Apply License | Interstate Medical Licensure Compact

Do You Qualify for the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact?

Before you begin an application to receive licensing via the Compact, you must prequalify yourself. Please follow the three steps below:

STEP 1: COMPACT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

All of the following must be in place before you can apply:

*You must hold a full, unrestricted medical license in a compact-member state that is available to serve as your State of Principal Licensure. Please see our map of Compact Member States.

In addition, at least one of the conditions below regarding your State of Principal Licensure (SPL) must apply:

Your primary residence is in the SPL
At least 25% of your practice of medicine occurs in the SPL
Your employer is located in the SPL
You use the SPL as your state of residence for U.S. federal income tax purposes

You must maintain your SPL status at all times. You may change the location of your SPL – through a process known as “redesignation” – after receiving your Compact Letter of Qualification. To learn more about our rules regarding State of Principal Licensure, visit Information for Physicians.

*Additionally, you must:

Have graduated from an accredited medical school, or a school listed in the International Medical Education Directory or its equivalent such as the World Directory of Medical Schools.
Have successfully completed ACGME- or AOA-accredited graduate medical education (GME).
Have passed each component of the USMLE, COMLEX-USA, or equivalent predecessor exam accepted by the state medical board (such as the FLEX or NBME) in no more than three attempts for each component. PLEASE NOTE: Passing the Canadian Licentiate of the Medical Council of Canada, or the LMCC, DOES NOT meet this requirement.
Hold a current specialty certification or time-unlimited certification by an ABMS or AOABOS board.
Not have any history of disciplinary actions toward your medical license.
Not have any criminal history.
Not have any history of controlled substance actions toward your license.
Not currently be under investigation.
A background check is required for all Letter of Qualification applications; however, fingerprint requirements vary from state to state. If required, the fingerprinting information will be sent to you by your State of Principal Licensure, and not the IMLCC.
Please check with your State of Principal Licensure if you have any questions.

****If you completed your GME outside of the United States, please verify that your program is ACGME or AOA accredited before proceeding.****

Do you meet all of these eligibility requirements? If so, proceed to Step 2.

STEP 2: COMPACT RULES AND DEFINITIONS

Please be advised that each physician is responsible for making a self-determination of eligibility prior to applying for licensure via the Compact, as well as a full understanding of the Compact rules. To complete Step 2, please read the Compact Rules and Definitions.

Have you read the Compact Rules and Definitions? If so, please proceed to Step 3.

STEP 3: APPLICATION FOR LICENSURE

Before starting the application process, below, please remember that you will NOT be receiving a single license to practice in multiple states. This application process will result in your being issued separate licenses by each state in which you would like to practice. Each license is granted by, and comes from, the individual state – not the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact itself.

License expiration dates are based on each member state's individual licensing policies.

Note - Letters of Qualification are only valid for 365 days from the date of issuance.

Military Discounts and Waivers

The IMLCC does not offer discounts or waivers of licensing fees for military personnel or their families.

Military discounts or waivers may be offered through the individual state medical boards, and if a compact member state grants a waiver, they will authorize the IMLCC to return the appropriate portion of the license or renewal fee paid.

If you have any questions regarding state discounts or waivers, please contact the individual medical boards directly.

CAUTION - If you have previously held a license in a state and that license has lapsed or expired, contact the state licensing board before proceeding. You may be required to go through that state licensing board's reinstatement process instead of applying through the IMLCC.

Please be advised that this is a non-refundable application process. The application fee is $700. (You will also be required later – if you qualify for licensure through the Compact – to pay the licensing fee of each state in which you would like to practice. Visit our list of state fees to learn more about these costs.)

After issuing your license, a state medical board participating in the Compact may ask you for additional, ancillary information to fulfill the particular requirements of its state medical practice act and licensing operations. As a license holder, you will be required to comply with these requests, and failure to do so may result in action against your license by the issuing state medical board. It is recommended that you contact the member board from whom you wish to obtain a license for a list of the ancillary information, and submission deadlines, that will be required from you after the license has been issued and prior to using that license to practice medicine in that state.

Click here for a list of items that you will need to have available to complete the application.

The IMLCC has prepared educational videos that walk through the application process, the selection of states process, and the creating a secure portal account process. It is recommended that you watch these videos prior to starting your application.

On the next screen, first click on the "Register" tab, enter your:

Email
Create a Username
Create a Password

Once you have registered your account, you will be taken to the application.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation. You may now begin the Compact licensure process by clicking on the “START THE INITIAL LICENSE APPLICATION” button below.

START THE INITIAL LICENSE APPLICATION

Apply | New to the Compact - Start Here

IMLCC.org

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