Ontario
Quick facts for internationally educated nurses. Pick your designation below. For the full step-by-step guide, start with Before You Apply.
Registered Nurse (RN)
Do you need NNAS?
No NNAS
Application cost
$433 + tax
Application
Yearly license cost
$368 / year
First year $69, then $368 every year after
Do you need NNAS here?
Key fact
No, not anymore. As of April 2025, Ontario asks for an assessment of your degree from a CNO-approved service instead.
Who licenses nurses here
One office — the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) — handles RN and RPN licensing. In Ontario, “RPN” means Registered Practical Nurse (what other provinces call an LPN), not a psychiatric nurse.
English test accepted
CELBAN, IELTS Academic, IELTS General, PTE Core, or CELPIP.
- CELBAN: Listening 9, Writing 7, Reading 8, Speaking 8
- IELTS Academic: Listening 7.0, Writing 6.5, Reading 6.5, Speaking 7.0, Overall 7.0
Criminal record check
Every province requires a criminal record check as part of your application to them, not to NNAS. It's checked at the provincial regulator stage, after your NNAS step.
Heads up
It has to be dated within 6 months of your application, so timing matters. If you're applying from outside Canada, you generally need a separate check for every country you've lived in — not just your current one — which is easy to miss and can add real time if you don't plan for it. If your check comes back in a language other than English, you'll need an official certified translation.
Good to know
Accepted sources typically include your local police service, the RCMP, or an approved Canadian background screening company.
Good to know
Once CNO receives your criminal record check results, it takes up to 5 business days for them to determine whether you have a record on file.
Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN)
In Ontario, the practical-nurse designation is Registered Practical Nurse (RPN), regulated by the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) — the same college as RN, and different from a Registered Psychiatric Nurse.
Needs verification
This research covered LPN pathways in the other eight provinces, but did not capture separate practical-nurse (RPN) IEN fees for Ontario. Confirm the current application and registration fees on CNO's own site.
Registered Psychiatric Nurse (RPN)
In Ontario, “RPN” means Registered Practical Nurse — the practical-nurse designation shown under the LPN tab, regulated by CNO — not Registered Psychiatric Nurse. Psychiatric nursing isn't separately regulated in Ontario; RPN as a distinct profession exists only in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan.
Good to know
Your employer may pay this back. Once you're licensed and working, many Canadian employers reimburse your annual license renewal fee, either fully or in part. This is common in unionized health authority positions and is often written into the collective agreement, but it's rarely advertised, so a lot of nurses never claim it.
Two places to ask: your employer's HR or benefits department, and your union representative. If you're unionized, check your collective agreement directly — look for professional fees, licensing, or professional development.
Worth doing early. Some employers require you to submit the claim within a set window after you pay, so knowing the process before your next renewal is better than finding out after.