Yes, on volume. Texas has more NP jobs than any state and 31.7 million people, with a light entry for compact NPs: about $150 in board fees, or about $342 without a compact RN base. Pay runs about 4% below the national mean. Board staff target 10 to 15 business days per leg, and practice is physician-delegated: Texas is restricted.
Why Texas.
- 25,970NP jobs, more than any other stateTexas holds 8% of US NP employment, ahead of California and New York (computed from BLS state series, May 2025).Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Nurse Practitioners
- 9.3%Share of the US population one license adds31.7 million people, second only to California, with the largest numeric growth of any state last year.Source: US Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 state population estimates
- NLC memberRN compact statusA multistate RN license covers the Texas RN base, so the add starts at the APRN application.Source: NCSBN, Nurse Licensure Compact member map
- 2.1 millionTexas Medicaid telemedicine services in one yearBehavioral health alone was 57% of FY2023 volume, and distant-site providers must hold a Texas license.Source: Texas HHSC, telemedicine and telehealth biennial report, December 2024
- Restricted practicePractice environmentPlan on physician-delegated practice: prescriptive authority runs through a delegation agreement, with consult checkpoints every 90 days on controlled-substance refills.Source: AANP state practice environment, Texas
What it takes.
| RN licensure by endorsement (skipped with a compact multistate RN) | $150 |
|---|---|
| APRN licensure with prescriptive authority, one application | $150 |
| Fingerprint background check, DPS and FBI | $41.95 |
| All-in | $341.95 in board fees |
With a compact multistate RN base the RN endorsement leg disappears and board fees start at $150. APRN licensure without prescriptive authority is $100. Nursys, certifier, and transcript fees come on top. Fees change; verified July 28, 2026.
Board staff target 10 to 15 business days per application leg. RN endorsement and APRN files are each worked within about 15 business days of the last item received (board statements, July 2026), and eligibility flags add 30 to 90 days of review. Peak seasons stretch the targets, and nothing is guaranteed.
The weight: 7 document and requirement types, including two applications with their own separate document sets, fingerprints, a 2-hour jurisprudence exam, Nursys verifications from every state you’ve ever held a license in, program verification, and certifier evidence, moving between 7 parties. Done yourself, that’s 5 to 10 hours per application and months of status-checking.
Renews every two years with your birth month: $129 combined RN and APRN, plus up to $15 prescriptive-authority surcharge. 20 CE hours in your role and population per cycle (or current national certification), plus 5 pharmacotherapeutics hours if you prescribe, plus Texas’s targeted topics. Official board site: Texas Board of Nursing.
We file Texas for you.
We do
- Prepare and submit both BON applications with their separate document sets, clean and complete, in as little as 48 hours.
- Chase every verification: Nursys, each state you’ve held a license in, your program, and your certifier.
- Route fingerprints through the right channel the first time, in Texas or from out of state.
- Track the file against the board’s business-day targets and answer anything the BON asks.
You do
- Share your credentials and license history once, in our secure portal.
- Approve and e-sign the applications we prepare, and sit the jurisprudence exam.
- Keep seeing patients.
Frequently asked questions
Board staff target 10 to 15 business days per application leg once items arrive, so a clean file typically clears in weeks, not months. Eligibility flags add a 30-day review and about 90 days at Enforcement, and peak seasons stretch everything.
About $341.95 in board fees without a compact RN base: $150 RN endorsement, $150 APRN licensure with prescriptive authority, and $41.95 fingerprints. With a compact multistate RN, board fees start at $150. Nursys, certifier, and transcript fees come on top.
Yes, for the RN base: Texas is a Nurse Licensure Compact state, so a multistate RN license satisfies the RN prerequisite and you skip the endorsement leg. The APRN license itself is always Texas-issued; no compact covers it today.
Yes. Texas is a restricted-practice state: medical aspects of care and prescribing run under physician delegation, controlled-substance refills need a consult after the initial 90-day supply and every 90 days after, and Schedule II authority is limited to hospital and hospice settings.
No, and the APRN Compact isn’t operational anywhere yet: four of the seven states it needs have enacted it. A Texas APRN license remains the only way to practice as an NP in Texas. Our APRN Compact explainer covers the details.
Sometimes. The RN endorsement can issue a 120-day temporary license, once per lifetime, and the board can grant APRN interim approval for up to 120 days while it waits on documents. Compact NPs may work as RNs on multistate privilege, but APRN practice always waits for the Texas APRN license.
Every two years, keyed to your birth month: $129 combined RN and APRN renewal plus up to $15 prescriptive-authority surcharge, 20 CE hours in your role and population (or current national certification), 5 pharmacotherapeutics hours if you prescribe, and Texas’s targeted topics. Prescriptive authority lapses separately if you skip its renewal box.
On average, no: $131,420 a year, about 4% below the national NP mean of $137,300. The Texas case is volume: more NP jobs than any state, 31.7 million people, and a Medicaid program that ran 2.1 million telemedicine visits in a year.
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Sources
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Nurse Practitioners (29-1171), Texas
Texas Board of Nursing, APRN licensure application information
Texas Board of Nursing, APRN practice FAQ
Texas Board of Nursing, licensure FAQ
Texas Board of Nursing, continuing education
Texas Board of Nursing, Nurse Licensure Compact (eNLC)
NCSBN, Nurse Licensure Compact member map
NCSBN news, South Dakota enacts the APRN Compact (fourth state)
South Dakota Board of Nursing, APRN Compact status
AANP state practice environment, Texas
US Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 state population estimates
Texas HHSC, telemedicine and telehealth biennial report (December 2024)
This guide is informational only, not legal advice. Fees and timelines change; the verified date and sources are on this page.