Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) License Requirements in Alabama
- Training hours
- —
- Upfront cost
- $135
- Exam
- Written (or Oral) Examination, Skills Evaluation
- Renewal cycle
- Every 2 years
- Issuing board
- Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) — Nurse Aide Registry
How to get licensed
- 1
Meet the prerequisites
Meet the eligibility requirements set by the issuing board. No official Alabama source (ADPH page or Credentia handbook) states a minimum age for nurse aide training/certification, so left null rather than guessed. On background checks: the official Credentia Alabama candidate handbook and eligibility-criteria page list no criminal background check as part of the NNAAP testing/certification process itself, and a 2025 HHS Office of Inspector General report identified Alabama as one of a small number of states that does not mandate a state-level criminal background check for nursing home employees. Individual nursing facilities commonly run their own background checks as a hiring practice, but this is not an ADPH Nurse Aide Registry certification requirement. [1]
- 2
Complete approved training
Complete training at a state-approved program. Alabama requires completion of an ADPH-approved nurse aide training program (or equivalent LPN/RN fundamentals coursework) before testing; Alabama does NOT approve any online CNA programs. The exact required clock-hour minimum could not be independently verified against a primary Alabama source: ADPH's own Nurse Aide Registry subsystem (dph1.adph.state.al.us) refused connections during research and has no Wayback Machine snapshot, and neither the Alabama Administrative Code Chapter 420-5-10 (Nursing Facilities, rules .01-.04 reviewed) nor the Credentia candidate handbook/eligibility page states a specific hour count. Multiple non-official aggregator sources independently cite 75 hours (the federal OBRA/42 CFR 483.152 floor), but per the source rules this is left null rather than carried over unverified. [1]
- 3
Written (or Oral) Examination
Pass the Written (or Oral) Examination (fee: $55). Written: 70 multiple-choice questions in English, 2 hours. Oral alternative: 60 multiple-choice questions read aloud (English or Spanish) plus 10 word-matching reading-comprehension questions. Part of the National Nurse Aide Assessment Program (NNAAP). Candidates employed by (or with a signed offer from) a Medicaid/Medicare-certified nursing home are prohibited from paying this fee themselves — the employer must cover it. [2]
- 4
Skills Evaluation
Pass the Skills Evaluation (fee: $80). Hands-on demonstration of 5 randomly selected nurse aide skills, evaluated by a Nurse Aide Evaluator; 30 minutes allowed. Must be passed along with the Written/Oral component to be listed on the Alabama Nurse Aide Registry. Same employer-pays rule as the Written/Oral exam applies for Medicaid/Medicare-certified nursing home employees. [2]
- 5
Submit your application
Submit your application to Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) — Nurse Aide Registry. [2]
- 6
Receive your license
Once your application is approved, Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) — Nurse Aide Registry issues your Certified Nurse Aide (CNA) for Alabama.
Fees
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Application fee [2] | None specified |
| License fee [2] | None specified |
| Renewal fee [2] | None specified |
| Written (or Oral) Examination [2] | $55 |
| Skills Evaluation [2] | $80 |
| Written (or Oral) Examination (Credentia) [2] | $55 |
| Skills Evaluation (Credentia) [2] | $80 |
ADPH does not charge a separate application, certification, or registry fee — after passing both NNAAP exam components, Credentia reports results directly to ADPH and the candidate is added to the registry with no additional submission or fee. No renewal fee either (see renewal notes).
Renewal & continuing education
Renew every 2 years.
Alabama has no traditional renewal filing or continuing-education requirement. To keep the registry listing active, a nurse aide must complete at least 8 hours of paid nursing-related work (in a nursing home, hospital, home health agency, hospice agency, or mental health facility — volunteer work, assisted living, private-sitting, and doctor's-office work do not count) within every rolling 24-month period. If a nurse aide goes 24 consecutive months without documenting that paid work, the certification lapses and they must retrain and retest.
Reciprocity
Endorsement/reciprocity from another state is available.
No interstate compact covers CNAs/nurse aides. Alabama's out-of-state transfer process is employer-initiated: a new Alabama employer contacts the ADPH Division of Provider Services directly to verify the candidate's active, good-standing out-of-state nurse aide certification and request the transfer — there is no individual application form or fee. ADPH confirms the out-of-state certification is active and has no findings of abuse, neglect, or misappropriation before adding the individual to the Alabama registry.
2 state-approved training providers in Alabama — browse programs and compare schools on tradecolleges.org.
Cost calculator
- $55
- $80
Frequently asked questions
Who administers the Alabama Nurse Aide exam?
Credentia, under contract with the Alabama Department of Public Health, administers the NNAAP Written (or Oral) Examination and Skills Evaluation.
How much does the Alabama Nurse Aide exam cost?
$55 for the Written (or Oral) Examination and $80 for the Skills Evaluation. Candidates employed by, or with an offer from, a Medicaid/Medicare-certified nursing home cannot be charged these fees themselves — the employer must pay.
How do I keep my Alabama Nurse Aide Registry listing active?
Document at least 8 hours of paid nursing-related work in a qualifying facility (nursing home, hospital, home health agency, hospice, or mental health facility) every 24 months. There is no renewal fee, application, or continuing-education requirement.
Can I complete CNA training online in Alabama?
No. Alabama does not approve any fully online nurse aide training programs — training must be completed through an ADPH-approved in-person program (or equivalent LPN/RN fundamentals coursework).
Sources
- [1] kb-al.credentia.com/en/article/eligibility-criteria — accessed 2026-07-10
- [2] kb-al.credentia.com/en/article/exam-fees — accessed 2026-07-10
- [3] kb-al.credentia.com/en/article/the-registry — accessed 2026-07-10
- [4] alabamapublichealth.gov/providerstandards/faq.html — accessed 2026-07-10