Transfer a Veterinary License to New Jersey

Verified July 2026 · 20 official sources

They honor your license, with homework

New Jersey has to issue the license by reciprocity if you've practiced 2 of the last 5 years. The catch is paperwork: fingerprints, verifications from every state you've ever held a license in, and a few extras for people who live out of state. The upside is real telemedicine rules once you're licensed.

First year: $455-$580Renewal: $250 / 2 yrsWait: background check gates itWork while waiting: 90-day fill-in permit onlyTravel required: None (print cards by mail)

What carries over to New Jersey, and what does not

Comes with you

Your exam score (NAVLE or the older equivalents)
Your degree and transcript
Your practice history (2 of the last 5 years)

New for this state

FBI + State Police fingerprints
Free online law orientation
Verifications from every past state
An NJ agent if you live out of state

Working in New Jersey without a New Jersey license

To advise another vet Free, and unusually generous: New Jersey's exemption even covers remote consultations with the treating NJ vet.

For visits or one-time work New Jersey has the best visiting option of any state here: a 90-day fill-in permit that lets you take over an NJ vet's practice while they're away, renewable, for a board-set fee.

For remote care NJ license required first. Once you have it, video visits are fully legal and you can even establish the vet-client relationship remotely.

Your send-off checklist

YOUFile the application online. Paper isn't accepted. $150 NJ license portal

YOUFollow the fingerprint instructions the board sends. Out of state? Cards come by mail, you get printed at your local police station, and mail them back. Slowest step, so start it first. vendor fee

YOUOrder your exam score transfer. $105 AAVSB VAULT

STATE BOARDSEvery state where you've ever been licensed sends good-standing documentation directly to the board. (From Pennsylvania: PALS, $15.) PALS portal

YOUR SCHOOLAsk your registrar to send your official transcript directly to the board.

YOUTake the free online Jurisprudence Orientation in one sitting. Use a desktop. Free Jurisprudence Orientation

YOUNo NJ office? Designate a New Jersey agent for service of process.

YOUAfter approval, pay the license fee in the portal. $125-$250

Where documents go. Mail: P.O. Box 45020, Newark, NJ 07101. Supporting documents by email: VeterinaryMed@dca.njoag.gov.

The money

Application	$150
License fee (cycle-dependent)	$125-$250
Fingerprinting (vendor fee, confirming)	~$60
Score transfer (VAULT)	$105
VER
TOTAL First year, typical	$455-$580
Then: renewal every 2 years	$250

Watch out in New Jersey

The board's own PDFs still show the old $75 application fee. It has been $150 since 2020. Budget to the rule, not the brochure.
Every NJ license expires June 30 of odd years, no matter when it was issued.

After you are licensed

$250 every 2 years, with 20 CE hours per cycle including 1 hour on opioids.
Telemedicine is allowed, and you can establish the vet-client relationship remotely.
A 90-day fill-in permit lets an out-of-state vet cover an NJ practice while the owner is away.

Official links for New Jersey

Board. NJ State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners · Portal. newjersey.mylicense.com · Phone. (973) 504-6500

Keep going

The veterinary planner, which builds a plan across several states at once.
What transfers when you move a veterinary license, covering NAVLE, VAULT and DEA.
All three professions we cover.

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