As home to some of the most respected medical facilities and learning institutes, Massachusetts is an excellent place for healthcare professionals to live and work. The average salary of a registered nurse in Massachusetts is 40% higher than the national average. For nurses who have studied or plan to start a career there, Massachusetts is a land of wonderful opportunities.
That said, Massachusetts is not immune to the nationwide staffing shortfall in nurses. Between 2019 and 2022, vacancies for registered nurses working in Massachusetts hospitals almost doubled, highlighting the issue. The Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing had to pay a staggering $1.52 billion in 2022 to temporary hospital workers, primarily travel nurses, to make up for the shortfall.
As alarming as it is, the staffing shortage highlights the availability of opportunities for prospective professionals. If you work as a nurse there, you also have a responsibility to uphold the healthcare system in Massachusetts. Besides providing the best care to patients, you must ensure you renew your license before it lapses.
Like nursing boards throughout the country, the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing requires nurses across all specialties to renew their license every two to three years. A critical part of renewing your registered nurse license in Massachusetts is fulfilling competency requirements. The competency requirements for license renewal eligibility can involve completing a specified number of practice hours and contact hours through nursing continuing education courses.
Each state’s nursing board defines the renewal period and competency requirements. To renew your registered nurse license in Massachusetts, you must understand the board’s requirements.
Fast CE For Less has created this guide to help you understand how to renew your registered nurse license in Massachusetts. By learning how to renew your license, you can streamline your license renewal experience when the time comes.
How to Renew Your Registered Nurse License in Massachusetts
Nursing boards throughout the country issue licenses that expire after two to three years. Each state’s board sets its own license renewal period duration and competency requirements.
To continue working as a registered nurse, you must complete your renewal application before the license lapses. This section of the guide will explain the steps for renewal.
Step 1: Identify Your Application Deadline for License Renewal
In Massachusetts, registered nurse licenses expire every two years. However, the renewal period can be slightly longer or shorter for individual license holders when they receive their first license. The discrepancy is due to renewal periods being tied to individual license holders’ birthdays.
For registered nurses, licenses in Massachusetts expire on the date of your birth in every even-numbered year. You can renew your license by applying for it online or filling out a paper application and mailing it to the board. For each license holder, renewal applications open 90 days prior to their birthday. The time period allows you plenty of time to fulfill your nursing continuing education requirements before completing your application by the deadline.
Step 2: Complete Your Nursing Continuing Education Requirements
As part of the license renewal process, the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing requires registered nurses to complete at least 15 contact hours of nursing continuing education courses within the renewal period. You must ensure that you complete continuing education courses approved by the state’s nursing board. That said, you must also do one contact hour on Chapter 260 requirements on Domestic Violence but through the Massachusetts Board.
While the board does not require submitting proof of completing your competency requirements, you must hold onto any documentation, at least for the entire renewal period. This way, you will have the documents readily available if the board conducts an audit and requests them.
Step 3: Complete and File Your Application for Registered Nurse License Renewal in Massachusetts
You can renew your registered nurse license in Massachusetts online or through mail. If you want to renew it online, you should visit the board’s license renewal portal here.
When renewing your license for the first time, you must register with the board’s online portal. After completing registration, you can enter your login credentials to gain access. Once you log into your account, follow the prompts and provide all requested information in the online license renewal application.
If you want to renew your application through mail, you can request the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing to email you the form. You can contact the board at renew.bymail@state.ma.us. When you receive the application, fill it out and mail your completed application along with the renewal fee to the board at:
Mass Department of Public Health
Division of Health Professions Licensure
Post Office Bo 414394
Boston, MA 02241-4394
Understand Competency Requirements for Your First Registered License Renewal
To maintain the highest standards of care delivery, the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing requires nurses across all specialties to renew their credentials. As a registered nurse, it means completing 15 contact hours of continuing education within the two-year license renewal period. When taking nursing continuing education courses, you must remember that you must complete at least an hour on Chapter 260 requirements on Domestic Violence through the Massachusetts Board. For more details on fulfilling nursing continuing education requirements in the state, visit www.fastceforless.com/nursing-ce-massachusetts.
For initial license renewals, the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing does not require completing continuing education courses. When filling out the application, you can omit the section on continuing education requirements. That said, you must know where to find state board-approved continuing education courses for every renewal period afterward.
Online nursing CEUs like those by Fast CE For Less are available at www.fastceforless.com. While you will still need to complete an hour on Chapter 260 requirements on Domestic Violence through the Massachusetts Board, you can find convenient and affordable course bundles for the rest of your competency requirements at Fast CE For Less.
