Illinois Nursing License Renewal

24 months

Illinois registered professional nurse licences all expire on the same date: May 31 of each even-numbered year. Licensed practical nurse licences expire on January 31 of each odd-numbered year. The renewal window is the month before expiry, so an RN renews during May of an even year. This is a fixed statewide date, not one tied to your birthday or the date you were licensed.

20 hours

Illinois calculates the renewal fee at $40 per year, so a two-year registered professional nurse renewal is $80. Practical nurse and advanced practice registered nurse renewals use the same $40 per year rate. Restoring a licence from anything other than inactive status costs $50 plus all lapsed renewal fees, capped at $250.

An Illinois licence that is not renewed expires and no longer authorises practice; practising on a lapsed licence counts as practising without a licence and is itself grounds for discipline. A licence expired for five years or less is restored by completing the Division's forms, paying the fees in Section 1300.30 and completing the continuing education requirement. Restoration also requires fingerprint processing verification from the Illinois State Police. The restoration fee is $50 plus all lapsed renewal fees, capped at $250.

Renew during the month before your licence expires, which is May for a registered nurse in an even-numbered year, by paying the fee set in Section 1300.30. Complete 20 hours of approved continuing education during the renewal period before you apply; the Division may ask you to evidence it. Renewal is filed with the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, and the Department asks for two to four business days after payment before the new status appears in License Lookup.