Skip to main content

Overseas-qualified nurses and Pathway 2

Last checked 5 October 2026

General information only, not legal or regulatory advice; check the official NMBA page before applying.

Step one: registration as a registered nurse​

The endorsement guidelines apply to registered nurses who hold general registration as a nurse in Australia and are applying for endorsement as an NP. They list current general registration as the first requirement. So an overseas-qualified nurse first needs registration in Australia.

The NMBA's internationally qualified nurses and midwives (IQNM) pages explain that process. The NMBA says all IQNMs need to complete the Self-check before applying for registration, and it has pages on what to know before you apply, the portfolio, the examination and registration. The English language skills standard applies to applicants for initial registration.

Pathway 2 for the qualification​

The endorsement standard accepts a qualification through Pathway 2: a program the NMBA decides is substantially equivalent to an NMBA-approved NP program. For Pathway 2, the guidelines ask for:

  • a postgraduate nursing master's degree that is clinically relevant to the context of advanced practice you are seeking endorsement for
  • evidence of completing master's-level units in advanced health assessment, pharmacology and therapeutics, and diagnostics and research, however titled, shown through the unit outlines and the year studied
  • a mapping of your units of study to advanced practice as defined by the NP standards for practice
  • position descriptions
  • narratives.

The other requirements still apply, including the 5,000 hours of advanced practice within the past six years.

How EndorseMe helps​

  • If your account is on the overseas pathway, the menu shows Pathway 2 units (open in EndorseMe), for units, qualifications, assessment and bridging. See Qualifications and your program.
  • The dashboard for the overseas pathway is tailored to it. See The dashboard.
  • EndorseMe helps you organise the mapping and evidence. Only the NMBA decides whether a program is substantially equivalent.

Official sources​