For questions regarding this information please email: Militarycredential@dhhs.nc.gov
Please read the entire page before applying here.
In North Carolina, an individual with military training and experience may qualify for an NC EMS credential under N.C.G.S. § 93B-15.1.
The new law allows credentialing to those individuals who have been awarded a military occupational specialty and have completed each of the following at a level substantially equivalent to or exceeding the requirements for an NC EMS credential:
- Completed a military EMS program of training, completed testing or equivalent training and experience, and performed in the occupational specialty;
- Have engaged in the active practice of EMS skills for at least two of the five years preceding the date of the application;
- Have not committed any act in any jurisdiction that would have constituted grounds for refusal, suspension, or revocation of a license to practice that occupation in this State at the time the act was committed;
- Have no pending complaints; and
All relevant experience, whether paid or volunteer, full-time or part-time, will be taken into consideration.
Under N.C.G.S. § 93B-15.1, an individual is required to:
- Complete the N.C.G.S. § 93B-15.1 application for equivalency;
- Provide official, notarized documentation, such as a U.S. Department of Defense Form 214 (DD-214), or similar substantiation, attesting to the applicant’s military occupational specialty certification and experience;
- Provide written proof of military training and/or experience to include any certificates, transcripts or other documents required by the NCOEMS Education Unit to verify that the submitted education/training is equivalent to current education standards for NC EMS professionals; and
- Federal fingerprint check packet, if required.
Once the items listed above are received by NCOEMS, an applicant will receive written verification within 15 days of receipt that they either meet the NC standards or not.
Applicants requesting credentialing under N.C.G.S. § 93B-15.1 can bypass requirement #3 listed above by:
- Successfully passing the NCOEMS State EMS exam; or
- Submitting an active and valid National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians or another state’s credential.
Click on each icon to see the requirements for each branch
Applicants will still be required to complete the application for equivalency as well as the federal fingerprint check if required. Only those applicants that qualify for the equivalency outlined in N.C.G.S. § 93B-15.1 are eligible to take the State exam without first successfully completing an NCOEMS-approved educational program.
FEES
There are no fees imposed by the NCOEMS for the military equivalency application process. There are two fees that are imposed by other agencies:
- The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) charges a $38.00 fee for the federal fingerprint check. The $38.00 fee is collected by NCOEMS prior to submitting the fingerprint card to the SBI because NCOEMS is invoiced monthly by the SBI for the checks they complete for NCOEMS.
- If an individual chooses to take the EMS State exam in lieu of providing their education transcripts (or if their education transcripts don’t qualify them for an NC credential), Scantron charges a $68.00 fee for taking the State exam. That fee is paid directly to Scantron prior to taking the exam.
Federal fingerprint checks completed at another time, for a different agency for different reasons (security clearance, etc.) are not accepted in lieu of the NCOEMS federal fingerprint check. Having a security clearance does NOT exempt an individual from the criminal record check process.
Some requirements of the legal recognition process will be waived for those qualifying under N.C.G.S. § 93B-15.1, such as affiliation or residency within North Carolina, while other requirements will remain such as the criminal record check process as listed under 10A NCAC 13P .0511.
