How long does a West Virginia medical license take?

Neither board publishes a processing time, and West Virginia law sets no deadline for an ordinary application. Since mid-2026, the Board of Medicine’s staff can issue a license on a complete file with every verification in and nothing unresolved, without waiting for a meeting, while files that need review go to the board, which meets six times a year. An MD application not complete within six months expires. 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 West Virginia medical license cost?

$520.25 for an MD and $515.25 for a DO in board, fingerprint, transcript, and NPDB fees: the $400 application fee, IdentoGO’s $47.25 fingerprint check, a $70 USMLE or $65 COMLEX-USA transcript, and a $3 NPDB self-query. An MD fingerprinted at an IdentoGO center outside West Virginia pays $39.95 more, $560.20, and a first Uniform Application adds FSMB’s one-time $60; the DO board adds a 2.25% processing fee, $9 on the application fee, which its renewal and controlled substance pages charge on card payments. Through the IMLC, compact fees are $1,100 for either.

Is West Virginia in the IMLC?

Yes. West Virginia’s compact law, House Bill 2496 of 2015, took effect June 10, 2015; both boards issue licenses through the compact, and either can be your state of principal license. In IMLCC’s Year 9, April 2025 to March 2026, the Board of Medicine approved 64 Letters of Qualification and issued 386 licenses through the compact, and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine approved 7 and issued 70. Of the 402 initial MD licenses the Board of Medicine’s staff issued in July and August 2026, 251 came through the compact. Compact fees are $1,100: $700 to IMLCC plus $400 for West Virginia at either board.

Do MDs and DOs apply to the same board in West Virginia?

No. MDs apply to the West Virginia Board of Medicine and DOs to the West Virginia Board of Osteopathic Medicine, under separate laws and rules, though both charge $400 to apply and $400 to renew every two years. The MD file runs on FSMB’s Uniform Application with the board’s state addendum, a notarized affidavit, and an AMA Physician Profile; the DO file runs on the board’s own online application, and that board’s rule calls for a personal interview with a board member, though its application page says you will be told if one is required. MDs renew by last name and need 50 CME hours per cycle, DOs 32.

Can I get a West Virginia MD license by endorsement?

No. A 2026 law, House Bill 5458, repealed MD licensure by endorsement and the MD temporary license from June 7, 2026, so an MD licensed elsewhere applies for the full license or through the IMLC. For DOs, the osteopathic law still lets the board license a DO licensed by examination in another state without a new examination when it deems that state’s requirements equivalent; the board’s pages describe a single DO application.

Can I treat West Virginia patients by telehealth without a West Virginia license?

Yes, with an interstate telehealth registration, if you hold an active license in another state, are in good standing everywhere you are licensed, and treat West Virginia patients only by telehealth from another US state. It costs $175 a year at the Board of Medicine or $178.94 at the Board of Osteopathic Medicine, expires each March 31 unless renewed, and is not a license: seeing patients in person in West Virginia takes a full license. Registrants come under West Virginia law, register with the state’s prescription monitoring program if they prescribe controlled substances, and may prescribe Schedule II drugs only to an established patient of their own or of a member of their group practice.

Does West Virginia require fingerprints or a jurisprudence exam?

Fingerprints, yes, at both boards; a jurisprudence exam, no. State law requires a state and FBI check of every first-time applicant, run through IdentoGO for $47.25; the MD board publishes a $39.95 added charge at IdentoGO centers outside West Virginia, and the DO board says added fees may apply to out-of-state applicants. MD applicants who cannot reach a center can send fingerprint cards, which the board warns are more likely to be rejected. Neither board has a law exam, and on the compact route your state of principal license runs the background check.

Is FCVS required in West Virginia?

No. Both boards accept an FCVS profile and neither requires one; the MD board notes that FCVS does not verify unaccredited training, including international residencies, and may still ask for documents from the source. A first profile costs $395, USMLE transcripts included, which brings the MD total to $845.25, and FSMB says it typically processes initial applications in roughly 35 days.

Is there an interview for a West Virginia medical license?

Not routinely for MDs, but the osteopathic board’s rule calls for one. The Board of Medicine can require any applicant to appear, and its Licensure Committee decides whether to meet an applicant whose file shows conflicting information, unusual circumstances, or points needing explanation. For DOs, the board’s rule says every applicant arranges a personal interview with a board member before the board considers the application, while its application page says you will be told after review whether an interview is required.

What does staying licensed in West Virginia involve?

Renewal every two years for $400 at either board, by June 30: MDs by last name and DOs in each license’s second year; 50 CME hours for MDs or 32 for DOs per cycle, each with 2 hours of nutrition, plus a 3-hour controlled substance course in the first year for anyone who prescribes, administers, or dispenses controlled substances; registration with the Controlled Substances Monitoring Program within 30 days of a new license, with database checks when first prescribing a Schedule II drug, an opioid, or a benzodiazepine; and a separate $888 DEA registration for West Virginia. The osteopathic board also issues a $15 annual controlled substances license, and the MD board registers office dispensing.

West Virginia physician license: fees, timeline, requirements, and common delays

West Virginia licenses MD and DO physicians through two boards, the Board of Medicine and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine, both licensing directly or through the IMLC. Applying directly, an MD pays $520.25 in board, fingerprint, transcript, and NPDB fees, or $560.20 if fingerprinted at a center outside West Virginia, plus FSMB’s $60 for a first Uniform Application; a DO pays $515.25 before the board’s 2.25% processing fee. Compact fees are $1,100 for either. Neither board publishes a processing time, and state law sets no deadline for an ordinary application. The friction is paperwork you do not control: both boards say outside sources set the pace, and an MD application not complete within six months expires, taking its $400 fee with it.

West Virginia at a glance.

License: License to practice medicine and surgery (MD) or osteopathic medicine and surgery (DO), renewed every two years
MD and DO: Two boards: the Board of Medicine for MDs, the Board of Osteopathic Medicine for DOs
IMLC: Member state, issuing licenses. Either board can be your SPL; West Virginia’s compact law took effect June 10, 2015; $700 IMLCC fee plus $400 for West Virginia
FCVS: Accepted by both boards, required by neither
Uniform Application: Used for every direct MD application, with the board’s state addendum; the DO board’s pages describe only its own online application
Fingerprints: Required by state law at both boards: a state and FBI check through IdentoGO, $47.25 plus any out-of-state charge
Jurisprudence exam: None at either board
Interview: MD: only if the board or its Licensure Committee calls you. DO: the board’s rule calls for one with a board member, while its application page says you will be told if one is required
Board fee: MD $400, nonrefundable; DO $400 plus a 2.25% processing fee
Renewal: Every two years, $400 by June 30: MDs by last name, A to L in even years and M to Z in odd years; DOs in each license’s second year
CME: MD 50 hours and DO 32 hours every two years, each with 2 hours of nutrition

Which route fits.

MDs file with the West Virginia Board of Medicine and DOs with the West Virginia Board of Osteopathic Medicine, under separate laws, rules, and application systems, directly or through the IMLC. A 2026 law repealed MD licensure by endorsement and the MD temporary license from June 7, 2026, so an MD licensed elsewhere applies for the full license or through the compact. Physicians who will treat West Virginia patients only by telehealth from another state can hold an interstate telehealth registration instead of a license. A physician who moves to West Virginia, or the spouse of an active-duty service member transferred there, may also qualify under the state’s 2025 universal licensing law, which the MD board lists as one of its three pathways.

The MD license.

Who it fits: MDs who will treat patients in West Virginia, in person or by telehealth, with at least one year of approved graduate medical education, accredited by the ACGME or AOA in the US or by the RCPSC in Canada, and every part of the USMLE passed within 10 consecutive years, or over a longer span with current ABMS certification. International graduates need two years of approved training, or one year with current ABMS certification.
The trade-off: $520.25 in board, fingerprint, transcript, and NPDB fees, or $560.20 if you are fingerprinted at an IdentoGO center outside West Virginia, plus FSMB’s one-time $60 for a first Uniform Application. The file runs on that application and the board’s state addendum, with a notarized affidavit and release, an AMA Physician Profile, and verification of every US training program, accredited or not, and it expires if not complete within six months. Staff can issue a license on a clean, complete file without waiting for the board, which meets six times a year to review the rest.

Licensing board: West Virginia Board of Medicine.

The DO license.

Who it fits: DOs who will treat patients in West Virginia, in person or by telehealth, with a degree from an AOA-accredited osteopathic college, at least one year of postdoctoral clinical training approved by the AOA or ACGME, and every step of COMLEX-USA passed. The osteopathic rules set no attempt limit or time window and name no exam besides COMLEX-USA or an equivalent exam from another state’s osteopathic board.
The trade-off: $515.25 in board, fingerprint, transcript, and NPDB fees, before the board’s 2.25% processing fee and any extra charge for fingerprints taken outside West Virginia. The file runs on the board’s own online application, with no notary, and adds a signed malpractice claims statement even if you have no claims to report. The board’s rule calls for a personal interview with a board member before the board considers your application, while its application page says you will be told whether one is required. The board publishes no processing time.

Licensing board: West Virginia Board of Osteopathic Medicine.

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 West Virginia board can also be your state of principal license, to add other member states; West Virginia’s compact law took effect June 10, 2015. On the MD side, an administrative medicine license or a license under the 2025 universal licensing law cannot make West Virginia your state of principal license.
The trade-off: Compact fees of $1,100 for an MD or DO, $700 of it to IMLCC and $400 for West Virginia, against $520.25 (MD) or $515.25 (DO) to apply directly. Adding West Virginia to a Letter of Qualification still within its 365 days costs $500. Your state of principal license runs the fingerprints and verifications. An MD license issued through the compact cannot go on inactive status, and at each renewal the board emails a West Virginia addendum you must return within 30 days.

The interstate telehealth registration.

Who it fits: MDs and DOs with an active license in another state, in good standing everywhere they are licensed and with no pending complaint or current investigation by another board, who will treat West Virginia patients only by telehealth from another US state. Each board registers its own physicians. It is not a license: seeing patients in person in West Virginia, or treating them from outside the United States, takes a full West Virginia license.
The trade-off: $175 a year at the Board of Medicine, or $178.94 at the Board of Osteopathic Medicine with its 2.25% processing fee, plus verification of every license you hold or have held. Registrations expire each March 31 unless renewed. You come under West Virginia law and your board’s jurisdiction, Schedule II prescribing is barred except by you or a member of your group practice for an established patient, and the MD board’s rule gives it at least 10 business days to review a complete application.

What it costs.

MD license, Board of Medicine
Application fee	$400
Criminal history record check (IdentoGO)	$47.25, plus $39.95 at a center outside West Virginia
USMLE transcript (FSMB)	$70
NPDB self-query	$3
All-in	$520.25, or $560.20 fingerprinted at a center outside West Virginia
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

DO license, Board of Osteopathic Medicine
Application fee	$400
Criminal background check (IdentoGO)	$47.25
COMLEX-USA transcript (NBOME)	$65
NPDB self-query	$3
All-in	$515.25, before the 2.25% processing fee and any out-of-state fingerprinting charge
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

The IMLC route, MD or DO
IMLCC fee	$700
West Virginia license fee, from the IMLCC fee table	$400 (MD or DO)
All-in	$1,100
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

Interstate telehealth registration, MD or DO
Registration fee, renewed each year by March 31	$175 (MD) or $178.94 (DO, with the board’s 2.25% processing fee)
All-in	$175 (MD) or $178.94 (DO), plus verification of every license you hold or have held
Our service fee	Quoted with your plan

Board fees go to the board that licenses you. The Board of Medicine’s $400 application fee is nonrefundable regardless of eligibility, and $50 of it goes to the physician health program; the osteopathic board’s application page states no refund policy. IdentoGO, the vendor the West Virginia State Police authorize for these checks, collects the fingerprint fee; transcript fees go to FSMB or NBOME, and the self-query fee to the NPDB. FSMB charges its one-time $60 only with a physician’s first Uniform Application, so an MD who has filed one for another board pays nothing more to use it here. On the IMLC route, the $700 goes to IMLCC, which calls every compact fee nonrefundable; both boards’ rows in IMLCC’s fee table are $400, the same as their own application fees, and adding West Virginia to a Letter of Qualification still within its 365 days costs a $100 handling fee plus the $400.

Left out of every total: the osteopathic board’s 2.25% processing fee, $9 on the application fee, which its application page lists without condition but its renewal and controlled substance pages charge only on card payments, while its rule allows payment by personal check; any extra IdentoGO charge for a DO fingerprinted outside West Virginia, which the board says may apply without naming an amount, and IdentoGO’s charge for processing mailed fingerprint cards, which is not published; FSMB’s one-time $60 for an MD’s first Uniform Application; the AMA Physician Profile every MD applicant must have sent, at the AMA’s price; verifications from other boards, at each board’s own fee, which the MD board asks for only when FSMB’s Physician Data Center report disagrees with your application or shows action against a license, while the DO application page expects verification of your licensure in other states; notary fees; FCVS if you choose it, $395 for a first profile with USMLE transcripts included, which brings the MD total to $845.25; SPEX ($1,400) where the MD board requires it; and, for international graduates, ECFMG’s $70 certification verification report and certified translations. 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.

6 monthsTime to complete an MD application before it expiresSince July 1, 2025, the Board of Medicine’s instructions say an application not complete within six months expires, and a new application with a new fee is then needed to pursue the license.Board-published
At least 10 business daysMD interstate telehealth registration, minimum board reviewThe Board of Medicine’s rule gives it at least ten business days with a complete application before it decides on a registration, a minimum review window rather than a deadline; a complete file without discrepant information can be approved without going to the board.Board-published
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

West Virginia law sets no deadline for either board to decide an ordinary application, and neither board publishes a processing time: both say they cannot control how fast third parties send the documents a file needs, and the Board of Medicine does not expedite one application ahead of another. Under a 2026 law, guidance the Board of Medicine adopted on July 13, 2026, and a rule in force since August 11, 2026, that board’s staff can issue a license on a complete file with every primary-source verification in and nothing unresolved, without waiting for a meeting. Files that need review go to the board, which meets six times a year, in odd-numbered months; its rule gives it at least 15 days with a complete file before it considers one, while its instructions ask for files to be complete 10 days before a meeting. The osteopathic law requires the Board of Osteopathic Medicine to meet at least twice a year. No board guarantees a date.

What the file involves.

An MD file moves between 9 core parties, the board included, and 12 core document types: FSMB’s Uniform Application with the board’s state addendum, a notarized affidavit and release with your photo, an AMA Physician Profile, an NPDB self-query, fingerprints, and verifications from your school and every US training program, accredited or not, while the board checks your other licenses itself through FSMB’s Physician Data Center. A DO file moves between 8 core parties and 10 core document types on the board’s own online application, with no notary, among them a signed malpractice claims statement, a recent photo, and an NPDB self-query. On the IMLC route, the West Virginia file involves 3 parties: IMLCC, your state of principal license, and your West Virginia board.

FSMB or NBOMESends your USMLE or COMLEX-USA scores directly to the board; FSMB also runs the Uniform Application the MD board uses.
Your medical schoolVerifies your medical education directly to the board; for an MD file it also seals a copy of your diploma and sends your transcript, and a DO file needs every medical school you attended.
Each postgraduate training programVerifies your training directly to the board: every US program, accredited or not, for an MD file, and all of your postgraduate training for a DO file.
The National Practitioner Data BankReports on you through the self-query both boards ask for, generated no more than 30 days before the board receives it.
The AMA (MD files)Sends the board the AMA Physician Profile every MD applicant must request.
A notary public (MD files)Notarizes your signed affidavit and release, which carries your photo.
IdentoGOTakes your fingerprints for the state and FBI check, at its enrollment centers or, for an MD file, from fingerprint cards.
The West Virginia State Police and the FBIRun the state and national criminal history checks.
Every board that has licensed youOn an MD file, the board checks your licenses itself through FSMB’s Physician Data Center and asks another board to verify only when that report disagrees with your application or shows action against a license; the DO application page expects verification of your licensure in other states.
Your West Virginia boardAt the Board of Medicine, analysts screen the file, staff can issue a license on a clean, complete one, and its Licensure Committee and the board review the rest; at the osteopathic board, a licensure analyst reviews the file and the board decides.

Postgraduate training, MD: One year of approved graduate medical education for US and Canadian graduates: an internship, residency, or clinical fellowship accredited by the ACGME or AOA in the US, or a residency accredited by the RCPSC in Canada. International graduates need two years, or one year with current ABMS certification, and ECFMG certification or at least five years of full-time practice on a full license elsewhere with no pending or reportable discipline. A separate path for international graduates without that training requires an international residency, two years of related US fellowship training, a West Virginia job offer, and the employer’s letter of sponsorship.
Exams, MD: Every part of the USMLE, or an older exam or combination the board approves, passed within 10 consecutive years; the board can accept a longer span from an applicant with current ABMS certification, and those files go to the board’s committee rather than staff. The board’s rule also bars an applicant who failed a USMLE component in six attempts, or within the USMLE’s own limit when they sat, whichever is lower; its instructions put that limit at four attempts per step for exams taken after July 2021.
Training and exams, DO: Graduation from an AOA-accredited osteopathic college, at least one year of postdoctoral clinical training in a program approved by the AOA or ACGME, and a passing score on every step of COMLEX-USA; the board may accept an equivalent exam given by another state’s osteopathic board. The osteopathic rules name no other exam and set no attempt limit or time window.
Time out of practice: MDs absent from practice for two years or more, at once or in total, must show their skills are current and propose a plan for safe reentry, and the board can require the SPEX or another competency exam whenever it considers it necessary; an application from an MD absent from US clinical practice for two years or more goes to the board’s committee rather than staff. The osteopathic rules set no time-out rule for initial applicants, though the board can require a written exam or practical skills assessment.
Board certification: Not required for a full license at either board. On the MD side it opens the one-year training path for international graduates and lets the board accept an exam sequence over 10 years; the IMLC requires it.

We run the West Virginia file.

We do

Confirm the right board and route, a full license, the IMLC, or a telehealth registration, before any fee is paid, since the MD board refunds no application fee.
Prepare your application package and documents, checked against your board’s current law and rules.
Request and chase every verification: your school, each training program, your exam scores, the AMA profile on an MD file, and any board that must verify a license.
Coordinate your IdentoGO fingerprinting and track the state and FBI results until they reach the board.
Keep the timeline, tracking an MD file against its six-month limit and following up on every missing item 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.
On an MD file, sign the affidavit and release before a notary.
Order your NPDB self-query, which both boards ask for.
Have your fingerprints taken for the state and FBI check.
Attend any interview or committee meeting your board requires.

Get My Licensing Plan

Staying licensed.

Renewal cycle: Every two years at both boards, for $400. MD licenses renew by June 30 by last name, A to L in even-numbered years and M to Z in odd-numbered years; a first license expires with your last-name group, or at the following deadline if issued within 60 days of one, so it can run from a few months to about two years before its first renewal, and reinstating a lapsed license within a year adds half the renewal fee. DO licenses renew by June 30 of each license’s second year, plus a 2.25% processing fee when paying by card, with a $100 late fee, and a license not renewed is automatically suspended. A license issued through the compact renews through IMLCC, followed by each board’s own West Virginia renewal questions; the MD board treats failing to return its addendum within 30 days as unprofessional conduct.
CME: MDs need 50 hours of AMA or AAFP Category I CME every two years, at least 30 of them in their specialty and 2 in nutrition, or, in place of the 50, 2 hours of nutrition with an ABMS certification or recertification exam passed, ABMS continuing certification, or 12 months of ACGME-approved training in the period. DOs need 32 hours of AOA-approved CME every two years, at least half of them category 1 or standard heart saver courses, with 2 in nutrition. At both boards, a licensee who prescribes, administers, or dispenses controlled substances under a West Virginia license completes a 3-hour board-approved course on controlled substance prescribing within one year of the first license, which the July 2026 rules no longer repeat each cycle.
State controlled-substance registration: MDs: the Board of Medicine has no registration to prescribe. It registers only office-based dispensing or administering of controlled substances, per office location, at $15 a year collected as $30 every two years; inpatient hospital practice and prescriptions a pharmacy fills need none. DOs: the osteopathic board issues a controlled substances license, renewed by June 30 each year, whose fee its rule lists as an “Annual Permit to Dispense/Prescribe Controlled Substance” at $15 a year, plus 2.25% when paying by card; the application asks for a copy of your DEA registration for West Virginia.
Prescription monitoring: Register with the West Virginia Controlled Substances Monitoring Program within 30 days of a new license if you prescribe or dispense Schedule II to V controlled substances, telehealth registrants included; the Board of Pharmacy runs it on RxGov, which every user was expected to use from February 2, 2026, and not registering carries a $1,000 penalty. Check the program’s database when you first prescribe or dispense a Schedule II drug, an opioid, or a benzodiazepine to a patient without a terminal illness, and at least once a year while treatment with a controlled substance continues, and record the result; each missed check can bring a $100 penalty.
DEA registration: $888 for three years, with a separate registration for West Virginia.
Opioid prescription limits: State law caps a first Schedule II opioid prescription at a seven-day supply, or three days for a minor; a Schedule II opioid prescribed in an emergency room or urgent care facility for an adult’s outpatient use at four days, extendable to seven at urgent care with the medical reason documented; and any Schedule II opioid prescription at a 30-day supply. Continuing treatment needs a physical examination every 90 days and a narcotics contract with the third prescription.
Telemedicine prescribing: A physician who treats a patient only by telemedicine may not prescribe that patient a Schedule II controlled substance, with exceptions in state law such as established patients of the same group practice, certain diagnoses in minors and enrolled students, and hospital orders.
E-prescribing: Not required. West Virginia law sets no electronic prescribing mandate, and the bills that proposed one from 2019 to 2022 ended in committee.
Contact details: MDs report contact changes to the board within 15 days; DOs report changes within 30 days and keep a residence address on file.

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

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Also licensing in these states?

Pennsylvania Separate boards for MDs and DOs, and both issue licenses directly or through the IMLC.
Ohio One board licenses MDs and DOs, by traditional application, by reciprocity, or through the IMLC, and Ohio can be your state of principal license.
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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