NMCN Licensing Exam for Nurses and Midwives in Nigeria

What the NMCN Qualifying Exam Covers

The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) runs the Final Professional Qualifying Examination for every nursing and midwifery graduate, whether you trained through a hospital-based school of nursing or a university BNSc program. The exam tests the core clinical and theoretical knowledge covered across your training and sits at the end of your program, after your school or faculty has cleared you as having met its own graduation requirements.

Without passing this exam, the NMCN will not register you as a nurse or midwife.

It is the single gate the council uses to confirm that every graduate, regardless of which institution trained them, meets the same minimum standard before they treat a patient without supervision.

Registering for the Exam

Your school or faculty submits you for the exam once you complete coursework and clinical hours. You then pay the applicable examination fee through the NMCN's designated payment channels before sitting the exam on the scheduled date.

Exam results come out through the NMCN and your training institution. A pass moves you straight to the registration step. A fail means resitting, though confirm the current resit process and any waiting period with your school directly, since NMCN procedures change from cycle to cycle.

After You Pass: Registration and Licence

Once you pass the qualifying exam, apply for registration and licensing through the NMCN online portal . This is where you submit your credentials, pay the registration fee, and receive your registration number and practising licence.

An exam pass alone does not let you work as a nurse or midwife without this step.

The registration number the NMCN issues follows you for your career. Employers, including public and private hospitals, check this number before hiring, and it confirms to the public and to regulators that you are a legitimately trained and licensed nurse or midwife.

Renewing Your Practising Licence

NMCN registration is not a one-time event. You renew your practising licence on a regular basis through the same NMCN portal, which keeps the council's register of active practitioners current and confirms you remain in good standing to practice.

Renewal typically requires updating your details, paying a renewal fee, and in some cases providing evidence of continuing practice.

Lapsed renewal affects your ability to work legally, so track your renewal date rather than waiting for a reminder.

What Happens If You Don't Register

Practising as a nurse or midwife in Nigeria without NMCN registration is illegal, regardless of how strong your training was.

Hospitals that knowingly employ unregistered nurses risk sanctions, and unregistered practitioners miss out on many of the protections and progression paths that come with formal registration, including postgraduate nursing study and government health service employment.

If you trained outside Nigeria and want to practice inside the country, or trained in Nigeria and let your registration lapse for years, check directly with the NMCN about the current process for reactivation or foreign credential assessment before assuming your old registration still stands.