Applicants

• Application Timeframes
• Fingerprints

Application Timeframes

The length of time for a medical license to be issued varies for each applicant. It depends on when the Board receives all required documentation and the acceptance of the documentation.

No, you may not pay an additional fee to have your application expedited. The Board reviews applications in the order in which they are received. Please allow sufficient time for all your documents to be received and reviewed by the Board, particularly if you have a deadline for licensure.

Once you receive a letter from your assigned reviewer, you may contact your reviewer via telephone or email. Telephone calls and emails are typically returned within 48 hours.

Pursuant to Title 16 of the California Code of Regulations, Section 1306, you have one year from the date the application was received by the Board to complete your application. Applications not completed within one year are considered “abandoned” and may be confidentially destroyed, including all supporting documentation.

Once your medical license is issued, the Board’s website is automatically updated to reflect you have been issued a medical license and will list your license number. The wall certificate will be mailed to your address of record within 30 days.

Fingerprints

Yes, an applicant is required to provide a full set of fingerprints for purposes of conducting a criminal history record check. The Board may obtain and receive criminal history from the Department of Justice and the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.

If you reside in California, you will complete the Live Scan process, which is an electronic fingerprinting system with a subsequent automated background check and response. This system significantly expedites the fingerprint clearance process. The Live Scan operator will check your identification, input your personal descriptor information, capture your fingerprints electronically, and transmit the information electronically. Please select the pre-filled Request for Live Scan Service form that is specific to the license you are applying for. The electronic fingerprint process takes approximately 3 – 7 days.

Out-of-state applicants may complete the traditional “hard-card” manual fingerprint process or come to California to complete the Live Scan process. Hard-card manual fingerprints must be completed by a certified fingerprint roller or qualified law enforcement personnel and entered on the federal standard fingerprint card, form FD-258. Most local law enforcement offices carry these cards; if yours does not, please contact the Board at (916) 928-8390 to request a set be mailed to you. The hard-card review process takes approximately 6 – 8 weeks.

If you live out-of-state, you will automatically receive a set of “hard-card” manual fingerprint cards once you have submitted your application and fees to the Board. If you have already submitted your fees and application but have not received the fingerprint cards, you may contact the Board at (916) 928-8390, to request that fingerprint cards be mailed to you.

No, Federal law allows a Criminal Records Report to be released only to the requesting agency. You will need to undergo the fingerprinting and criminal history check process again specifically for the Board.