The government of Ontario is temporarily providing financial support to cover the costs associated with General and Temporary Class registration. Information on how to request reimbursement is available through Ontario Health (Health Force).

We have received your application for registration as a Registered Nurse (RN) in the General Class.

If you haven’t already, you will need to meet the following requirements to complete your registration:

  1. Nursing Education: CNO will accept nursing education recognized or approved in any jurisdiction if it meets the required credentials of a nursing baccalaureate for Registered Nurses (RNs) or a nursing diploma for Registered Practical Nurses (RPNs) as evidence of meeting the nursing education requirement. Learn more about the nursing education requirement.
  2. Transition to Practice (TTP): CNO will assess your information and if you do not meet this requirement, you may be required to successfully complete an approved Transition to Practice course. Learn more about the TTP requirement.
  3. Evidence of Practice: If you are not a recent nursing graduate (within the past three years), CNO will ask you to provide evidence of recent practice. Learn more about the evidence of practice requirement.
  4. Registration Examination: You must pass the NCLEX-RN. You will receive a message when you are eligible to register for the exam. Learn more about the NCLEX-RN.
  5. RN Jurisprudence Examination: You must successfully complete an online jurisprudence examination. Once you have submitted your online application and fee, you will receive information about how to access the secure testing site. Learn more about the jurisprudence examination.
  6. Evidence of Proficiency in English or French: You must be able to show proficiency in either English or French to practice nursing in Ontario. To meet this requirement for registration, CNO reviews your evidence to determine if you can read, write, listen and speak, in either English or French, at a level that allows you to practice nursing safely and competently. Learn more about evidence of language proficiency.
  7. Proof of your citizenship, residency status, or authorization to practise nursing in Ontario.
  8. Past Offences and Findings: Complete a form where you will be required to truthfully answer questions about past offences and findings. Learn more about completing a declaration about past offences and findings.
  9. Police Criminal Record Check: You will be required to provide a recent police criminal record check that will determine if more information is needed to assess suitability for registration. Learn more about police criminal record check.

To check the status of your application and to see a list of your requirements, login to Maintain Your Membership, select “View Open Applications” and select your RN application. Please allow 15 days for CNO to process your application before you receive your first status update.

A registration requirement will be marked as “outstanding” either because CNO has not received your information, or because CNO is still reviewing the information received. When sending your documents to CNO by email, please only send them once. Sending multiple copies of the same document to various recipients may cause delays in the processing of your application.

Throughout the application process, we will send you messages in the online portal’s message centre. Please check the portal periodically.

If you have previously written the NCLEX-RN examination please contact the regulatory body you were applying to at the time you wrote the NCLEX RN examination and have them send, directly to CNO, documentation confirming your result. This documentation will be reviewed to assess if you have met the examination requirement.

Practice in the Temporary Class

The Temporary Class is an option for applicants with an open General Class application. This option allows applicants to practice nursing, under specific terms, conditions and limitations, while completing the nursing education requirement to become eligible to write the registration exam or the transition to practice course.

To be eligible for Temporary Class, you must:

  • have completed a nursing education program approved in your jurisdiction
  • meet the Ontario requirements for registration in the General Class except for the education, transition to practice and the registration exam requirements
  • have an RN offer of employment from an approved Ontario nursing employer

Applicants who fail the RN registration exam two or more times are not eligible for registration in the Temporary Class.

Applicants who meet all registration requirements are no longer eligible to register or practice in the Temporary Class but can complete their registration in the General Class.

Make sure your contact information is up to date

If your mailing address, telephone number or email address has changed, please use the “update my personal information” feature in the online portal. However, if your name has changed, you must send a letter to CNO along with your official name-change document, such as a marriage certificate. In the letter, please indicate how you would like your new name to appear.

For more information, read the General Class registration guide for international applicants.