New Jersey Nursing Home Administrator License Requirements

A New Jersey license takes a bachelor’s degree, a 100-hour course, an administrative internship (AIT) in a nursing home, and the two national NAB exams. The internship is 1,750 hours unless your degree shortens it, and there is no state exam.

nhaexamprep.com · updated September 2026

New Jersey at a glance

Who licenses	The Nursing Home Administrators Licensing Board, in the New Jersey Department of Health (DOH); the Division of Certificate of Need and Licensing runs the program (N.J.S.A. 30:11-11 et seq.; N.J.A.C. 8:34-1.2)
Education	A bachelor’s degree and a 100-hour course in long-term care administration; minimum age 21 (8:34-3.1(a))
AIT (internship)	1,750 hours by default; 450, 900, 875 or 1,250 hours on degree routes (8:34-4.1, 4.4). Served in a nursing home of at least 60 beds. See the routes below
National exams	NAB CORE and NHA Line of Service, both required (NAB); $480 for the two together, paid to NAB
State exam	None. NAB’s New Jersey page says “State: No”, and the rule names only “the licensing examination approved by the Board” (8:34-5.1(a)). New Jersey adds its own retake rules (8:34-5.7)
Continuing education	60 hours every three years, including 4 hours of ethics; up to 10 hours carry over (8:34-7.2)
License renewal	Every three years; $300 plus a fingerprint background check each time (8:34-6.2(b), 9.1)
Official sources	nj.gov (DOH) · N.J.A.C. 8:34 and N.J.S.A. 30:11-11 (unofficial mirrors) · nabweb.org (national exams)

Verified against the sources above, September 2026. The current statute and rules govern, so check with the Department of Health before you apply.

Who licenses you in New Jersey

Your license comes through the Nursing Home Administrators Licensing Board, created under N.J.S.A. 30:11-11 (N.J.A.C. 8:34-1.2). The Board has sat in the New Jersey Department of Health since 1972 (N.J.S.A. 26:2H-28), and within the Department the Division of Certificate of Need and Licensing runs the program. The Board “shall authorize the issuance of a nursing home administrator license” (8:34-6.1(a)), and the Department issues it (N.J.S.A. 30:11-13).

The law is N.J.S.A. 30:11-11 et seq. (P.L.1968, c.356). The rules are N.J.A.C. 8:34, “Rules for Licensing Nursing Home Administrators and Rules Regulating the Nursing Home Administrators Licensing Board”, readopted without change effective 2 October 2024 and now set to expire on 2 October 2031 (notice of readoption, 56 N.J.R., 4 November 2024).

Website	DOH nursing home administrator page
Phone	(609) 633-9706
Mail	PO Box 358, Trenton, NJ 08625
Overnight delivery	120 South Stockton St., 3rd Floor, Trenton, NJ 08608

What New Jersey requires for a license

Under N.J.A.C. 8:34-3.1(a) you must:

• Be 21 or older, and a US citizen or have declared your intent to become one.
• Hold a bachelor’s degree: “at a minimum, a baccalaureate degree from an institution of higher learning.” You need no degree to start the internship: “A baccalaureate degree is not required ... to serve as an administrative intern” (3.1(b)).
• Finish a 100-hour course: “100 seminar or course hours in areas relevant to long term care administration.” DOH lists three approved sponsors: Longtree & Associates, the Health Care Association of New Jersey (HCANJ) and the NAB Academic Accreditation Program. NAB’s New Jersey page lists only Longtree & Associates and Healthcare Association of New Jersey.
• Complete the internship, finished no more than two years before you apply for the exam, and pass the exams.
• Pass a criminal history check with fingerprints, at your cost (3.1(c)). The Department “shall not issue a license to any person who has ever been convicted” of a crime of moral turpitude (3.1(d)).

The application. Form NH-1 with a $100 non-refundable fee, a transcript, three references from unrelated professionals (plus, optionally, your preceptor’s), your disciplinary history and a notarized statement. It stays active for two years (8:34-3.2).

How your degree sets your internship hours

Find the row that matches you. The Board may also waive some or all of the hours, case by case (8:34-4.2(d), 1.6).

Route	Who it fits	Internship hours	N.J.A.C. 8:34
Standard internship	Any applicant; you need no degree to start (8:34-3.1(b))	1,750, or as the Board sets after weighing your education and experience	4.1(a)1; 4.2(a)3
Assistant administrator	A Board-approved assistant administrator job in a home of 60 or more beds, within the 2 years before you apply	1,750 (1 year full time or 2 years part time)	4.1(a)2
Master’s, with internship	A master’s in health care or public health administration, or equivalent, with a school-approved internship in a home of 60 or more beds within 2 years before you apply	450 or more, in that internship	4.4(a)1
Bachelor’s, with internship	A bachelor’s in health care, public health or long-term care administration, or equivalent, with a school-approved internship on the same terms	900 or more, in that internship	4.4(a)2
Master’s, no internship	That master’s, without an approved internship	875 or more as an administrative intern	4.4(b)
Bachelor’s, no internship	That bachelor’s, without an approved internship	1,250 or more	4.4(c)

The administrative internship (AIT)

The rules call it the administrative intern program, and DOH the “Administrative Intern Program (AIP)”; you serve it in a nursing home with no fewer than 60 beds, under a Board-approved preceptor (8:34-4.2(a)).

• Approval comes first. The Board approves your training plan on form NH-8 before you start (8:34-4.5(a)). In the DOH page’s words, “No applicant can begin any aspect of the AIP program without prior Board approval.”
• Pace. No more than 50 hours a week, and part time is allowed (3.1(a)).
• Time limits. A 1,750-hour program must be finished within two years, and a program of 875 hours or fewer within one year (4.2(g)).
• Reports. Your preceptor files quarterly reports (form NH-9), and a completion certificate (NH-10) is due when you finish, each within 15 working days. A late report can cost you that period’s hours: the Board may “require the administrative intern to forfeit all credit” (4.5).

The nine service areas

You spend at least 70 hours in each of these areas (8:34-4.2(b)); the rest of your hours follow an individual plan built around your needs (4.2(c)):

1. Administration
2. Business office
3. Nursing
4. Resident activities
5. Social service
6. Medical records
7. Dietary
8. Maintenance
9. Environmental, including housekeeping and laundry

Who can be your preceptor

Under N.J.A.C. 8:34-4.3, your preceptor:

• holds a current New Jersey license and “shall have held such license for at least five years”;
• has practiced as a licensed administrator in a nursing home “for at least the last three consecutive years”;
• works full time at the training facility;
• “shall not be a preceptor for more than two administrative interns at any one time” (4.3(f)).

The Board may refuse a preceptor disciplined in the prior 12 months (4.3(e)). Preceptors earn 16 CE hours per three-year period for the work (7.3(b)).

The 2025 preceptor waiver

A DOH blanket waiver under 8:34-1.6, dated “May 1, 2025 (Amended)” (the DOH guidance index says 30 April 2025), waives two preceptor rules:

• Recent practice (4.3(b)2), for administrators now in management or ownership overseeing a licensed administrator at a New Jersey home, with at least three consecutive years as a licensed administrator.
• Full time at the facility (4.3(b)3), if the preceptor is employed full time by the home’s corporation or parent in an oversight role and is on the premises at least 875 hours, or half the required hours.

DOH says it issued the waiver “to expand the pool” of preceptors and “intends to amend N.J.A.C. 8:34-4.3(b)2 and 3”. Other states: AIT Hours by State.

The exams you must pass

New Jersey requires both exams from NAB, the National Association of Long Term Care Administrator Boards; NAB’s New Jersey page shows “NAB NHA & CORE National: Yes”.

The order matters. You finish the degree, internship and 100-hour course before you may sit (5.1(b)), and DOH sends exam and background check instructions only after your internship is certified: “Please do not apply to take the exam until you receive the instructions.” You then test at a Pearson VUE test center.

CORE	125 questions (100 scored, 25 pretest); 130 minutes to answer, within 150 minutes in all, per NAB’s Candidate Handbook (September 2026)
NHA Line of Service	75 questions (60 scored, 15 pretest); 70 minutes to answer, within 90 minutes in all, per the same handbook
Passing score	NAB’s scaled score of 113; the rule leaves the passing grade to the Board (8:34-5.5)
Attempts	Up to 4 attempts at each of CORE and NHA per cycle (1 July to 30 June), from 1 January 2026 (NAB). New Jersey’s own retake rules below apply as well
Fee	$480 for CORE and NHA together, from 1 February 2026. Taken alone, CORE is $320 and NHA is $190 (NAB)

More in NAB Exam Format and The Core Domains Explained.

No state exam. New Jersey has no state exam and no jurisprudence exam. NAB’s New Jersey page says “State: No”, and the DOH page, forms NH-1 and NH-8, and N.J.A.C. 8:34-5 name no state exam.

New Jersey’s retake rules

These are stricter than NAB’s attempt limit (N.J.A.C. 8:34-5.7, 5.8):

After a first failure	You retake with the Board’s approval.
After a second failure	You “shall take 50 hours of remediation approved by the Board” in your weak areas, documented by your preceptor, and wait 60 days from the last exam.
After a third failure	Another 50 hours of remediation, plus 450 more administrative intern hours in a home of at least 60 beds, and a 120-day wait.
Four failures in one calendar year	You are disqualified. You may petition within 30 days, and you reapply under the rules then in effect (5.8).

Where the New Jersey rules differ from the federal rules

The NAB exams are national. Once you run a New Jersey nursing home, you keep it in line with the facility rules in N.J.A.C. 8:39 as well as federal law (8:34-1.4(a)), and 42 CFR Part 483, Subpart B, applies only if the home is certified for Medicare or Medicaid. Four differences that matter on the job, each with the New Jersey section:

Topic	Federal rule (42 CFR 483)	New Jersey rule	Section
Direct care staffing ratios	Sufficient numbers of staff on a 24-hour basis (483.35(a)), with no numeric ratio. CMS’s 2024 minimum staffing standards, which were never enforced, were repealed by an interim final rule published 3 December 2025 and effective 2 February 2026 (90 FR 55687)	Since 1 February 2021: one certified nurse aide per 8 residents on the day shift; one direct care staff member per 10 residents on the evening shift, at least half of them certified nurse aides; and one direct care staff member per 14 residents at night. On evening and night shifts, every staff member counted must be signed in to work as a certified nurse aide and perform aide duties. Ratios use the midnight census, and fractions of .51 or more round up	N.J.S.A. 30:13-18
Nursing hours and RN coverage	A registered nurse “for at least 8 consecutive hours a day, 7 days a week” (483.35(b)(1)) and a full-time RN director of nursing (483.35(b)(2)), each except when waived under 483.35(e) or (f)	At least 2.5 nursing hours per resident a day, plus set hours for special care, such as 1.0 for tube feeding or 1.5 for IV therapy. At least 20% of the hours come from RNs or LPNs. An RN is on duty every day shift and on duty or on call evenings and nights. Homes of 150 or more beds need an assistant director of nursing, and homes of more than 150 beds an RN on duty at all times	N.J.A.C. 8:39-25.2
The administrator	“Licensed by the State, where licensing is required” (483.70(d)(2)(i)). 483.70(d)(2) sets no full-time rule	Full time in homes of 100 or more beds (“the administrator shall serve full-time in an administrative capacity”) and at least half time below that. Two homes may share one only if they are within 20 miles and have no more than 120 beds together; homes over 240 beds need a full-time evening administrative supervisor. After a vacancy of 48 hours or more, the home arranges licensed supervision on a consultant basis and appoints a new licensed administrator within 90 days of appointing the consultant	N.J.A.C. 8:39-9.2(a), (c)
Infection preventionist	The preventionist must “Work at least part-time at the facility” (483.80(b)(3))	A preventionist with at least 5 years of infection control experience or certification in infection control: full time in homes over 100 beds or offering on-site hemodialysis, at least part time otherwise, reporting directly to the administrator. The home also needs an outbreak response plan, with “a documented strategy for securing more staff”	N.J.S.A. 26:2H-12.87

Two federal duties apply in every certified home. The facility reports alleged abuse, neglect, exploitation or mistreatment, including injuries of unknown source, “immediately, but not later than 2 hours” if it involves abuse or serious bodily injury, and within 24 hours otherwise, to the administrator and to officials including the State Survey Agency (483.12(c)(1)). Each covered individual also reports a reasonable suspicion of a crime against a resident to the State Agency and one or more law enforcement entities, within 2 hours if there is serious bodily injury, otherwise within 24 hours (483.12(b)(5); section 1150B of the Social Security Act).

New Jersey: N.J.S.A. 30:13-18 (P.L.2020, c.112) and 26:2H-12.87; N.J.A.C. 8:39-9.2 and 8:39-25.2 (unofficial mirrors). Federal: 42 CFR Part 483, Subpart B, in the eCFR. In a certified home you meet both.

Fees

From N.J.A.C. 8:34-9.1 unless the row names another source. All state fees are non-refundable.

Application (form NH-1)	$100
First license	$300 in year 1, $200 in year 2 or $100 in year 3 of the three-year period
Renewal, every three years	$300
Late renewal fee	$25 (1 to 15 days late), $50 (16 to 30), $100 (31 to 90), $200 (91 or more)
Restoration from inactive status, up to 3 years	$200, plus the renewal fee
Restoration after more than 3 years	$200 plus $100 for each extra year
Duplicate license or certificate	$25 each
Fingerprint background check	Paid by you (8:34-3.1(c))
NAB exams, CORE and NHA together	$480, paid to NAB (from 1 February 2026)

NAB’s New Jersey page lists a renewal fee of $318.75; the rule sets $300 every three years. The rule has a 91-day late tier, but late renewal itself is allowed only up to 60 days (see below).

Continuing education: 60 hours every three years

You need “60 hours of approved continuing education in health or health related courses” each three-year period (N.J.A.C. 8:34-7.2(a)).

• Ethics. 4 of the hours must be in professional ethics relevant to long-term care administration (7.2(f)).
• Carryover. You may “carry over up to 10 excess credit hours obtained during the third year” (7.2(g)).
• Approved courses. Programs “directly related to the administration of nursing homes” and approved by NAB, a NAB member state, an administrators’ or facility association, an accredited college or a relevant board (7.3(a)).
• Other credit. Up to 10 hours for professional association work (7.2(e)); 16 hours for serving as a preceptor; first-time teaching, a thesis and publications also count (7.3(b)).
• New licensees. Prorated by months licensed: 28 or more, 60 hours; 18 to 28, 40; 7 to 18, 20; under 7, none (6.2(d)).
• Records. You attest at renewal and keep originals for one year after the period (7.2(b), 7.4).

Which dates? The rule says the CE period “shall commence on May 1 and end on April 30” (7.2(d)). Ask DOH for your current cycle’s dates.

Renewal, late renewal and restoration

A license lasts no more than three years and expires on a date the Board sets (8:34-6.1(b), 6.2(a)). To renew you send the application, a fingerprint background check (every renewal, not just the first license), the $300 fee and your CE attestation (6.2(b)).

• Late renewal. Up to 60 days after expiration, with the late fee plus the renewal fee (6.2(c)).
• Inactive. After that “the license shall be inactive”, and you may not practice (6.9(a)).
• Restoration within 3 years. No new exam: the renewal and restoration fees, the 60 hours, and “40 hours of continuing education credit for each year” inactive (6.9(b) to (d)). The extra hours are waived if you held an active license and served as administrator of record elsewhere the whole time (6.9(e)). After 3 years, the Board sets your requirements (6.9(f)).
• On the job. Report a change of name, home address or employer “within 15 calendar days” (6.6); the statute says 10 days (N.J.S.A. 30:11-24).

Moving to New Jersey, temporary licenses and vacancies

License by equivalency. The Board approves you if your education, training, experience and exam scores equaled New Jersey’s at the time of your first license (N.J.A.C. 8:34-6.8). You send the application, fee, transcript, three references, fingerprints, your national exam scores and form NH-6. Current ACHCA certification is accepted in place of the exam (6.8(c)), and DOH may license you if you have practiced full time as an administrator for 2 of the last 3 years in another state (6.8(d)).

No temporary license. NAB’s New Jersey page says “Offer Temporary/Provisional License: No”, and N.J.A.C. 8:34 provides none, nor an acting administrator license. When a home’s administrator post is vacant, the facility rule applies instead (8:39-9.2(c), in the table above).

Military. Under federal law, 50 U.S.C. 4025a, a covered out-of-state license “shall be considered valid for the scope of practice” when a service member or spouse moves on military orders. Ask DOH how it applies this to an administrator license.

Pending bills

A4762, “Revises law related to licensure of nursing home administrators”, passed the Assembly 79 to 0 on 30 June 2026 (LegiScan) and is not law. As introduced, it would put the internship rules into statute (“not more than 1,750 hours”, 875 with the preceptor on the premises, a two-year limit, two interns per preceptor), create an electronic AIT portal, and give candidates “three opportunities to pass the written examination without being subject to additional” requirements. S2255 and A4309, which would set 90-day license decisions and 15-business-day AIT plan decisions, are in committee (LegiScan). Until a bill becomes law, the rules above apply.

Where to find an AIT program or preceptor in New Jersey

You find a nursing home of at least 60 beds and a preceptor who meets 8:34-4.3 (or the 2025 waiver), then the Board approves your plan on form NH-8 before you start.

DOH. The nursing home administrator page posts forms NH-1, NH-6, NH-8, NH-9 and NH-10 and a list of New Jersey licensed nursing home administrators, which you can use to identify possible preceptors.

The 100-hour course. DOH lists three sponsors: the Health Care Association of New Jersey, Longtree & Associates and the NAB Academic Accreditation Program. Ask each sponsor for its current course dates and format.

Other groups. LeadingAge New Jersey & Delaware offers education for its members; ask it which courses are approved for LNHA credit. ACHCA’s national Mentoring Program is open to “Students or Administrators-in-Training (AITs)”. These groups can help you identify possible preceptors; the Board approves the internship itself.

For approaching facilities and preceptors step by step, see How to Find an AIT Preceptor and an Approved Program.

The rules behind the New Jersey license

The legal sources for nursing home administrator licensure in New Jersey, and the facility rules cited above.

• StatuteN.J.S.A. 30:11-11 et seq.: nursing home administrator licensing (unofficial mirror)
• RulesN.J.A.C. 8:34: Rules for Licensing Nursing Home Administrators (unofficial mirror) · 2024 notice of readoption
• Key sections3.1 (eligibility) · 4.2 (internship) · 4.3 (preceptor) · 5.7 (retakes) · 7.2 (CE) · 9.1 (fees)
• DOHNursing home administrator page · Form NH-8 · 2025 preceptor waiver
• Facility rulesN.J.A.C. 8:39 (unofficial mirror) · N.J.S.A. 30:13-18 · N.J.S.A. 26:2H-12.87
• National examsNAB’s New Jersey page · NAB Candidate Handbook (September 2026)
• Federal rule42 CFR Part 483, Subpart B (eCFR)

Citations verified September 2026 against Department of Health pages and notices, and against Justia and Cornell LII copies of the statutes and rules (unofficial mirrors; the official N.J.A.C. is published by LexisNexis). Provided for reference, not legal advice; the current official text governs.

Common questions