CNA Certification in Illinois

Nursing Assistant Questions and Answers

In 2006 I got my Illinois CNA certification, yet I have yet to be employed as a nursing assistant. How long does my certification last?
Unlike other states, the state of Illinois does not issue actual CNA certificates to those who complete nurse aide training programs. Once you complete the training and pass the competency evaluation, the Illinois Nurse Aide Registry lists you as having active status as a certified nursing assistant. To keep the active status and your credentials, you must work for pay as a nursing assistant. If you have not worked in the field for more than two years, then you lose your certified nurse aide status. In your particular situation there have been almost three years since you passed the competency evaluation and have not worked for pay as a certified nurse aide and therefore your CNA certification is not currently valid. The only way to re-certify is to re-challenge and pass the Illinois state exam. Good luck!

I was told by my CNA instructor that certification reciprocity for Tennessee should automatically cover for Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Louisiana, and Texas. Is this true or do I have to fill out the form and re-register in the appropriate state?
An updated version of this answer is available.
As far as I know, there is no automatic transfer of your CNA certification to or out of the state of Tennessee. The Verification of Out-Of-State Nurse Aide Registration application must be completed by every individual requesting transfer of their CNA certification to Tennessee. The application has two parts. Part one must be completed by you, while part two must be completed by the nurse aide registry in your current state. Certified nursing assistants from California, Colorado, Illinois, and Missouri are required to complete part one but do not have to send their applications to their state's registries for completion of part two. Therefore if you are active on the nurse aide registry of California, Colorado, Illinois, or Missouri, complete part one of the application, include a copy of your social security and photo identification card, and return the application to the Tennessee CNA registry for processing. If you are a CNA in any other state and wish to transfer your certification to Tennessee, then both parts of the application must be completed prior to sending the documents for processing. Tennessee accepts reciprocity from all States except Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois and North Carolina. If you live in Alabama, Georgia or Illinois you must provide verification of your status and apply to challenge the test. Certified nursing assistants from Florida or North Carolina must retrain and take the test in Tennessee in order to become certified as a CNA in this State. You may call the Tennessee Nurse Aide Registry to verify the above information.

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