PAs are eligible to reactivate their license if they have had a license in NC, the license has been placed on inactive status within the past calendar year, and the inactive status is not a result of disciplinary action.

To reactivate your PA license you must complete the reactivation online application (forwarding the Board Action Data Bank Inquiry Form to the Federation of State Medical Boards), pay the required fees and submit two completed fingerprint cards for a criminal background check along with the Authority for Release of Information form. We cannot send your fingerprint cards out without the Authority for Release of Information form.

Please provide your NCCPA CME summary log for the past two years, printed from the NCCPA Web site and bearing your name, along with your NCCPA certification scores verification letter.  If you are currently certified by NCCPA, you will be deemed in compliance with the requirement of PA Rule 21 NCAC 32S.0216 and will not be required to submit your CME.

The reactivation of your PA license must be completed within one year of the inactive date to avoid having to submit additional information. Your license will not be retroactive, but your license number will remain the same.

Upon completion of your application and receipt of your fee, you will receive notification. Please check your status online as the database is updated daily.

Request for fingerprint cards should be emailed to fpc@ncmedboard.org.

The NC Medical Board staff will request the NPDB/HIPDB reports on behalf of the applicant.  If staff is unable to obtain this information, the applicant’s online status will be updated to reflect this and the applicant will be expected to have this information forwarded to the NC Medical Board.

REGISTRATION - North Carolina law requires licensed physicians to register with the Board within 30 days of their birth date, ever year, no matter when the license is issued. A registration fee is required.

PAs are eligible to reinstate their license if the license has been inactive for more than one calendar year and/or the license has been inactive as a result of disciplinary action.

This outlines the appropriate requirements for reinstating a Physician Assistant license. The Board reserves the right to make whatever additional demands on the applicant for licensure the Board deems appropriate at the time. Below is a summary of what is listed in the rules of Chapter 32 of the North Carolina Administrative Code.

Submit all materials to:
North Carolina Medical Board, PO Box 20007, Raleigh, NC 27619 (919.326.1100), or
North Carolina Medical Board, 1203 Front Street, Raleigh, NC 27609

Please note: You must complete your application and have been issued a PA license to practice in North Carolina before you can complete the PA Intent to practice form to the right.

Please do not submit photocopies or facsimilies unless specifically permitted.

1. Complete on-line application form. If you have problems downloading any forms while completing the online application you may print them by clicking on download PA form in the list to the right.

2. An applicant must submit a recent photograph no smaller than 2 1/2” x 3 1/4”, head and shoulders shot, taken within the past sixty (60) days, of photo paper weight quality, (not a snapshot or home Polaroid). This photo should be certified by your physician assistant program on the Physician Assistant Program Certificate form. This certification must bear the original signature of the Dean or other official of your program. Their official title and the seal of the school must be placed over your photo. This requirement CAN NOT be waived.

3. Verification of NCCPA certification.

4. Applicant must secure a report from each state regarding status of physician assistant licenses now active AND all licenses held previously. Most states charge a fee for this service and some organizations will not return the information to you. If you do not receive the requested information you should contact the respective state board to check the status of your request.

5. Three current, original, dated reference forms of recommendation. Reference forms must include the original signature, date and contact information for the person completing the reference form. Reference forms must be dated within one year of the received date of the application at NCMB.

1. Reference forms must be original with an original signature of the person completing the reference form, addressed to the NC Medical Board (not “To whom it may concern”).
2. At least one reference form must be from a physician with whom you have worked or trained regarding your competence to practice as a PA. Two reference forms must be completed by peers (coworker, professor, preceptor, physician) and must be someone with whom you have worked or trained. References must be able to evaluate your academic competence, clinical skills and character as a physician assistant.
3. References cannot be from relatives or fellow students.
4. The envelopes should be signed across the seal by the person writing the endorsement and then returned directly to the NCMB. You should neither open the envelopes nor break the seals.

6. If it has been more than six months since you received your PA degree, you must request a Board Action Data Bank Inquiry from the Federation of State Medical Boards of the US.

7. Applicants must submit two completed fingerprint cards with the authority for release of information form for the purpose of conducting a criminal background check. Expect a minimum of eight weeks for the report to be received. Since rejections are common, the SBI has suggested that applicants use lotion or witch hazel on their hands before being fingerprinted. Fingerprint cards are submitted for processing twice a week. The SBI has suggested that using live scan when available may be a more reliable choice. When possible have different officials complete each card. We cannot send your fingerprints out without the authority for release of information form. Request fingerpint cards at:  fnp@ncmedboard.org. Request for fingerprint cards should be emailed to fpc@ncmedboard.org.

8. Continuing Medical Education. If you graduated from a PA Program more than two years ago, you must submit documentation of at least 100 hours of CME earned in the last two years. If you have just graduated or it has been less than two years since your date of graduation, you are not required to submit any CME. It is preferred that you use the NCCPA CME summary log printed from their Web site bearing your name.  If you are currently certified by NCCPA, you will be deemed in compliance with the requirement of PA Rule 21 NCAC 32S.0216 and will not be required to submit your CME.   

9. The NC Medical Board staff will request the NPDB/HIPDB reports on behalf of the applicant.  If staff is unable to obtain this information, the applicant’s online status will be updated to reflect this and the applicant will be expected to have this information forwarded to the NC Medical Board.

REGISTRATION - North Carolina law requires licensed physicians to register with the Board within 30 days of their birth date, ever year, no matter when the license is issued. A registration fee is required.