CNA Certification in Arizona

A career as a certified nursing assistant is one in which you will assist patients with activities of daily living.  Nursing assistants work under the direction of nurses and provide basic care (primarily non-medical) to patients in a variety of settings.

CNA Training Requirements in Arizona

You will need to complete at least 120 hours of training for nursing assistant certification in Arizona.  The training will include classroom time as well as clinical experience.  It is necessary to complete a course that is fully accredited for CNAs in the state of Arizona.  Otherwise, you will not be able to sit for the necessary certification exam.

CNA Certification Through Reciprocity in Arizona

It is sometimes possible to become a certified nursing assistant in Arizona through reciprocity.  If you are a certified nursing assistant in an other state and are moving to Arizona, you can apply for reciprocity through the Nursing Aide Registry in Arizona.  You will need to provide verification that you have an active nursing assistant certification in your prior state.  It will also be necessary to verify that you completed a state approved certification program and passed the certification test.

If your credentials are accepted from the other state, you will be able to work as a nursing assistant in Arizona.  It will not be necessary to complete a training program in Arizona or to retake the certification exam if your application for reciprocity is accepted.

The process to transfer your CNA license to Arizona is as follows:

  1. Download the form from http://www.azbn.gov/documents/applications/App%20Packet%20Downloads/CNA%20Exam%20Endorsement%20Pkt%202009.pdf
  2. Complete page 4 of the form and send it to your CURRENT state nursing board/CNA Registry.
  3. Complete pages 12-16 and mail it to the Arizona state board of nursing.
  4. Attach $50 as non refundable payment for your application for endorsement.
  5. Attach proof of completing a 120 hour CNA training program in your state (attach your certificate). If the training program that you did was for less than 120 hours then you will need to also attach proof of working as a CNA for at least 160 hours in the last 2 years.
  6. Once you’ve completed the form, send it to the following address:

ARIZONA STATE BOARD OF NURSING
4747 N 7TH STREET, SUITE 200
PHOENIX, AZ 85014-3655

CNA Certification Renewal in Arizona

You will notice that your nursing assistant certification has an expiration date.  In the year when your certification is set to expire, you will receive a recertification form from the Nurse Aide Registry about 2 or 3 months before it will expire.  If for any reason you do not receive your recertification form, you can obtain one through the Nursing Aide Registry website.

Complete the recertification form and send it to the address listed on the forum.  You will also need to submit documentation of citizenship with your recertification forms. It will be necessary to have worked 160 hours in a two year period for pay as a nursing assistant if you want to be eligible to renew your certification.  You also cannot have had any felony convictions.

When you work as a certified nursing assistant, you will need to complete some continuing education credits each year.  If you ever have any questions about your certification, you can contact the Nursing Aide Registry in Arizona.

You can download the renewal form here: http://www.azbn.gov/documents/applications/App%20Packet%20Downloads/CNA%20Renewal%20Pkt%202009.pdf

You will find these useful: Free CNA classes in Arizona and CNA training in Arizona

9 Responses to CNA Certification in Arizona

  1. lisa June 23, 2011 at 2:18 am #

    Hello,

    My name is Lisa Robles and on January 08 i took the CNA exam in Phoenix Arizona and i checked on line to see if i had passes the exam and i did. A couple weeks later i got a letter saying that i needed to provide my birth certificate and i failed to do it before the time they gave me. Now i was wondering what i had to do in order to get my certificate or if i can still get it. I would greatly appreciate it if you would help me out.Thank you for your time,i hope to hear from you soon. you can email me back.

    Lisa Robles

    • Admin June 23, 2011 at 9:55 pm #

      I’m not sure about this since its something I’ve never encountered. Your best bet is to email the Arizona Board of Nursing and see what they make of it. The email from the nursing board website is arizona@azbn.gov or you can visit http://www.azbn.gov/Contact.aspx to get their address and phone number.

  2. Benji March 7, 2012 at 10:41 pm #

    So i completed my CNA class on July 2, 2009 and took my written and skills test on july 21, 2010. I passed my written test but failed the skills. is it to late to retake my skills test now and if so does that mean i have to retake the CNA class?

    • Admin March 17, 2012 at 5:54 pm #

      Yes, you will need to retake the training again to be eligible for the test.

  3. Edelmira June 22, 2012 at 6:44 pm #

    My certification expires the end of this month. Therefore, I have been trying to find out how to go about renewal. I see a main requirement is 160 hours of work and unfortunately, i never was able to put in any work with my license. I had my baby shortly after certification and choose to stay home with him until he was older. However, now I would like to possibly continue my cna career but I’m confused on how to go about doing so. Do I have to retake the entire course again since I have no work hours? Or retake the exam? Or what exactly do I do in my situation?

  4. Jennifer July 11, 2012 at 2:42 am #

    Hi. I was licensed and worked in AZ, then transferred my license to Colorado about 4 months ago. Now I am coming back to AZ and want to know what I need to do to transfer my license back and will I have a grace period in which I can work while my license is being transferred?

  5. eigogo August 15, 2012 at 11:58 pm #

    hi,
    i have a question regarding expired cna. I just came back from a long visit from the islands, when i came back to the AZ State i found that my cna certificate is expired and too late to renew it, for it as been more then 2 yrs since last i worked as a cna… Is there any way i could renew it? Do i have to retake classes and clinicals??? Your help would be really appreciated. thank you

  6. Audrey March 27, 2013 at 6:32 pm #

    I am trying to reciprocate my CNA license from Florida to Arizona, but I do not know how to transfer my license. The link on this page that says to download is no longer available.

    Please help

    Thanks you

  7. Angela Finney May 16, 2013 at 1:33 am #

    Hi
    I got my CNA cerificate in Feb of 2009 from Advanced Nursing in South Carolina. From July 2009 to Dec 2010 I worked in a long term care facility and got my licensed renewed. Jan 2011 I went into the military and have been on active orders up until now and have just returned from deployment therefore my license has expired and I have not been able to work as a CNA. My goal is to move to Arizona and work as a CNA while going back to school is there any way of renewing my license without retaking the entire course over.

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