VisaScreen: A Step-by-Step Guide for Nurses

VisaScreen involves more than uploading your nursing diploma. Your school, licensing authority, and English test provider may each need to send information directly to TruMerit. Knowing who sends what will save you unnecessary requests and repeat fees.

This guide covers an initial VisaScreen application for registered nurses through TruMerit, formerly CGFNS International. Requirements and fees were checked on October 16, 2026.

1. Make sure you are ordering the right service

VisaScreen is a healthcare worker credentials assessment used for U.S. immigration purposes. It reviews your education, professional registration, English proficiency, and nursing examination history. It does not issue a state nursing license or grant a visa.

A CES report or Credentials Verification Service for New York State is a different product. Having either one does not mean you already have a VisaScreen certificate.

Before paying, confirm with the person handling your immigration case which certification you need and when it must be available. This guide follows the standard VisaScreen route; some RNs may qualify for the separate 212(r) Certified Statement.

2. Prepare your information before opening the application

Have your passport, education dates, school contact details, nursing registration details, examination history, and English test information beside you. List previous names used on academic or licensing records so that mismatched documents can be explained.

Contact your school and licensing authority early. Ask which office handles overseas verification, what it charges, and how long it normally takes. Keep a simple record of each request, payment, dispatch date, and tracking number.

If you previously used TruMerit or CGFNS, use your existing account. Some documents may be reusable after review, but do not assume every previous document will satisfy the new order.

3. Create the order and complete identity verification

1. Open the TruMerit applicant portal and sign in or create an account.
2. Select VisaScreen: Visa Credentials Assessment and complete the requested personal, education, registration, and examination information.
3. Check your entries against your official records, review the order, and pay.
4. Follow the identity verification instructions issued after payment. You will need an original government photo ID and a live selfie; someone else cannot complete this step for you.
5. Open your order requirements and download the document request forms associated with your application.

The initial application currently costs US$740. Budget separately for English testing, school and licensing authority fees, translations, and delivery where needed. Check the current fee schedule before payment.

4. Arrange your education documents

For each nursing school requested in your application, complete and sign your section of the academic records request form. Send it to the school office responsible for official transcripts. The school completes its section and sends the required records directly to TruMerit using an accepted submission method.

Ask the school to follow the form fully, including requested nursing coursework and clinical information. A graduation certificate alone may not provide the detail needed for assessment.

Do not upload your own transcript as a substitute for the school's submission. Follow the electronic or postal instructions on the current form. If the school has closed or cannot complete the form, contact TruMerit before arranging an alternative.

Documents must be in English, with translations supplied through an accepted route. If the institution cannot provide an English translation, TruMerit offers translation for an additional fee.

You may also need your secondary school diploma or completion certificate. TruMerit waives this requirement when secondary education was completed more than 10 years ago. If required, follow the applicant submission instructions in the document submission guide.

5. Request license validation and nursing exam verification

Declare all professional licenses and registrations you have held, including expired ones and those from other countries. Send the relevant validation form to each issuing authority. The authority must return the verification directly; a photo of your license is not a replacement.

Registered nurses must also provide acceptable evidence of passing the NCLEX-RN or TruMerit's qualifying nursing examination. For an NCLEX-RN pass, contact the state board associated with your examination about official verification to TruMerit and any required fee.

If you passed NCLEX but have not received a license, explain that distinction when contacting the board and TruMerit. Ask how your examination pass should be verified. Do not enter a license number you have not been issued.

Review the additional requirements for registered nurses before ordering a separate examination or verification service.

6. Check whether you qualify for an English exemption

The education exemption requires both conditions: your entry-level professional education took place in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada excluding Quebec, New Zealand, Ireland, or the United States; and both instruction and textbooks were in English.

An English-medium nursing program in another country does not automatically meet that exemption. Use the VisaScreen criteria rather than an exemption list for another TruMerit service.

7. Choose an accepted English examination

The requirements changed on May 12, 2026. TruMerit says examinations taken before that date are assessed against the earlier requirements. For examinations under the updated rules, the RN minimums published by HRSA are:

• IELTS Academic: overall 6.5 and speaking 7.
• OET: speaking 360, reading 340, writing 350, and listening 320.
• PTE Academic: overall 55, speaking 76, and reading, writing, and listening 62 each.
• TOEFL iBT: overall 4.5, speaking 4.5, and reading, listening, and writing 3.5 each on the updated scale.
• Michigan English Test: overall 58 and speaking 59.
• Cambridge B2 First, C1 Advanced, or C2 qualifications: overall 169 and speaking 194.

Use the Registered Nurses column in the official HRSA requirements. Do not select the lower qualification column simply because your nursing qualification is a diploma.

TOEIC is absent from the updated approved list. TruMerit does not accept at-home versions of English examinations. Before booking, check the exact test version and the TruMerit announcement about the changes, especially if you already hold an older result.

Arrange official score delivery through the test provider. Uploading your personal score report does not replace that delivery. TruMerit's TOEFL recipient code is 9988; follow the provider's current recipient instructions for other examinations.

English scores have a two-year validity period under the VisaScreen handbook. If yours are approaching expiry, ask TruMerit whether they will remain usable for your certification timeline before paying to resend them. Do not assume that starting an application preserves an expiring score.

8. Upload your photo and resolve name differences

Prepare a recent passport-style photograph: a square, full-color JPG under 5 MB, taken within six months against a white or off-white background. Wear ordinary clothing rather than scrubs or a uniform. Check the full specifications on the VisaScreen service page.

If your passport, diploma, license, or test result uses a different name, submit the requested legal evidence through the account's support process. Explain which records the evidence connects.

9. Track acceptance, not just delivery

A courier delivery confirmation means a package arrived. It does not mean the document has been accepted or that your assessment is complete.

Check your account for missing requirements and requests for corrections. If something remains outstanding, identify whether TruMerit needs an initial document, a corrected form, or a response from its issuing institution. Forward the specific request to the responsible office.

“Documents sent” and “requirements completed” are different milestones. Keep following up until the account shows that the requirement has been satisfied.

TruMerit's published processing times distinguish document collection from assessment. Do not calculate your completion date from the review time alone.

Expedited review currently costs an additional US$650. Its 10-business-day review period applies after all required documents have been received and processed. It does not guarantee certificate issuance within 10 days or make your school send records faster.

10. Watch the application and certificate deadlines

Your initial application has a 12-month completion window. If it expires unfinished, an eligible reprocess order currently costs US$250. It must be purchased within 12 months after expiry, allows another 12 months, and is available only once for the initial order.

Once issued, a VisaScreen certificate is valid for five years. Certificates are now issued digitally; a paper certificate is optional and currently costs US$195. Check your name and certificate details promptly and share the certificate through the process requested by your immigration representative.

If you later need renewal, the renewal order currently costs US$475 and is available during the six months before expiry and six months after it. Beyond that period, a standard order is required. Review the renewal requirements before purchasing.

Before you close your application checklist

• Your personal details match your supporting records, or name differences are documented.
• Each required school and licensing authority has submitted its documents.
• Your nursing examination pass has been officially verified.
• Your English requirement is satisfied through accepted scores or an approved exemption.
• Your photo and identity verification are complete.
• You have checked outstanding requests and recorded the application deadline.

Start with the school and licensing authority requests. Those are the steps you cannot finish on your own, and they are the easiest to underestimate when planning your application.