Nebraska CNA Registry
Check any Nebraska certified nursing assistant on the Nebraska Nurse Aide Registry. The search is free, needs no account, and is the same record an employer sees. This page covers looking up a license, reading the status, keeping your certification active, and getting listed after your exam.
This is the state's own system, run by Nebraska DHHS. It is the same database an employer checks, and the only place a certification status is authoritative.
Four ways to use this page. Pick the one that matches your situation.
Nebraska Nurse Aide Registry
- Governing agency
- Nebraska DHHSNebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, Licensure Unit
- Lookup portal
- nebraska.gov
- Processing time
- 3 weeksbefore you appear on the registry
- Registry phone
- (402) 471-4322
- Renewal cycle
- 24 months qualifying work must be reported
How to Look Up a Nebraska CNA License
This section is the mechanics: where the search is, what to type into it, and how to read what comes back.
Nebraska keeps its nurse aide records at nebraska.gov. The search is public, so you can check your own record or a candidate's record without an account and without paying.
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Open the Nebraska registry search
Go to nebraska.gov and use the Individual Search panel. It is subtitled “Individual Search includes nurses, nurse aides, medication aides, physicians, dentists, etc.”. The search takes First Name, Last Name, License Number, License Status (leave it on ALL), Profession (choose Nursing Support), License Type (choose Nurse Aide), City, County and Zip Code, and a last name, a first name or the license number alone is enough to run it. No login, no account, no fee.
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Enter your details as the registry recorded them
Use the name from the time of testing, and fill in what the panel asks for. If it offers a license number box, the number is unique to one person and a name is not, but some panels take the number or a name, not both.
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Match the record to the person
Check every identifying detail the result shows, not just the name, before you treat a row as a match. A common surname can return more than one person, and the wrong record can look right at a glance.
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Read what the record says, not just that a name came back
Appearing on the registry is not the same as being current, so read what the record says about standing, whether that is a status, an expiry date, or both, then check it against the status table below. If a result links through to a fuller record, open it, because some registries keep the status there. The results table shows Name, Status, License Number and Expiration, which reads 0000-00-00 on nurse aide records, grouped under a heading for each license type such as Nurse Aide. Each name opens a Details page with the License Status, the Reason for License Status, the exam results and a Disciplinary/Non-Disciplinary Information table listing any finding, plus Generate Wallet Card and Generate certification buttons.
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Save a dated copy of the result
Print to PDF or screenshot the page showing the name, license number, what the record says about standing, and the date you checked. Employers and agencies usually want that record on file.
How to find your license number
Where a search takes the number, it narrows the result to one person in a way a name may not. If you have lost it, it is on any of these.
- Your certificate or wallet card, if your state issued one after the skills test
- The result page of the registry search itself, once you have found your record
- Your employer's personnel file, because facilities record it when they verify you at hire
- The registry, on (402) 471-4322, if none of the above works
What Each Nebraska CNA Registry Status Means
The status field is the part that decides whether someone can work. Wording varies by state, so read the exact term on the record rather than assuming what it means.
| Status | What it means | Can they work? |
|---|---|---|
| Active | Listed as able to work as a nurse aide: the aide has passed the exams or worked as a paid nurse aide within the last two years. Nebraska records carry no expiry date, so this word is the standing. | Yes |
| Lapsed | No passed exam or paid nurse aide work in the last two years, which the record gives as Last Job/Test Over 2 Yrs Old. The aide cannot work in a certified nursing facility until the record is reactivated, by passing both exams again or by an employment verification showing recent paid work. | No |
| Null and Void | The nurse aide registration has ended and no longer counts. State law voids it when the person is licensed as an RN or LPN, and the record gives the reason, such as RN/LPN license issued. | No |
| Ineligible | A finding of conviction, abuse, neglect or misappropriation is on the record, listed under Disciplinary/Non-Disciplinary Information. The person cannot work in a certified nursing home. | No |
| Pending | An application or testing is still in progress and no registration has been issued, so the record shows no date of issuance. Until it turns Active, a certified facility can use the person only as a nurse aide in training, within the federal four-month limit. | Conditional, confirm before the shift |
Why Your Nebraska CNA License Is Not Showing on the Registry
| Problem | What is happening | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Your name returns no results | The registry stores the legal name you used at the time of testing. Names match exactly unless you end one with an asterisk to widen it, and a surname of two letters and an asterisk on its own is refused as too vague. Lapsed records stay listed, some from the 1990s. If License Status is set to Active, lapsed and ineligible records are hidden, so leave it on ALL. | Search your maiden or pre-marriage name, and give the search less to match on rather than more. |
| You passed but you are not listed | Results have to reach the registry from your testing entity before you show as certified. | Allow at least 3 weeks, then call (402) 471-4322 with your test date and testing entity. |
| The record shows as expired but you have been working | Qualifying hours have to be reported before the record updates, and yours may not have been filed. | Check whether your employer filed the report. If not, file it yourself now, while the state still accepts it, then re-check the record. |
| Your employer does not know how to report your work | Either you or your employer can file, so this is usually a paperwork gap rather than an access problem. | File the report yourself rather than waiting for the facility, or ask the registry at DHHS.NursingSupport@nebraska.gov. |
| Details on your record are wrong | Name, address and registry data come from what was submitted to the registry, when your record was created or since. | Contact the registry on (402) 471-4322 or DHHS.NursingSupport@nebraska.gov with documentation of the correct details. |
How to Verify a CNA License in Nebraska
This section is what the result proves: what a record is evidence of, what to save as your copy of it, and what it means for you specifically. The search itself is the same for everyone.
Verifying your own license after finishing training
Look yourself up at nebraska.gov once your testing entity has filed your results. Allow at least 3 weeks before you treat a missing record as a problem. Save a dated copy of the record, because most employers ask for proof at offer stage rather than checking themselves.
Verifying your license after transferring from another state
A certification held in another state does not appear in Nebraska until reciprocity is processed. Until a Nebraska record exists, employers here cannot verify you, and your out-of-state record is the only proof you have. See transferring a license to Nebraska for the application route, then verify the new record the same way.
Verifying someone else's license (for employers)
Federal rules require a facility to check the registry before it lets someone work as a nurse aide. The record shows the certification status. It is not the whole check, because Nebraska records findings of abuse, neglect or misappropriation of property on a separate list, so a current certification does not on its own mean there is nothing against someone. The record only covers Nebraska, so if a candidate has worked elsewhere, search that state's registry too.
That separate list is the Nebraska Adult and Child Abuse and Neglect Central Registry. Check both before you rely on a result.
How to Renew Your Nebraska CNA License
Active standing in Nebraska continues on reported qualifying work, and either you or your employer can file that report. If the facility has not done it, you can file it yourself.
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Work in a qualifying role
The hours must be paid nursing or nursing-related duties inside the 24 months before your record lapses. Unpaid placements and volunteer shifts do not count. Which paid work counts? Paid work as a nurse aide for one of the employers the state approves: a nursing facility or skilled nursing facility, an intermediate care facility, a hospital, an assisted-living facility, a health clinic, an ambulatory surgical center, a licensed home health agency, a hospice, or a certified community-based developmental disabilities provider. Work under the Home and Community-Based Services Waiver does not count. If the work was in another state, ask the registry whether it counts before you rely on it, because states differ.
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Check your employer filed it, then file it yourself if not
Your employer files the report with the registry. You can file it yourself as well, and that is what the state expects if the facility has not.
Do not assume it was done. Check the record first, and file it yourself if nothing has changed. -
Check the record, and read the expiry date if it has one
Look yourself up at nebraska.gov once the report has been filed. Where the record carries an expiry date, a status of active on its own is not enough, because the previous period may still be running, and the expiry date is what tells you the new period has actually started.
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Fix a missing report before it lapses
If the hours were worked but never reported, that is correctable, and it is far easier to correct while the record is still active. Contact the registry on (402) 471-4322 or DHHS.NursingSupport@nebraska.gov and ask what they will accept as evidence of the work.
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Keep your own dated copy
Save a copy of the record showing your current status, and the new expiry date where the record has one. If a report is ever missed, that copy is what you give a new employer while the registry corrects it.
| Item | Nebraska |
|---|---|
| Active period | 24 months |
| Which paid work counts | Paid work as a nurse aide for one of the employers the state approves: a nursing facility or skilled nursing facility, an intermediate care facility, a hospital, an assisted-living facility, a health clinic, an ambulatory surgical center, a licensed home health agency, a hospice, or a certified community-based developmental disabilities provider. Work under the Home and Community-Based Services Waiver does not count. |
| What does not count | Volunteer shifts and unpaid clinical placements |
| Work in another state | Ask the registry before you rely on it. States differ on whether out-of-state hours count |
| Who reports it | You or your employer. Either report is accepted |
| Evidence of the hours | Your employer reports your hire on the Nurse Aide Registry Form and your last day on a termination form. An Employment Verification Form, which you or your employer can send, has to be signed by the employer in front of a notary. |
| Renewal fee | None |
| Filing deadline | None. Nebraska has no renewal form or fee. The record stays Active while you have worked as a paid nurse aide within 24 months of your last job, and turns Lapsed once your last reported job or passed exam is more than two years old. |
How to Reinstate a Lapsed Nebraska CNA License
If your active period runs out without the qualifying work reported, the record stops being active. What it takes to come back depends on which of these you are.
| Your situation | What you do | Retesting |
|---|---|---|
| You worked recently, but the hours were never reported | File the report for that work now, while the state still accepts it | Not while the state still accepts the renewal |
| No qualifying work for 24 months or more | Retake and pass both the written or oral exam and the skills exam with an approved college or provider, with no need to retrain. An aide first listed through a 30-hour course before 1989 has to take the 75-hour course instead, and so does anyone who fails either exam three times. | Yes, to work in a Medicare- or Medicaid-certified facility |
| You hold an active certification in another state | Apply through reciprocity. See our Nebraska reciprocity guide | Usually not |
| You are not working in a Medicare- or Medicaid-certified facility | The federal requirement does not reach you, but some states require certification or registration in other settings, and many employers still ask for an active certification | Not under federal rules |
How to Get on the Nebraska CNA Registry
In Nebraska you do not file a registry application yourself. You train, you test, and your testing entity sends the application and results to the registry.
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Meet the basic requirements
You must be at least 16. Training providers may set their own requirements on top of that.
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Complete an approved 75-hour course
Train with a provider approved in Nebraska. Our CNA program directory does not cover Nebraska yet, so start from the state's own approved-provider list.
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Pass the written and skills tests
A knowledge examination, which you may take written or orally, and a hands-on skills demonstration. Both must be passed. Federal rules say you can choose to take the knowledge test orally instead of in writing, but some states offer that only as an approved accommodation, so ask your testing entity how to request it if reading is difficult for you or English is not your first language.
If a facility has already hired you, both tests have to be passed within four months of your hire date. Our free CNA practice tests cover the same knowledge areas as the written test, and the free CNA skills course walks through the skills evaluation itself.
The state charges no application fee. Check what the exams cost and who collects the fee before you book. -
Let your testing entity file the results
The testing entity sends your application and results straight to the registry. There is nothing for you to submit.
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Check that you appear on the registry
Allow at least 3 weeks, then look yourself up at nebraska.gov before you contact the registry.
Nebraska CNA Registry Contact Information
- Phone
- (402) 471-4322
- DHHS.NursingSupport@nebraska.gov
- Mailing address
- DHHS Licensure Unit
Attn: Nurse Aide
PO Box 94986
Lincoln, NE 68509-4986
- License lookup
- nebraska.gov
- Registry information
- Nebraska DHHS Nurse Aide page
Nebraska CNA Requirements at a Glance
| Requirement | Nebraska |
|---|---|
| Registry name | Nebraska Nurse Aide Registry |
| Credential term used by the state | nurse aide |
| Governing agency | Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, Licensure Unit |
| Minimum age | 16 |
| Total training hours | 75 |
| Clinical hours | 16 |
| Exam | A knowledge examination, which you may take written or orally, and a hands-on skills demonstration. Both must be passed. |
| Testing deadline | Both tests within four months of hire |
| Application fee | Free |
| Processing time | 3 weeks |
| Renewal cycle | 24 months, worker or employer-reported hours |
Transferring a CNA License To or From Nebraska (Reciprocity)
Reciprocity is how an active certification held in one state becomes a certification in another. It usually avoids retesting, but only while your current certification is in good standing. A lapsed or flagged record cannot transfer.
The route in and out of Nebraska, the documents required and the current processing time are covered in the guide. The tool checks any two states against each other.
Nebraska CNA Training Programs
The steps above are the whole route onto the registry. The one thing that usually comes before them is an approved 75-hour program. The state itself charges no application fee, so training is the cost that matters.
Tell us where you are and we will match you with approved programs. Takes about a minute.
Find CNA programs near you✓ Free Service • ✓ No Obligations • ✓ Compare Multiple Programs • ✓ Accredited Schools Only
Our directory does not cover Nebraska yet, so the state's own approved-provider list is the place to start.
If you want to prepare before you enrol, our free CNA skills course covers the material the program and the skills test are built on.
Nebraska CNA Registry FAQ
Is the Nebraska CNA Registry free to search?
Why can I not find my name on the registry?
How long does Nebraska certification last?
Can I report my own work hours?
What happens if my status expires?
Can an employer see abuse or neglect findings?
Do I need to be on the registry to work in Nebraska?
Look Up a CNA License in Another State
Every state runs its own registry, and a certification is only verifiable in the state that issued it. Pick a state to see its portal, its status vocabulary and its renewal rules.