Indiana

At a Glance

Category	Details
IMLC Member	Yes
FCVS	Accepted
NP Independent Practice	Yes (An advanced practice nurse shall operate in collaboration with a licensed practitioner as evidenced by a practice agreement)
PA Independent Practice	No
Physician-Owned PC Allowed	No
Max NPs per Physician	No Limit
Max PAs per Physician	4

Licensure

Item	Cost
Initial License	$250
Renewal Fee	$200
Renewal Cycle	Biennial
Annualized Cost	$100
Controlled Substance Registration	Yes ($60 per biennial cycle)

Endorsement & Reciprocity

Not yet researched — whether this state offers license-by-endorsement or reciprocity, and its prerequisites, is being verified.

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APC Supervision

In-state requirement for supervising physicians: MD must be licensed in IN.

Nurse Practitioners

NPs require physician supervision in Indiana.

• Maximum NPs per physician: No Limit

Physician Assistants

PAs require physician supervision in Indiana.

• Maximum PAs per physician: 4

CME & Training Requirements

Requirement	Details
Total CME	2 hours
Category 1 Minimum	Contact board
Cycle	Biennial
Opioid / SUD	2 hrs/cycle
DEA MATE Act	8 hrs one-time (federal)
Jurisprudence Exam	Required

Fingerprint Requirements

Detail	Info
Required	Yes
FBI Check	Unknown
Method	LiveScan / IdentoGO / Ink cards (FD-258)
Out-of-State Options	Available

Malpractice Insurance

• Required for licensure/practice: No
• Applies to: Physicians are not statutorily required to carry malpractice insurance to practice; instead, insurance (or self-insurance/surety bond) is the prerequisite to becoming a "qualified" health care provider entitled to Patient's Compensation Fund protection and liability caps. Unqualified providers face no statutory damages cap.
• Compensation fund: The Indiana Patient's Compensation Fund exists and provides excess coverage (currently $1M above a provider's own $250,000 per-occurrence layer) but only to "qualified" health care providers; qualification requires the provider first purchase (or otherwise establish) underlying malpractice coverage and pay an annual surcharge to the Fund -- coverage is thus a prerequisite for Fund participation, though Fund participation itself is optional/voluntary for the physician.

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Giving Up a License

• Status after lapse: License becomes invalid; reinstatement is available up to three years after invalidation under standard requirements, after which different (harder) board-established requirements apply. Separately, a physician may elect inactive status.
• Lapse consequences: A physician may notify the board in writing to go on inactive status (agreeing not to maintain an office/practice or charge fees for medical services); the inactive-license renewal fee is one-half the standard registration fee.
• Voluntary surrender: Available — Retirement (Indiana's non-disciplinary exit mechanism) is a simple written notice to the board and is available absent pending discipline; separately, IC 25-1-9-14 allows a practitioner to petition to surrender a license instead of a disciplinary hearing, but that route requires board approval and is disciplinary in nature.
• Reinstatement: A retired license's reinstatement may be considered by the board upon written request; an inactive license may be reactivated with notice to the board, and if inactive more than three years (without verifiable active-practice history elsewhere) the board may require a personal appearance to establish work history.
• Exit in good standing: Available — Retirement, available absent pending discipline, is a board-recorded status distinct from disciplinary surrender and functions as a good-standing exit route.

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Quirks & Gotchas

Fees

• Initial application: $250** (nonrefundable + online processing surcharge on top)
• Temporary permit: $100** (valid 90 days only; expires sooner if full license issues)
• Postgraduate training permit: $100** (+ $50/year to renew; June 30 expiry, must re-apply each program year)
• Non-ECFMG training permit: $100**
• Teaching permit: $100**
• Limited scope/temporary permit (out-of-state visitors): $100**, valid only 30 days
• International Trained Physician License: $100**
• Biennial active renewal: $200** | inactive: $100
• Expired renewal (≤3 years lapsed): $200 + $50 penalty**
• Reinstatement (>3 years expired): $450**

Fingerprints & Background Check

• Fingerprinting is required** for all initial applicants via IdentoGO (IDEMIA platform), not a standalone LiveScan vendor
• Critical timing gotcha**: Do NOT submit fingerprints until you receive a board email confirming receipt of your application. A background check completed before that email is deemed invalid and must be redone (wasted cost)
• Out-of-state or physically unable applicants may use the Card Scan Program (mail-in ink fingerprint cards), but processing is slower
• Fingerprint fee is paid separately to IdentoGO at time of scheduling

Other Gotchas

• 1-year abandonment rule**: If your file is incomplete after 12 months from submission, it is automatically abandoned. You must re-apply and pay again from scratch.
• No expedited processing exists**: Applications are reviewed in strict order received. The only workaround is a temporary permit (~10 business day turnaround), which costs $100 extra.
• Documents must come directly from the source**: Transcripts, license verifications, exam scores, and NPDB reports cannot be certified copies or notarized - they must arrive directly from the issuing institution to the board at pla3@pla.in.gov. A certified copy you obtain personally is rejected.
• License verifications from all prior states** must be sent directly to the board, not to you. If you are licensed in 5 states, all 5 must mail/email independently.
• ECFMG certificate gotcha for IMGs**: If your ECFMG certificate carries an expiration date, you must obtain the permanent validation sticker from ECFMG before applying - an expired-dated certificate is not accepted as-is.
• Postgraduate permit holders cannot moonlight** - practice is restricted strictly to the specified training program. Violating this is a discipline trigger.
• Step 3 not required at application time**, but the license will not actually issue until all three USMLE (or COMLEX) steps are passed. This catches people who apply during residency before passing Step 3.
• Exam attempt/time limits** are strictly enforced: USMLE - 3 attempts per step, all steps within 10 years. COMLEX - 5 attempts per level, all levels within 7 years. Exceeding either requires a waiver, which requires a personal Board appearance.
• Positive response disclosures** (arrests, malpractice, disciplinary actions, employment issues, DEA actions, Medicaid/Medicare exclusions) require court documents, case numbers, plaintiff names, and written narratives. The Board meets monthly; cases requiring review cause multi-month delays.
• Social Security Number is mandatory** by Indiana statute - omission results in outright denial, not a correction request.

Jurisprudence Exam

• No standing mandatory jurisprudence exam** for most applicants
• However, the Board retains discretionary authority to require an Indiana law examination specifically for reciprocity applicants (IC 25-1-21-11) - it is not automatic but can be imposed case-by-case
• No pre-published study materials or standard format are documented publicly; if imposed, expect to clarify scope directly with the Board

CME & Mandatory Training

• Indiana does NOT mandate a fixed number of CME hours** for standard physician license renewal - this is genuinely unusual and a notable quirk
• Controlled Substance Registration (CSR) renewal: Until July 1, 2025, required 2 hours of CME on opioid prescribing and opioid abuse. That requirement expired July 1, 2025** per state statute (confirmed by ISMA). Applicants applying or renewing CSR after that date owe no state opioid CME.
• Federal MATE Act (DEA registration): Still active. Requires 8 hours of training** on substance use disorders/pain management for DEA registration. The 8 hours can come from any point in your career (no recency window) but must be documented.
• Renewal order matters**: If you hold multiple Indiana registrations (e.g., MD license + CSR-MD + ePrescribing Waiver), they must be renewed in that specific sequential order. Renewing out of order causes processing problems.
• IMLC compact holders cannot use Indiana’s renewal portal** - they must renew at imlcc.com/renew/ exclusively. Using the wrong portal does not renew your license.

Reciprocity - Major Upcoming Change

• Reciprocity for physicians expires July 1, 2026**. After that date the Medical Licensing Board is prohibited by statute from issuing physician licenses via reciprocity. Physicians expecting to use reciprocity must act before that deadline or pursue full endorsement.

Timeline

• Apply 120+ days before you need the license** - official estimate is 4-6 weeks but real-world processing with any disclosure responses or Board review (monthly meetings) stretches significantly longer
• Postgraduate permits: 60-90 days lead time recommended
• Non-ECFMG permits: 120 days recommended
• Applications are valid for 1 year; one 30-day extension is available on request
• Board meets approximately monthly; any case flagged for Board review is delayed to the next meeting cycle

Researched from state board websites and regulatory sources. Verify with the board directly before applying.

Resources

• Indiana Medical Licensing Board
• FSMB State Licensure Directory
• Interstate Medical Licensure Compact

Sources

Data compiled from state medical board websites, FSMB, and regulatory filings.

Have a correction or update? Let us know.