An immigration lawyer will be a waste of money. NCSBN and in your case PA Board of Nursing can answer all your questions. Does your husband's visa allow you to work? Will you be able to invest funds and time into this adventure?

 

Thanks for your info and reply. Just curious as to why a lawyer would appear as a waste? We aren’t married and plan to travel on separate visas in case one of us wanted to return home. We’ve looked into all that and it’s definitely possible. It’s if my qualifications are transferable that I’m most concerned about

 

No, your qualifications are not transferrable as they are. Do you expect to get a visa a nuse?

 

Do you have any idea how to go about attaining further training to get to the same level as a US RN or is there an alternative? I’ve seen agencies help a lot of UK nurses in this but unfortunately that doesn’t suit since I cant be flexible in location.
I’m hoping so, tbh I haven’t looked fully into VISAs as not much point if I don’t meet the entry requirements for an RN firstly. I wouldn’t want to come over to the US not in my profession as feel that’s such a waste on my part.

 

An immigration lawyer won't help much with your nursing qualifications. In the US those sorts of things are on a state-by-state basis - so the website for the state nursing association might be your best option. (At least find out which agency handles the registration of nurses in Pennsylvania.)

Going over on separate visas adds a certain element of risk, too, as each type of visa has its own requirements and one of you could find yourself instructed to return back home on short notice (when there were layoffs in a company I worked for, foreigners who were laid off due to budget cuts had 30 days to move out of the country - though this was quite a few years back). Even if each of you are able to get work visas, you need to think in terms of a "plan B" just in case one or the other should lose their job like that.

As far as nursing is concerned, here is the state licensing site for nurses. Home
You might be able to find something here about transfer of qualifications or any consideration for "foreign qualifications" in the licensing process.

 

An immigration lawyer won't help much with your nursing qualifications. In the US those sorts of things are on a state-by-state basis - so the website for the state nursing association might be your best option. (At least find out which agency handles the registration of nurses in Pennsylvania.)

Going over on separate visas adds a certain element of risk, too, as each type of visa has its own requirements and one of you could find yourself instructed to return back home on short notice (when there were layoffs in a company I worked for, foreigners who were laid off due to budget cuts had 30 days to move out of the country - though this was quite a few years back). Even if each of you are able to get work visas, you need to think in terms of a "plan B" just in case one or the other should lose their job like that.

As far as nursing is concerned, here is the state licensing site for nurses. Home
You might be able to find something here about transfer of qualifications or any consideration for "foreign qualifications" in the licensing process.

Thanks for your reply.
The Visa situation is definitely something we need to look into more, just thought it would be best the check if I actual meet the requirements to be an RN in the US first.
This is all just putting out the feelers firstly really, it’s just a bit of minefield for me I feel. I’ll check out that website for some more advice/info

 

I contacted the PA BON direct via phone - she advised getting a CES report initially then apply to the PA BON - she stated the report can take a while and they only keep applications open for 12 months. She said until CES report is generated and analysed by them it’s hard to say what further training will be needed but advised applicants can do additional training either in the US or UK - just so long as UK training meets board requirements. Just posting this in case anyone in a similar position is reading this as appreciate it’s a bit of a minefield and it’s not all doom and gloom - all appears very negative feedback for UK nurses wanted to travel to the US - not singling out this forum. Just showing folks it’s a possibility

 

Hi Scott , I’m in the same predicament. I’m a UK trained nurse trying to emigrate to the states. I know the CGFNS can evaluate transcripts but like yourself I lack some of the Peads/Pysch/Obs clinical hours so trying to find out where I can obtain those hours or If I have to start again from scratch. Very confusing

 

Thanks for sharing that about qualifying for a nurses license in the US. We get queries, but rarely does anyone come back with what they have found out. Then again, look at the issues involved with transferring nursing credentials across Europe - which usually includes language requirements. At least you're ahead of the curve on that one. <g>

 

The other thing to consider is that it is the employer who sponsors for a work visa.
So, does one get the qualifications first (money and time come to mind) and then apply for jobs, hoping someone will offer you a job ?
The only other nurse I remember on this forum, is one who moved over with her hubby on an L2 visa, got her qualifications, so was able to apply for nursing jobs - took about a year if I remember correctly.

 

The other thing to consider is that it is the employer who sponsors for a work visa.
So, does one get the qualifications first (money and time come to mind) and then apply for jobs, hoping someone will offer you a job ?
The only other nurse I remember on this forum, is one who moved over with her hubby on an L2 visa, got her qualifications, so was able to apply for nursing jobs - took about a year if I remember correctly.

Thanks for your input. I don’t really know what to do/where to start. Sure it will all come together eventually

 

So I thought I would add our journey to give hope to those who are going through or are about to go through this process. My wife is a UK trained Adult nurse, but her credentials were accepted by the NCBON. At the end of the day it comes down to how your transcript is compiled by your university and presented to the evaluation service as well as what placements you did. The BoN will dictacte if there is a hours requirement for each speciality, for the NCBON when we spoke to them prior to getting evaluated they stated there was no minimum only that hours were present in each speciality. However every BoN is different so email and probe get as much details as possible. This is the most important step. When it comes to getting your transcript evaluated every hour counts. We spent 2 days back and forth emailing the university nursing cohort admin assistant about how to fill in the hours, stipulate that if you did placements in any of the specialities even for a day/ half a day you want those hours included. If your placement covered those speciality patients you want hours included. If you had lectures and those specialities were partially covered you want the hours, that sort of detail will make the difference. Your university needs to do a bit digging to find all this but its worth it. The biggest challenges will be OBS/GYN and PEDs but depending on your uni you covered more than you think. At the end of the day the uni isn't gonna lie for you so just work on getting as much as you can then apply to the BoN and go from there. You also still need to pass the NCLEX For credential evaluators we did not use the CGFNS reviews are bad and they take a LONGGGG time. NCBON offers another evaluator who was cheaper and only took 5 days to evaluate. However again I was detailed in asking what is allowed to be included by the university to help direct the evaluation.

 

I would add to explore the possiblity to study something before to get a student VISA and then OPT/CPT for a work permit for at least one year. Then, it would be "easier" to get sponsored for a work VISA. I think nursing is a profession in a lot demand in the US, so it may be not difficult to find a way.

There are Professional Certificates in some universities at an affordable cost.

 

I am a newly qualified registered nurse in UK, and I want to relocate to USA. What’s the process

 

Nursing credentials are controlled at the state level in the US, so you would have to check the state board of nurses in the state (or states) where you would like to work.

Since so many Brits seem to fancy living in Florida, here's the Florida Board of Nursing website where you can check the requirements for foreign qualified nurses: Florida Board of Nursing - Licensing, Renewals & Information

 

Thought I would add my two cents here.
i emmigrated over 30 years ago - was a student nurse with a degree in Biochem, and was able to enrol in an accelerated nursing degree program - nursing credits only and was qualified in just over a year! But for you with a degree and experience, it would be an expensive route......... however, If the board of nursing needs your degree to show PEDs and OB/GYN......another thing you could try - enroll at a local community college in US. MUCH cheaper than a university, yet the nursing programs are often equal or better, than university courses, but they just dont havee all the extra non-nursing extras....and you get what is called an Associates degree. Some hospitals tried to only hire nurses with a bachelor degree- butt with the shortage, they were not able to mandate this so having an associates is finee- everyone has to pass the NCLEX though.
Anyway, if you have a base in PA, check out the local community college nursing program and speak to the Dean.

 

Thought I would add my two cents here.
i emmigrated over 30 years ago - was a student nurse with a degree in Biochem, and was able to enrol in an accelerated nursing degree program - nursing credits only and was qualified in just over a year! But for you with a degree and experience, it would be an expensive route......... however, If the board of nursing needs your degree to show PEDs and OB/GYN......another thing you could try - enroll at a local community college in US. MUCH cheaper than a university, yet the nursing programs are often equal or better, than university courses, but they just dont havee all the extra non-nursing extras....and you get what is called an Associates degree. Some hospitals tried to only hire nurses with a bachelor degree- butt with the shortage, they were not able to mandate this so having an associates is finee- everyone has to pass the NCLEX though.
Anyway, if you have a base in PA, check out the local community college nursing program and speak to the Dean.

Hi.
I emigrated to the US only a few months ago.
I used ERES to evaluate my transcript etc but my
university has written OBS and PEADS as 0 as clincial
hours so I know i’m not going to meet the criteria.
Can I take on just additional classes just to meet those hours then go back to school again just seems like a waste of time and money as these things are expensive.

 

Hey guys, just wondering if you got anywhere with this? Or if anyone else had any luck? I’m a pediactric trained nurse have been working in a NICU for the last 5 years and am wanting to move to live with my partner in California and I’m struggling with the hours etc. would appreciate any advice anyone has.

 

While you would still need to get licensed/qualified in California to work as a nurse, getting married to US partner will probably get you to California the quickest.

 

If you're looking to move to California, then you'll have to apply for licensing through the California Board of Registered Nurses. (And the same applies to any state in the US you move to.)

This is the information for California (forgive me if you already have this information, but I suspect there may be some lurkers who might be interested):

Applicants

www.rn.ca.gov

And again, for any lurkers out there, some information about the various nursing designations in the US (i.e. RN vs. LPN or LVN):

Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Guide | Salary & Programs 2025

LPNs and LVNs are a vital part of the healthcare system and can offer a quick, rewarding path to starting your nursing career.

nurse.org

 

If you're looking to move to California, then you'll have to apply for licensing through the California Board of Registered Nurses. (And the same applies to any state in the US you move to.)

This is the information for California (forgive me if you already have this information, but I suspect there may be some lurkers who might be interested):

Applicants

www.rn.ca.gov

And again, for any lurkers out there, some information about the various nursing designations in the US (i.e. RN vs. LPN or LVN):

Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) Guide | Salary & Programs 2025

LPNs and LVNs are a vital part of the healthcare system and can offer a quick, rewarding path to starting your nursing career.

nurse.org

I preferably would like to go ahead and be an RN there as that’s what I trained for so many years to do here but I do get that there is other means. I’ve been looking through California board of nursing and was wanting to apply directly with them for the licence to be able to sit the NCLEX however they want an ITIN number and that is proving to be difficult to qualify for one.

 

Following this post. My twin sister passed away unexpectedly 10 weeks ago. She lives in the US and has two young children. I am also UK adult trained and once I can get my brain going again after this tragic loss, I want to do everything I can to be out there working and supporting the children

 

Very sorry for your loss. However this event will not be relevant in you obtaining a visa to work as a nurse in the US.
You will still need to meet the criteria as mentioned above and get licensed in whatever state you are in.