, training verifications, or exam scores, and the DO application needs evidence of one license in good standing elsewhere. If the board finds your Tennessee practice in a year inordinate, it can revoke an MD’s locum tenens license or require a full license application.

The DO telemedicine license.

Who it fits: DOs who live and practice outside Tennessee and will treat patients in Tennessee across state lines, with an unrestricted license in good standing in another state and specialty certification or eligibility for it. MDs have no equivalent: the Board of Medical Examiners stopped issuing telemedicine licenses in 2016.
The trade-off: $310 plus the background check, the same as a full DO license, for a license limited to your specialty that renews like a full one. You also designate a Tennessee physician for service of process.

What it costs.

MD license, Board of Medical Examiners
Application fee	$500
State regulatory fee	$10
USMLE transcript (FSMB)	$70
All-in	$580 plus the background check
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

DO license, Board of Osteopathic Examination
Application fee	$300
State regulatory fee	$10
COMLEX-USA transcript (NBOME)	$65
All-in	$375 plus the background check
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

The IMLC route, MD or DO
IMLCC fee	$700
Tennessee license fee, from the IMLCC fee table	$510 (MD) or $310 (DO)
All-in	$1,210 (MD) or $1,010 (DO)
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

Board fees go to the Board of Medical Examiners or the Board of Osteopathic Examination with the application, and both boards call their application fees nonrefundable. The $10 state regulatory fee, $5 a year, is collected at application and again with each two-year renewal. Transcript fees go to FSMB or NBOME, and a DO who took the USMLE pays FSMB’s $70 instead of NBOME’s $65. On the IMLC route, the $700 goes to IMLCC, which calls every compact fee nonrefundable, and adding Tennessee to a Letter of Qualification still within its 365 days costs a $100 handling fee plus the state fee, $610 for an MD or $410 for a DO.

Left out of every total: the state and FBI background check every direct applicant needs. The Department of Health and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) last published its fee as $37.15, on pages that predate the FBI’s fee increase of October 1, 2026; from out of state, the vendor’s card service collects its fees at pre-enrollment, in amounts the department does not state, and the agency that takes your prints may charge its own. Also left out: notary fees and any charges your school or training programs set; for DOs, clearance from every state that has licensed you, which some states charge for; FCVS if you choose it ($395, transcripts included, plus a $3.50 NPDB report fee) and, for international graduates using it, ECFMG’s $75 education verification and $70 status report; SPEX or COMVEX where a board requires one; and, at the Board of Medical Examiners, a new background check if six months pass before the file is complete. On the IMLC route, your state of principal license runs the fingerprints and verifications at its own fees.

Fees change; verified November 11, 2026.

How long it takes.

10 to 12 weeksBoard of Medical Examiners, average MD processing timeThe MD application instructions’ average processing time, absent complicating factors. They do not say when the count starts; they say the board reviews the file and makes an initial licensure determination once the application is complete.Board-published
14 working daysDocuments reaching an MD fileThe MD application instructions ask applicants to allow 14 working days for anything sent to the board office to be received and placed in the file.Board-published
Up to 8 weeksBoard of Osteopathic Examination, the whole DO applicationThe DO application instructions say that, absent complicating factors, the application process may take up to 8 weeks. The instructions are marked revised 9/18, the board’s page still links them, and they do not say when the count starts.Board-published
45 daysDeadline to act on a completed application from a physician licensed elsewhereA 2023 state law requires either board, within 45 days of receiving a completed application from a physician licensed in another state, a US territory, or DC, to decide it or tell the applicant to appear before the board; a completed application meets every statutory and rule requirement. It is a deadline in the statute, not a published processing time, and no board page mentions it.Statutory deadline
38 daysIMLC application to Letter of QualificationIMLCC’s Year 9 average across the compact, April 2025 to March 2026, over 10,837 completed applications; 55% received the letter in 30 days or less.IMLCC average
22 daysIMLC qualification to licenses issuedIMLCC’s Year 9 average for the next stage, from qualification to the requested state licenses; 47% received them in 7 days or less. The two stages are separate averages, not a total.IMLCC average

Both boards close a file when the items named in their first deficiency letter have not arrived within 90 days, and reapplying takes a new application and fees. Neither board expedites a file for a pending job; both review applications in the order received. Once a board issues your license number you may start practicing, before the full board ratifies the license, and the board tells you to stop if it does not ratify. At the Board of Medical Examiners a background check stays valid for six months, so a file still incomplete after that needs a new one. No board guarantees a date.

What the file involves.

An MD file moves between 7 parties besides you, the board included, and 10 core document types, and its checklist asks for no verification from other states’ boards. A DO file moves between 8 parties and 11 core document types, counting one other licensing board; every further state, country, or province that has licensed you in any profession adds a party, since each sends clearance. Extra training programs add parties too, and FCVS, optional at both boards, can stand in for your school, training, and exam verifications. On the IMLC route, the Tennessee file involves 3 parties: IMLCC, your state of principal license, and your Tennessee board.

Your medical schoolSends your transcript directly to the board or through FCVS; the MD checklist rejects transcripts sent by applicants.
Each postgraduate training programVerifies your training directly, with the program director’s signature notarized; MD files need each US program, DO files every program.
FSMB or NBOMESends your USMLE or COMLEX-USA scores directly to the board.
Every state, country, or province that has licensed you (DO files)Sends clearance on each license you hold or have ever held there, in any profession; some charge for it.
Two physiciansEach writes an original letter of recommendation; MD files need letters signed within the last six months.
A notary publicNotarizes the citizenship declaration every applicant signs and, for DO files, the application itself.
The state’s fingerprint vendor, the TBI, and the FBITake or scan your prints and run the state and national criminal history checks, with the results sent straight to the board.
Your Tennessee boardThe Board of Medical Examiners or the Board of Osteopathic Examination reviews the file, issues your license number, and ratifies the license; either can call you to appear.

Postgraduate training, MD: 1 year of an ACGME-accredited residency or fellowship for US and Canadian graduates, completed in one continuous program after the medical degree. International graduates need 3 years of ACGME training in one discipline, which the board may treat as met by certification from an ABMS member board, plus ECFMG certification. From January 31, 2027, a 2026 law adds a two-year provisional training license for internationally trained physicians with an offer from an eligible employer, such as a federally qualified health center or rural health clinic, leading to a full license after two years and USMLE Steps 1 to 3.
Postgraduate training, DO: A 1-year internship or PGY-1 in a hospital approved by the AOA, the AMA or its accreditation program, or the Joint Commission.
Exams, MD: USMLE Steps 1 to 3, all passed within 10 years of the first step you passed, unless you are certified by an ABMS member board or are in active clinical practice in one state, where you have practiced at least a year and held a full, unencumbered license at least a year since the USMLE. Failing any step more than four times means proving ABMS certification and maintenance of certification. The board may require SPEX after more than 2 years out of clinical practice, and its rules also call for SPEX when your exams were passed five or more years before applying, except on its route for physicians licensed in another state; its license-type guide, checklist, and application do not mention that requirement.
Exams, DO: COMLEX-USA or earlier NBOME exams, FLEX, the USMLE, or a state exam taken before 1994, with no attempt limit and no completion window in the rules. The rules require SPEX, COMSPEX, or COMVEX when your exams were passed five or more years before applying, except for reciprocity applicants, who apply on a license from another state.
Time out of practice: An MD out of practice for more than 2 years should appear before the board to set a reentry plan, decided case by case, with a preceptorship and, depending on the length of the gap, CME, SPEX, a certification exam, or a formal assessment. The osteopathic board’s reentry program covers DOs licensed elsewhere after more than 2 years away from clinical practice; from 2 to under 5 years, it calls for at least 2 years’ worth of Tennessee CME and possibly COMVEX.
Citizenship or immigration status: Since May 7, 2026, a license applied for or renewed requires US citizenship or qualified alien status, though a physician can qualify instead with proof of having applied for a visa that would authorize work in the United States. Every applicant also signs a notarized citizenship declaration, and a board licensing a physician from another state must confirm that state verified the status, or verify it itself.
Board certification: Not required for a full license, except after more than four failures of a USMLE step, and the Board of Medical Examiners may accept it in place of an international graduate’s 3 years of training. The locum tenens licenses and the DO telemedicine license require certification or eligibility for it, and the IMLC requires it.

We run the Tennessee file.

We do

Confirm the right board and route, whether a full license, a locum tenens license, the DO telemedicine license, or the IMLC, before any fee is paid.
Prepare the application for the Board of Medical Examiners or the Board of Osteopathic Examination and check every answer against its current rules.
Request and chase every verification: your school, each training program, your exam scores, and for DO files every state that has licensed you.
Coordinate your fingerprints and background check, and track the results until they reach the board.
Track every deficiency letter against its 90-day window and follow the file until the license issues.

You do

Share your credentials and license history once, in our secure portal.
Approve your application answers and sign the attestations; the citizenship declaration, and a DO’s application, must be notarized.
Ask two physicians for original, signed letters of recommendation.
Have your fingerprints taken for the state and FBI check, on a card if you live outside Tennessee.
Appear before the board if it calls you.

Get My Licensing Plan

Staying licensed.

Renewal cycle: Every two years, by the last day of your birth month, in even or odd years according to your birth year: $310 for an MD ($300 plus the $10 state regulatory fee) or $210 for a DO. Renewal opens 60 days before expiration. Renewing by the last day of the following month adds a $200 late fee; after that no renewal is accepted, and the license must be reinstated.
CME: 40 hours in the 24 months before each renewal at both boards, including 2 hours on controlled substance prescribing that cover the Department of Health’s treatment guidelines on opioids, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, and carisoprodol. Physicians board certified in pain management, anesthesiology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, neurology, or rheumatology are exempt from that topic, and the Board of Medical Examiners says its course must be Tennessee-specific. MDs count AMA Category 1 credit from ACCME-accredited sponsors or AAFP or AOA prescribed credit; DOs count AOA Category I-A, II-A, and I-B credit, no more than 20 hours of it in I-B. From January 1, 2028, a 2026 law requires 1 of the hours, once, on a nutrition topic that must be available free of charge. At the Board of Medical Examiners, each hour short can bring a $100 civil penalty.
State controlled-substance registration: None. DEA lists Tennessee among the states that require only your professional license, so your Tennessee license and DEA registration carry prescribing authority. State law limits opioid treatment to a three-day supply and a total dose of 180 morphine milligram equivalents, unless one of its exceptions applies.
Prescription monitoring: Register with the Controlled Substance Monitoring Database, run under the Board of Pharmacy, within 30 days of receiving a DEA number if you prescribe or dispense controlled substances to patients in Tennessee on more than 15 days in a calendar year. Check it before prescribing an opioid, benzodiazepine, or Schedule II amphetamine at the start of a new episode of treatment, before each new prescription in that episode’s first 90 days, and at least every 6 months while the drug remains part of treatment, with exceptions such as hospice care, a single three-day supply without refill, and drugs given in inpatient or residential settings.
DEA registration: $888 for three years, with a separate registration for Tennessee.
E-prescribing: Required for Schedule II to V controlled substance prescriptions since January 1, 2021, with exceptions set in state law.
Practitioner profile: Keep the practitioner profile you file with your application current, updating it within 30 days of any reportable change, and report an address change within 30 days.

Renewals, CME tracking, and DEA registrations are managed where included in your plan: physician licensing at NP Licensing.

Frequently asked questions

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Your licenses, your deadline. We come back with the Tennessee plan.

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Also licensing in these states?

Georgia One board licenses MDs and DOs, directly or through the IMLC, and direct applications now require FCVS and fingerprints.
North Carolina One board licenses MDs and DOs, directly or through the IMLC, which North Carolina joined on January 1, 2026.
California Two boards and no IMLC route: every California license is a direct application.
Texas One board licenses MDs and DOs, by direct application or through the IMLC.
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