Nursing licenses across the Washington–Idaho line
As checked Oct 25, 2026: Washington and Idaho are both Nurse Licensure Compact states, so an RN or LPN with a multistate license from their home state can work on either side of the line, in Spokane or Coeur d'Alene, Pullman or Moscow, Clarkston or Lewiston. Here's each case, as the boards of nursing put it.
211 RN jobs in Spokane & eastern Washington105 RN jobs in Coeur d'Alene & North Idaho23 LPN jobs in Spokane & eastern Washington21 LPN jobs in Coeur d'Alene & North Idaho
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I live in Idaho. Can I work in Washington?
Yes, with your Idaho multistate license: Washington has accepted other compact states' multistate licenses since July 24, 2023, so you don't need a Washington license.
Tell your employer you hold a multistate license. If it's what Washington's board calls a mandatory employer, you'll also complete suicide prevention training, and the board's multistate license survey when you're hired and every year after.
You follow Washington's Nurse Practice Act when you care for patients in Washington, and you keep only your home state's continuing education requirements.
Washington State Board of Nursing: RN and LPN multistate licenses ↗ · Washington State Board of Nursing: the Nurse Licensure Compact ↗
I live in Washington. Can I work in Idaho?
Yes, with a Washington multistate license, which the Washington board has issued since January 31, 2024.
If your Washington license is single-state, you can upgrade it: the conversion fee is $65 (your annual renewal is still due), it takes an FBI background check, and the review may take 2 to 3 weeks. Your license number doesn't change.
Or apply to Idaho for a license by endorsement: $102, fingerprints included.
Washington State Board of Nursing: RN and LPN multistate licenses ↗ · Idaho Board of Nursing (Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses): questions and fees ↗
I'm moving my home across the line.
Apply for a license in your new home state within 60 days of moving: your multistate license comes from the state you legally live in (your driver's license, voter registration and federal taxes).
You can keep working on your old state's multistate license while the new one is processed.
NCSBN, the Nurse Licensure Compact: the 60-day rule ↗ · Washington State Board of Nursing: the Nurse Licensure Compact ↗ · Washington State Board of Nursing: RN and LPN multistate licenses ↗
I'm a nurse practitioner (APRN or ARNP).
The compact covers RN and LPN licenses only: you need each state's own advanced practice license.
In Washington, an ARNP license can rest on an active multistate RN license from another state.
Washington State Board of Nursing: RN and LPN multistate licenses ↗ · Washington State Board of Nursing: the Nurse Licensure Compact ↗
The compact on each side
| State | Multistate licenses |
|---|---|
| Washington | Accepts other states' multistate licenses since July 24, 2023; issues its own since January 31, 2024 |
| Idaho | A compact state: NCSBN lists its implementation as January 19, 2018 |
NCSBN: the compact's map and implementation dates ↗ · Washington State Board of Nursing: RN and LPN multistate licenses ↗
Nursing assistants and home care aides
The compact is for RNs and LPNs only: each state certifies its own nursing assistants. Moving an Idaho CNA to Washington, step by step, and the other way. Idaho's registry is run by Health and Welfare ↗. Washington's Home Care Aide credential: how training works on each side of the line.
Read from each source on Oct 25, 2026 and checked again each month. Fees and steps change: the board's own page is the final word. Inland Care Jobs isn't affiliated with either board.